Drywall built America faster, but contractors knew what homeowners were giving up.

Traditional three-coat plaster walls were engineered with a laminated system that gave them compressive strength closer to soft concrete than modern drywall. Plaster's dense mass reduces sound ...

Dear James: We are planning a substantial room addition to our dream home. We are not on a tight budget, and we want everything done right. Should we use plaster walls or standard drywall walls? — ...