Monographs Archives - Page 12 of 13

Architectural Monographs: Historic Architecture of Marblehead, Massachusetts

Posted on June 21, 2013October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

The little town of Marblehead, Massachusetts lies on the coast just north of Boston, replete with humble yet beautiful early American architecture. This picturesque settlement was built upon the rocky coastline, resulting in meandering streets and tiered houses with charming, oddly-shaped yards. Volume IV, Issue I of the White Pine Architectural Monographs details some of the most notable historic buildings in this four-mile-long peninsular town.

Wooden clapboard houses with gable or gambrel roofs and brick chimneys are the most common type that can be seen throughout the town, but many different early architectural typologies are present. Several houses date to before the year 1700, though many have been altered in the centuries since.

This historic record notes the Lee Mansion as “one of the finest mansions in New England of its period,” and celebrates the “exceedingly graceful spire” of Abbot Hall. However, “in a word, austerity is the distinguishing characteristic of building in Marblehead.”

Read more at the White Pine Monograph Library.

Architectural Monographs: Colonial Architecture of the Eastern Shore of Maryland

Posted on June 14, 2013October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

The simpler Colonial structures of the Eastern United States are often overshadowed by the larger, more famous ones, but though they may be less ornamental, they stand as beautiful examples of the strong, sturdy and practical building methods of early Americans. In Volume III, Issue VI of the White Pine Monographs, these structures are examined and celebrated.

“Founded in 1632 by Lord Baltimore, Maryland in many ways exhibits in its architecture the tendencies of the Cavalier stock that came with him to America to escape persecution abroad. There is no feeling of arrogance or ostentation about the work; in fact, rather a refinement that denotes gentility; but, lacking the spirit of thrift possessed by the Puritans, their houses possess a spaciousness not usually found in the North.”

The Eastern Shore of Maryland contains many quaint old towns where these early structures can be seen, many still owned by the descendants of those who built them. One such plantation, Beverly, sit on an estate of over 1600 acres – or did, at the time of writing this account in 1918. Read author Charles A. Ziegler’s musings on Beverly and other buildings at the White Pine Monograph Library.

Architectural Monographs: Early American Doorways

Posted on June 7, 2013October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

The doorways of colonial houses were the most ornamental part of virtually any exterior, and there can be a considerable variation from one home to the next. Eighteenth century houses in New England, particularly Massachusetts, feature beautifully wrought doorways typically carved from Eastern White Pine.

Volume VII, Issue II of the White Pine Monographs details the different types of doorways seen in these homes. Written in 1921, this historical record provides photographs from that period of homes built from the late 1600s through the mid 1800s that are still standing today.

The doorways featured in this issue are classed according to the simplicity of their design. Writes the author, “The subjects resolve themselves into two categories: those which are mere ornamental frontispieces, applied to the buildings, and those in which the more complex treatment of a doorway sheltered by a porch is used. The average Colonial house was a simple boxlike mass, relieved by decorative treatment of the door and cornice. The proportion of the mass, and the shape, placing and division of the windows were the only other features over which the builder had control to influence his design.”

Architectural Monographs: The Early Dwellings of Nantucket

Posted on May 29, 2013October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

Dramatic, intricately detailed doorways, captain’s walks and white picket fences are among the iconic features of historical houses on the quaint island of Nantucket, located off the coast of Massachusetts. Though today it’s a quiet village, populated mostly by tourists and part-timers with summer vacation homes, it was once a bustling community. Nearly four hundred years after it was settled, Nantucket is home to some of the finest surviving examples of 18th and 19th-century New England architecture, with decidedly sea-influenced flavor.

Volume III, Issue VI of the White Pine Architectural Monographs details these homes, providing a beautiful array of historic photographs of the island’s standout architecture. Written in 1917, this account of early Nantucket dwellings reveals the strong Greek influences seen in majestic white columns as well as seaport practicalities, like the rooftop captain’s walks giving residents a view of the water.

“There is a certain rule-of-thumb following of Greek precedent, influenced by hands and hearts which have builded many ships; a certain tightness, of ship-shape-ness: newel posts rails etc., suggest the crude but strong and rugged work of the ship’s carpenter. They look as if they had weathered many a salty storm and stress, yet inexpensive – there is no ostentatious display.”

“As Quakerism declined, and fortunes began to be made rapidly in whalebone and oil, the wealthy ‘Sea Captains’ built more imposing mansions, such as the two porticoed houses on Main Street at the corner of Pleasant Street.”

Read more about these structures at the White Pine Architectural Monograph Library.

Architectural Monographs: A $12,000 White Pine House Contest

Posted on May 17, 2013October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

A 1917 architectural contest challenged entrants to design a residence almost entirely made of Eastern White Pine, including the exterior siding, window frames and casings, doors, brackets and mouldings, for a family with an annual income of $5,000 (roughly $88,500 in today’s dollars.) Detailed in Volume III, Issue IV of the White Pine Historical Monographs preserved by NeLMA, the contest left the architectural style and layout of the house “to the ingenuity of the designer.”

The house was to cost $12,500 and be fit for a family “of taste and refinement.” The Monograph shows the plans for the top designs, with first prize awarded to a stately design with spacious gardens, beautiful views from each room, and “a perception of charm and imagination to an unusual degree.”

Some of the beautiful details that can be seen in these home plans include carefully wrought trim, cornices and columns, as well as interior elements like mantels, which were generally the centerpiece of any well-appointed home. As was befitting for the time, the homes included servants’ quarters as well as living space for family members and guests. See them all up close at the Monograph Library.

Architectural Monographs: Early Dutch Houses of New Jersey

Posted on May 10, 2013October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

On the banks of the Hackensack River in New Jersey stand beautiful colonial houses with quaint gambrel roofs, wide overhanging eaves, and broad, flat walls made of brown stone. While these houses have been deemed ‘Dutch Colonial’, that term isn’t entirely accurate. These homes, built in the 17th and 18th centuries, are entirely unique, owing to Dutch sensibilities, the building materials available in this New Jersey landscape and the virtually unlimited labor that came about due to a large influx of slaves to the region in the late 1600s.

Practicality dictated many of the architectural elements of early Dutch Houses of New Jersey. The overhanging eaves divert water from the walls of the buildings to prevent washing out the clay joints in the masonry. But there are plenty of stunning details that are purely ornamental, such as the intricately wrought medallions (brackets used under cornices) seen in some of the houses’ gables.

In Volume XI, Issue III of the White Pine Architectural Monographs, these Dutch houses are explored. Written in 1925, this architectural record details the aesthetic qualities of these homes, how they were built, and provides photos of notable examples, such as the Hendrick Brinkerhoff House in Teaneck, pictured above.