Welcome to...
Companion PowerPoint
Presentation for the
Introduction to Housing
textbook
Vernacular (Folk) Houses
Built for shelter with little concern for popular
styles
Traditional—based on a local model & uses
local materials & construction techniques
• Modern Vernacular—more typical of
vernacular architecture today
uses readily available materials, not
necessarily of local origins
uses traditional construction
techniques
is based on a variety of models
Early colonization:
Adapted European concepts
Centered around a large fireplace (heat,
light & food preparation)
Stone, but wood better choice in America
Simple, small & built by family members
Hall and Parlor Cottage
• Fireplace
• Steep roof
• Gabled roof with the sloped sides parallel
to the front door (side as opposed to front
gable)
• Hall was the public & work area while the
parlor was used for sleeping
Cape Cod
• Most popular in the 18th century; major
revival in mid-20th century
• Story and a half with side gable &
centered front door
• Dormers facing the front & symmetrically
placed windows
Georgian Style
• Hired builders—more attention to
aesthetics
• Divided interior spaces
• Primary style until early 19th century
• Inspired by classic Greek & Roman design
• Windows were large with numerous panes
• Entry door capped by decorative crown
Greek Revival Style
• In the early 19th century the ideal home was a
single family detached homestead surrounded
by a garden
• Importance of the home in the new democracy—
search for identity
• Attracted to the birthplace of democracy—
Greece
• Popular up to Civil War
• Lower slope & front gable
• Porches with columns; half-round windows
Gothic Revival Style
• Competition between styles in the 1840s
due to plan books
• More picturesque—muted colors instead
of white
• Irregular shape
• More decorative
• Steeply pitched roof with decorative barge
boards on the gable ends
Mid-19th century innovations
• Commercial saw mills—stud frame construction
(2” x 4”) & machine made nails—could have
more angles: light frame construction
• Cast iron stove that could be located out of view;
less impact on design
• Central heating
• Railroads providing shipment of lumber &
millwork (architectural trim & decorative
elements)
Victorian Era Home Styles
• Modern suburban homes
• House should have an organic form & be
set in a suburban setting with trees &
gardens (middle class)
• Promoted by plan books & land
developers—time of self-improvement &
progress
• Complex exterior forms and roof lines to
add aesthetic interest
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Multiple gables, towers & bay windows
Wide porches
Variety of siding types
Elaborately detailed millwork
Interiors were also heavily ornamented
with elaborate woodwork & multiple
special purpose spaces
• Hand work
Craftsman or Bungalow Style
• Early 20th century—reaction to excess
• Home economics & smaller families
• Smaller & simpler homes—one or one and
a half story set on high basement
• Low pitched roof with wide eaves
• Porches under main roof supported by
columns
• Natural materials & colors
Prairie Style
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Credited to Frank Lloyd Wright
Usually 2 stories
Low pitched hipped roof wide overhangs
Horizontal focus
Many variations
Tudor Style
• Eclectic styles of the 1920s
• English-trained architects
• Development of brick veneer &
stucco construction techniques
• Variety of steeply pitched roofs
• Tall windows
• Prominent chimney
Post WW 2
• Pent up housing demand
• Development of large subdivisions
• Smaller homes on larger lots—allowed
long side of house to face street with
space for a car along side the house
Ranch Style
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Prevalent style today, with many variations
Inspired by western ranch homes
Started as one level & attached garage
Set lower to the ground with little if any
exposed basement
• Sprawling in form
• Side facing gables with low slopes & wide
eaves
Today
• No single style has replaced the ranch
• Many variations— split level, raised ranch
& two story ranch
• Older styles also selectively incorporated
into housing
Focus now:
Construction & detail
Alternate building techniques
Green materials
Energy efficiency
Thread—importance of housing to families &
American society over time
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