About Kathy Holtz
Kathy Holtz is an architectural historian with a master’s degree in Historic Preservation and worked on the award winning team that produced Washtenaw County’s Histweb, as well as Heritage Tours for the county. She specializes in architectural history, research and survey work, National Register of Historic Places nominations, house, building, and farm histories, Historic American Building Survey (HABS) reports and other historic surveys. In addition, she has credentials as a landscape designer with experience in the rehabilitation of dozens of landscapes for historic structures.
What is Historic Preservation?
Historic Preservation can refer to the preservation of anything from small or large artifacts, such as an arrowhead or a piece of furniture, to the preservation of houses, gardens, landscapes, districts, corridors, and heritage areas. Historic Preservation is an important component of urban and rural planning. It usually includes such components as surveying historic areas, creating historic districts, documenting historic buildings, rehabilitating (recycling) historic buildings or areas, Brownfield redevelopment, as well as many other activities. It results in a reduction of urban sprawl, leaves precious green space intact, and makes enormous economic sense. According to an analysis done by the Michigan Historic Preservation Network, assisted by the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office, "between 1971 and 2001 over $819 million were privately invested in state and federal rehabilitation tax credit projects (RTCs), creating 22,250 jobs, and a total economic impact of $1.7 billion." See www.mhpn.org, Economic Impact Report.
Architectural Styles
The following are recognized styles among architectural historians. Many more styles exist, but these are the most familiar.
Greek Revival: 1820-1865
Greek Revival, known as America’s first national style, generally consists of elements found on Greek Temples and applied to houses, churches, and other buildings. Such details include columns (round or square), frieze boards, frieze windows, wide corner boards, pilasters, and entablatures (used over doorways and mantels). Wood was often the material of choice for the applied components of the style and was employed on structures of wood, stone, or brick, particularly in the Midwest.
Greek Style Examples
Gothic Revival: 1830-1860
The Gothic Revival style came into being due in part to the publishing of Alexander Jackson Downing’s books on style and lifestyles. He collaborated with Alexander Jackson Davis to write the book Cottage Residences in 1842, and in 1850 he completed The Architecture of Country Houses. The style employed pointed arched windows, steeply pitched gables, decorated vergeboards, and other elements derived from churches and cathedrals of the gothic era. He included the concept of incorporating gardens and landscaping into the house design as well.
Gothic Revival Style Examples
Italianate style: 1840-1880
The Italianate style became popular in the Midwest during the late 1850s until 1880. Brackets under the eaves of a building are a telltale sign of the Italianate style, as well as ornate details. Arched windows and often elaborate window lintels were also a part of the design approach. Frequently the houses and buildings in this style were of brick, especially within business districts. The massing for the Italianate was often a cube, sometimes with a wing addition. The closely related Italianate Villa style (1830-1880) featured an "L" or a "T" shaped floor plan with an integrated tower soaring above the structure (see photo at right).
Italianate Style Examples
Queen Anne: 1880-1900
Generally known in lay terms as "Victorian," the Queen Anne style included exuberant ornamentation and decoration partly as a result of the availability of the jigsaw during the Industrial Revolution. During this period, wealthy businessmen built ostentatious mansions by which to distinguish themselves. The style is characterized by large, and at times massive houses, with many roof lines, irregular footprints, towers, many types of siding and decoration, and numerous and varied porches. Simpler Queen Anne style homes were built as well, sometimes with only a bit of decorative wood shingles in the gable ends, contrasting with horizontal boards on the rest of the house.
Queen Anne Style Examples
Colonial Revival: 1895-1910
The Centennial International Exhibition was celebrated in Philadelphia in 1876, and was in essence the first United States World’s Fair. A few years later in 1893 the Columbian Exhibition in Chicago took place, and in both cases, renewed appreciation was promoted for the styles of the founding fathers. Classical was with us once more. The houses that emerged had elements such as Palladian windows, numerous gables, columns, and pediments. Note these features on the houses below.
Colonial Style Examples
Craftsman Area: 1890-1940
The Craftsman Era or the American Arts and Crafts movement happened in part as a reaction to the ostentation of the Queen Anne style and to mass production. William Morris, an English furniture maker, was a proponent who sought to reconnect the designer with the craftsman, whom he believed had been degraded and separated during the Industrial Revolution. He promoted the use of natural materials such as stained oak, and incorporated sturdy, modest design and simple lines. Under his influence, the movement spread to include house types such as the bungalow, which means "small house," and the foursquare. Some features of the Craftsman Era include exposed rafters, deep eaves, dormers, and wide low-slung porches.
Craftsman Style Examples
