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Gothic Revival 1840-1865
Occasionally we find a frame two story house with
pronounced Gothic detailing but built before the Civil War: these
are Gothic Revival houses and are distinct from post Civil War
"Victorian" designs because of their smaller size, wood
construction and greater reliance on symmetry. But they are distinctly
Gothic, having no Classical features or details, a steeply pitched
roof, usually cross-gabled, a vertical emphasis sometimes conveyed
by board and batten siding, and wooden scrollwork in the gables
and on porches. The plan is usually irregular with more than one
porch; chimneys are tall and may include ceramic chimney pots.
Windows and doors will often feature pointed arches or label moldings
and diamond paned window glazing
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Roseland Cottage in Woodstock, CT, is New
England's best-known Gothic Revival house. Built in 1846
for John Chandler Bowen and designed by Joseph Wells, an
English architect, it epitomizes the new Gothic spirit.
The siding is board and batten (vertical boarding with thin
molding laid over the seams), dormers and pinnacles abound
and even the fence carries Gothic motifs. Now owned by the
Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities,
Roseland Cottage is opened as a house museum.
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In 1848, Vermont's Senator Justin Smith Morrill built this
asymmetical Gothic cottage in Stratford, VT. The siding is
flush-boarded and colored to look like sandstone. Note the
Tudor-arched entrance and bay windows, which were first used
in this style. This house is now open to the public. |
The principal American advocates of the Gothic Revival were Andrew
J. Downing, one of the first landscape architects, and Alexander
J. Davis, an architect who co-authored several books and articles
on the importance of Gothic for the domestic retreat. Gothic houses
are integrated into the landscape; Downing initiated the interest
in both Gothic forms and in ornamental horticulture. He envisioned
the house as a haven away from the industrializing city, ideal
for the raising of children.
Earth tones are the appropriate exterior colors, such as warm
reds, browns and yellows. Trim is picked out in a complementary
color. Interior plans vary widely with woodwork finished in varnish.
Decorative elements are drawn from English medieval sources copied
into 19th century publications of designs.
While influential, well-preserved examples of pre-Civil War Gothic
Revival houses are relatively rare.
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Landscaping was always a part of a well-designed Gothic house-setting:
note the slight rise of ground and circular drive that enhance
this site. This house in Montague, MA was built before the
Civil War. (Photo by James Mathews) |
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