American Country Houses of the Thirties

With Photographs and Floor Plans

Lewis A. Coffin

• Editorial: Dover Publications
• Año: 2012
• ISBN:
  9780486136868
• Categoría: Architecture
• Categoría: History of Architecture

About 1912, a renaissance of interest in early American architecture occurred that claimed the attention of a broad cross-section of the culture. It was demonstrated not only by being a popular topic in books and magazines, but also by the public's passion for collecting American antique furniture, and by students and architects traveling through different regions of the nation and photographing the most notable architectural examples. In the 1930s, the classic constructions from this earlier time mingled with the new materials and efficient designs, and the great American country house was born.
This treasury showcases some of the finest American country houses produced during that unusually fruitful period. Culled from many of the best architectural firms of the time, the volume includes numerous detailed floor plans, lively sketches, and breathtaking photographs of exteriors and interiors. From simple cottages to functional family homes to sprawling estates, a wide variety of styles is represented. Celebrating the stately form, quiet technique, and balance and simplicity that is at the heart of every well-built American country house, anyone interested in history, art, and architecture will find in this collection an inspiring vision.

American Country Houses of Today

by LEWIS A. COFFIN, A.I.A.

IN 1934, the date of publication of this new volume of American Homes of Today, twenty-two years have elapsed since the first volume of this series. A study of the progress of the design of the country house in America as illustrated in these publications illustrates the tremendous improvement in such work. In 1912 the country house which was worth anything whatever architecturally was either an antique or the work of a very few outstanding architects. The work of American architects in the country house field in general was stiff, undeveloped, and without the flavor of our best traditions. It has always seemed that the firm of McKim, Mead and White did more to bring about a renaissance in country house design than any other firm of architects. The James L. Breese house in Southampton, Long Island, is one of the first really great country houses, the design of which is based on old American precedent. In Virginia and Maryland and other parts of the central eastern South were old Georgian homes, not modern in plan or equipment, but as good as anything in the world architecturally. In New England and other parts of the Northeast were our Colonial houses, mostly in wood construction, but fresh, clean-cut and excellently designed. In California and in Florida to a small extent, a Spanish Colonial style provided a tradition as yet unappreciated. All these American precedents were practically unknown twenty years ago.

About 1912 the attention of architects, magazines, book publishers and students turned towards an interest in early American architecture. The public began collecting American antique furniture. Architects and students went through the Georgian South and the Colonial North photographing and measuring. A great bibliography of Early American Architecture was produced and the renaissance of the American country house architecture was under full way.

If one will look back over the development of the next twenty years until 1932, a gradual absorption of this great fund of tradition is apparent. The vocabulary of the past was successfully used by the architects of this period in developing designs and details adapted to modern requirements. And in...