American Foursquare House was fashionable from the mid-1890s to the late 1930s. It is a type of Victorian-style house that features a two-story boxy shape, a low-pitched hip roof, dormers, and a front porch with a pediment. The exterior is often finished with brick, stone, stucco, or wood shingles. Foursquare houses come in many styles, including Colonial Revival, Prairie, Craftsman, and Spanish Revival. Interiors usually incorporate four rooms on each floor and a central winding staircase. It is a predecessor to the modern day bungalow and was characterized by its boxy shape, symmetrical facade, two stories, and hipped roof. It was an economical design that was popular among the middle and working classes. The style was ubiquitous in the United States and features details like double-hung windows, two rooms per floor, and inviting, wraparound porches. Its association with the modern bungalow and Craftsman style (which followed it) created an American architectural look that is easily recognizable today.
The American Foursquare house was plain, often integrated with handcrafted "honest" woodwork. Its most popular features included a front porch, a small hip roof, two-and-one-half stories, and a square shape. The main distinguishing features were the large central hall, the double-hung windows with upper and lower sashes, and a variety of exterior finishes, such as stucco and stone. Interior features included built-in cabinets, a fireplace, and a mix of darker wood trims and lighter wall colors. The interior rooms typically featured a living room, dining room, kitchen, family room, study, and sometimes a sunroom.
This style includes elements of the Prairie School and the Craftsman styles. Its defining characteristics include a wide, low-pitched, and often hipped roof; a roof overhang; and windows that move across the façade in a horizontal band. Other features commonly present are porches, low chimneys, and shingle siding. The Prairie School influence is seen in the building's details, geometry, and asymmetry. The Craftsman influence can be seen in the build's focus on craftsmanship and quality.
It is also sometimes called Transitional Pyramid. The American foursquare house is a popular vernacular house style from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The style is also sometimes called the Transitional Pyramid, because its form was transitional between the traditional house shape of previous centuries with its pitched roof and the more modern box-like shape of the ranch and so-called colonial style modern houses. The foursquare house is typically two stories tall, with a square footprint, hipped roof, two-and-one-half stories, and a prominent front porch. The vernacular style was typically constructed in wood and clapboard. In more affluent areas, foursquare houses were most often covered in brick or stucco.
the hallmarks American four square house include a basically square, boxy design, two-and-one-half stories high, usually with four large, boxy rooms to a floor, a center dormer, and a large front porch with wide stairs, usually located at the center of the front facade. It typically has a hipped or pyramid-shaped roof and overhanging eaves. The style is often associated with a high-pitched, hipped roof with projecting eaves and front porch with classical details. The interior of the house is usually designed in an L-shaped layout, often with the living spaces on the main floor and the bedrooms on the upper level.
The boxy shape provides a maximum amount of interior room space, to use a small city lot to best advantage in american foresquare house plans. It is also a great option for those looking to rebuild their home while keeping some original charm. The front of the house is square to the street, maximizing curb appeal. The roof is generally simple, often hipped, and often accompanied by a central dormer. The façade is usually symmetrical with Colonial Revival details such as quoins, classical columns, a front porch, and a pediment. The windows are usually double-hung sash, with a row of them sometimes topped off with rounded arches. The front door is usually placed in the center of the façade and has a decorative transom above it.
Other common features in american foursquare house included a hipped roof, arched entries between common rooms, built-in cabinetry, and Craftsman-style woodwork. Other elements may include bays/bows and windows, symmetrical features, columnar porches, and various other decorative details.The basement of an American foursquare house would usually include a large natural convection furnace. This type of furnace is a fuel-burning furnace that utilizes naturally occurring air currents to move heated air throughout the home. It also can be used to provide hot water in some cases.
American Foursquare Houses were built with a variety of materials such as bricks and wood frames. Generally, the houses have a rectangular shape with two stories, four rooms on each floor, a hip roof, and a full-width front porch. Interior features include sturdy wood floors, substantial woodwork, ornate mantels, and dividing walls between public and private spaces. The exteriors of American Foursquare Houses have usually been influenced by the popular architecture of the era in which it was built. While the style saw its peak of popularity between 1900 and 1930, examples of American Foursquare Houses are still being seen today. Later architects included built-in shelves and other facilities to make them even more stylish. The style of these houses featured large front porches, symmetrical shapes, dormer windows, and simple exterior decorations. Furthermore, they often included elements such as a centered front entrance, double hung windows placed in groups of four, and a hipped roof. By definition, all Foursquare Houses are two stories in height.
Large tracts of these houses exist in older urban areas. The foursquare house was most popular between roughly 1880 and 1930, during the early part of the 20th century. Its ubiquity was due to its practical yet calming design, blending elements of various popular architectural styles of the 19th century, including the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles. It was easy and affordable to build and offered more room for living areas than earlier simple, two-story box designs. Although they vary greatly in size and are often found in different shapes, American Foursquare houses generally feature two-and-a-half stories, a pyramidal or hip roof, two gables, tall second story windows, wide overhanging porches, brick or stone chimneys, and some level of exterior decoration. Notable features of the style include a distinct boxy profile, asymmetrical façade, and a center dormer or entryway. The houses often featured wood cladding, shingles, or horizontal clapboard, and details such as Palladian windows, sunburst designs, and decorative gables. Common locations for American Foursquare houses include Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Montana, and New York. Examples can also be found throughout the rest of the United States and Canada.
The American Foursquare style is occasionally rejuvenated in new developments, although its appeal is as a "traditional looking" style rather than a fully genuine one, often including modern 2-car attached garages and other features absent in originals, and normally built on larger lots than the traditional city street filled with Foursquares.
The American Foursquare is known for its boxy shape and simplicity. The style was featured in the Sears Modern Home catalog from 1908 through the 1940s. It is one of the most popular American styles today, with its timeless shape, its simple and symmetrical lines and its broad appeal. The style has also been updated for modern living, with features such as two-car garages and modern materials, while still retaining the classic features of the original style.
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