Architecture Styles USA: Pacific (Seattle)

This style is popular on the Pacific coast of the United States, including the city of Seattle. It is characterized by an asymmetrical shape, trim siding facades and wooden shingles, natural forest- or marine- colours facades. Many homes are located on the hills and have good views. The state of Washington is also full of old trees, which gives the home a special ambiance.

The facade can be additionally decorated with a decorative stone. The average size of the house has 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, cost about 300 thousand dollars.

Architecture styles USA: American Foursquare

American Foursquare – a style of architecture which was popular in the United States since the mid-1890s to the late 1930s. He has appeared as a reaction to the mass production of decorative elements in Victorian style as the most rational option.

A distinctive feature of style essentially square shape, two and a half floors. Almost always home has a large porch with stairs and square rooms and wooden arches between rooms in interior. In the basement, usually standing boiler. Finishing facades often performed from the siding or brick red (on the north).

This style includes elements of the Craftsman and Prairie styles. In general, this style is a “classic American”, that does not mean anything.

American Foursquare or Prairie Box was a post-Victorian style that shared many features with the Prairie style architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright. At the beginning of the 1900s and 1910s, Wright even designed his own version of the Foursquare on, including Robert M. Lamp House, A Fireproof House for $ 5,000.

Unlike other styles of houses, Wright’s version featured a more open floor plans are mainly achieved by removing or reducing the corridor between the entrance hall, living room and dining room. He has been inspired by other architects of the Prairie School, such as Walter Burley Griffin to develop Foursquare direction in the coming decades.

Later Foursquares often had the same type of interiors like bungalows with open floor plan, numerous built-in modules (racks, cabinets, wardrobes, benches) and a fireplace. Many of the buildings are decorated with tiled roofs, decorative cornices and other items taken from the Craftsman style of the Italian Renaissance and Spanish colonial architecture.

Architecture styles USA: French Eclectic (Chateau, Châteauesque)

Beautiful, graceful and usually very gorgeous (with French charm), built on the basis of architecture of Chateau looks great! It is against the background of these houses has been done most of the photos “in the style of the American Dream,” which depicted a family with two children, to enter into their new home.

The peak of the construction of these homes has fallen to 1915-1945 years, but continues to this day.

Decorating the exterior often made of decorative stone, the houses of the middle class was also present siding. In the more expensive options of houses in the style of French Eclectic were more complex roof and exterior decoration, as well as the arched doors and windows on the ground floor.

It is this style replaced in the southwest Ranch style. Houses in the style of French Eclectic here were adapted to the local standard spacious areas and become more like the elongated ranch.

Architecture styles USA: Low Country (Tidewater, Creol, French Plantation)

Low Country or Tidewater, which involves the construction on stilts, was formed in the US South because of the unusual geographical conditions. This style became popular in such marshy states like Florida and Georgia, allowing you to build a home is practically “on the water”.

It is widely used for the houses of French planters, therefore, has a third name – French Plantation. For small houses this style can be called Creole Cottage.

Another important characteristic – the iron roof, allowing numerous rains in the region as fast as possible to roll down. The roof can be not only gray, but also red color, which, however, is much more rare.

Also, this style is almost always mixed with the popular in the southern states Creole style, moreover, it is identical to it in many ways. Creole Cottage Style – a term that is used loosely type of folk architecture of the indigenous population in the US Gulf Coast (Creole language spoken in Haiti).

Style was dominant along the central Gulf Coast region in the US with about 1790 to 1840, in the former French colonies in states like Louise’s, Alabama, Mississippi.

It is believed that the style is also drawing from the styles of French Colonial and English colonial. In some of the former estates of the planters can be traced even style Greek Revival (look at the building with big columns).
The result is a style that is very eclectic, and it converges World History: English, French, Haitians and even the ancient Greeks. From the French home in the Low Country style got narrow and high windows, the Greeks – columns.
Features Low Country style

Construction is carried out on wooden stilts

The building, as a rule, is surrounded by a large veranda

Iron roof

Front color is white, but there are also bright variety – turquoise, pink, yellow, especially in the tourist areas of Florida

The front door is often glass inserts

Wide railing on the porch, lots of columns

Multiple windows

A small window in the attic in the middle of the front or embedded full window in the attic

Architecture styles USA: Second Empire (Mansard)

Charles A. Jordan House is an historic house in Auburn, Maine. The house was built in 1880 and added to the National Historic Register in 1974.

With its high mansard floors and decorative ornaments on the ridge of the roof of wrought iron Victorian home in Second Empire style look higher than they really are.

Despite a royal name in the US such houses usually have 2-4 bedrooms and a small enough area. Also a lot of in the style of Second Empire are Condo – small apartment house. Widespread they received throughout the United States, almost without exception.

Features style Second Empire:
Rounded cornices
Brackets under the eaves, balconies, bay windows,
Patterned slate roof
Decorative wrought iron ornaments on the ridge of the roof
Towers with domes
Paired columns
High windows on the ground floor
A small porch in front of the main entrance

 

History of Second Empire style of architecture:
Second Empire is also known under the names of the Mansard style and Napoleon 3 style. He was born in France during the reign of the emperor of the same name (the nephew of Napoleon Napoli) and lasted from 1848 to 1870. Here it is most often used for large architectural structures and residential buildings in the main streets of Paris.

In the US, this style became popular and spread to private households. Here at home in this style were built in the period from 1860 to 1900. It is based on the style of the Renaissance, but rather eclectic as mixed a lot of European traditions. In the US, he also changed, arranged under the standard format in the cottage style of the American dream.

Architecture styles USA: Federal (Adam)

Federal architectural style was a favorite of the United States in the period from 1780 to 1820 – during the reign of the first three presidents: George Washington, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Thus, in the memory of Americans he remained as the most patriotic, traditional American home.

However, the parts or elements are often included in the current middle class American homes and later period.

Look past the vinyl siding, popular throughout the country, and you can see the elegant and luxurious elements posing as columns, decoration of windows and doors, trim brick facades and large balconies in the Greek style.

 

Difficult question: How to distinguish a Georgian from the Federal and Greek Revival?

Remember that the first was a Georgian style (1690-1830), then Federal (1780-1820) and followed Greek Revival (1825 – 1860). On the criterion of age, you can see that the houses that were built earlier are usually more modest appearance, a smaller area and ceiling height.

Also be aware that Georgian style – is s the style of the colonists, Federal – to recapture the freedom of Americans, and Greek Revival – the style of the first serious enrich.

Like many styles of America’s architecture, the Federal has its roots in the British Isles. Three Scottish brothers with the surname Adam adapted the pragmatic Georgian style, adding a neo-classical details.

Newly formed in United States is in need of an elegant architectural style that would become a benchmark for public and residential buildings. Thus he became the North-East.

Features style Federal

The two-storey rectangular building

Low-pitched roof

Raised foundations (brick)

The windows are arranged strictly symmetrical around the front door

The windows are arranged in symmetrical rows

Narrow side windows, elongated, divided into squares

Decorative roof or decorative semicircular crown above the front door

 

Shutters

 

Features Federal style in the interior

– Graceful decorative ornaments carved from wood

– Curved open staircase in classical style

– Decorative plaster for decorating fireplaces, walls, ceilings

Architecture styles USA: Spanish Colonial (Revival)

Very atmospheric Spanish Revival-style was popular in the US in 1915-1940. This is a lightweight version of the Mission Revival style designed for the construction of private homes for the middle class.

This style is common on the South, from California to Texas inc. Arizona and Nevada. This style is very eclectic and often collects a Spanish Baroque, Moorish and Gothic style under one roof. Classic characteristics of the house – plastered exterior, tile or flat roof, arched doors and windows, decoration tiles.
In contrast to the Mission Revival shades of exteriors and interiors are lighter, pillars – narrower, arcades – small or nonexistent. But there are small balconies, covered verandas, beautiful gardens decorated with potted plants.

Features Style Spanish Revival

Construction of adobe, clay, plaster

Asymmetric facade

The flat gable or hip roof, covered with tiles

Arched doors, windows and passages

Ornate tiles with ornaments and mosaics

Wrought iron, carved wood furniture

Architecture styles USA: victorian Italianate

During the 1840s when the Victorian era architecture in the United States lived its golden age,  Italianate style became as so popular as marvelous. Most houses were built in the period up to 1875.

Thouse houses ith low roofs, wide eaves, and especially decorative brackets under the roof was gladly accepted by people of the USA. Often this house also had a small tower with a dome on the roof, which was panoramically glazed.
The style quickly spread throughout the United States with the help of large amounts of published brochures (cataloges), with which ones you can order individual items or even the entire project of the house by mail.
History of Italianate style of architecture
Italianate style originated in Britain in the early 1840s. For the previous 200 years, English homes are usually built in a very formal and classic style without any major changes. But in the wake of a variety of popular and social movements related to the complete rethinking lifestyles began to change and architecture.

 

In the US, the builders were trying to recreate the Italian villas of the Renaissance had on the basis of Victorian architecture and local, familiar materials. As a result, it is the US style Italiante received the greatest recognition.
Italian architecture in the United States did not know of class boundaries. High tower on the house soon became a sign not only of houses for hereditary aristocrats, but also for people just risen from the lowest stratum of society. Thanks to the new methods of machine production.
Sources say that Italianate style became a favorite for two reasons:

– Houses in this style were built of different building materials, different for each region. Thats why they are accessible for people with modest budgets, who used what was cheaply in their city;

– New technologies in the production of iron allowed to decorate the house presentable and inexpensive very simply.

Italianate style was of the most popular, untill 1870s. It also was popular among the public architecture. Train stations, town halls, libraries in Italianate style, you can find all over the US.

After the 1870s, architectural fashion turned to the later Victorian styles such as Queen Anne.
Features Italianate style:

Low or even flat roof

Tall, narrow windows with top moldings, often arched

High ceilings

2-3 floors

Wide, overhanging eaves with beautiful decorative brackets

Tower

Bay windows

Large double front doors, sometimes with glass over them or on both sides

Arch doors

Architecture styles USA: victorian Queen Anne

One of the most recognizable Victorian styles – Queen Anne-style, flourished in popularity since the late 1870’s to early 1910’s. Houses in this style, in the most, have a great amount of little detail, and a tower, and often painted in different nice colors.

With a strongly influenced by work of British architect Richard Norman Shaw, who maintained an idealistic image of an old English cottage and unrestrained decorative impulse, Queen Anne become a kind of “style-of-the-american-dream”.

 

Queen Anne-style house often have irregular floor plans (different for different floors), the complex structure of steep roofs and gables with sophisticated decorative ornaments.

High windows, bay windows, octagonal or round tower is often also present in this style. Porch can be semicircular, located in a corner of the house. The Queen Anne style is absolutely no rules for painting the exterior, so they can be any color.