The house I lived un when I was little had a ceiling that was 16' at the sides, and 28' at the peak. We had a stove, but no ducting. The bedrooms were on the second floor, arranged around the perimeter.
Later, we had a 10' ceiling. The next place had a 9' ceiling. Today, someone told me that ceilings in new houses are 8'.
How are houses supposed to cool, when there is nowhere for the hot air to go?