Monographs Archives - Page 6 of 13

Architectural Monographs: The Town of Suffield, Connecticut

Posted on April 22, 2014October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

How would you picture the archetypal American home today? Maybe you envision a suburban neighborhood filled with nearly identical cookie-cutter houses with two-car garages and pristine lawns. Our ideas about what constitutes an iconically American residence have certainly changed since 1921, when this issue of the White Pine Series of Architectural Monographs was published. Focusing on the town of Suffield in Connecticut, it celebrates the Colonial “white house with green blinds” as the quintessential American home to which builders should aspire.

“Regardless of the many and varied kinds of houses we build, to satisfy architectural whims, the early tradition of the ‘white house with the green blinds’ is never entirely absent from our thoughts or from our instinctive desires,” writes author David E. Tarn. Some of those idyllic homes can be found a bit off the beaten path in Suffield, founded in 1670.

“A typical bit of New England history, this brief chronicle of the achievement of a group of determined colonists, who turned a wilderness into a town in less than twelve years. They wrought industriously and untiringly with their hands, and must have possessed a will to survive and to progress almost unbelievable in our present era of easy methods and ready-made necessities.”

Take a detailed look at these houses in Volume VII, Issue VI of the White Pine Monographs.

Architectural Monographs: The Classic Montpelier House, Maryland

Posted on April 10, 2014October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

Built sometime in the late 16th century, the ‘Montpelier’ house of Prince George County, Maryland was praised as a beautifully executed brick Colonial home in this 1930 edition of the White Pine Series of Architectural Monographs and still stands today, nearly a century later. It’s a great example of immaculately preserved early American craftsmanship, and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1970.

Officially known as the Snowden-Long House, the mansion was constructed for a family whose wealth came from the iron forging industry, and remained in ownership of that family until 1890. It’s notable not just for its age and historic value, but for the many stunning hand-wrought decorative architectural elements that can be found inside.

There’s the plaster entablature in the hall with its ornamental frieze of wheat, fruit and flowers, and the unusual southeast drawing room with its carved wood mantel, wainscot, china closet and cornice. The author of this monograph notes that one of the most successful features of the home’s interior design is the asymmetry, something that adds a lot of character and is not often seen in modern homes.

The Montpelier House was shown off to the public in 1976 as part of national bicentennial celebrations, and has since become a tourist attraction that can be rented out for weddings, conferences and other events. Read more at the White Pine Monograph Library.

Architectural Monographs: Churches in Eight American Colonies

Posted on March 17, 2014October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

The early churches in various American states differ in style from those in England – so where did the architects of the time gain their inspiration? This issue of the historic White Pine Monographs takes a look at the history of church architecture throughout eight early colonies, theorizing that the use of wood instead of stone, subtle details and a generally more delicate style came from architect James Gibbs, who published a book of designs of churches in 1728.

The specific churches pictured in this issue include St. Pauls in Edenton, North Carolina, Trinity Church at Swedesboro, New Jersey, The First Congressional Church at Bennington, Vermont and four more. They were built between 1736 and 1816, the oldest being the Edenton St. Pauls, which is considered “one of the most picturesque of the very early American churches” and was the scene of a second protest tea party.

Some of the architectural details on these various churches are explained in terms of practicality. For example, the church at Old Bennington, built in 1806, was influenced both by concerns about strong winds and recent changes in design trends. “The use of the open story in the spire is a bold endeavor at original design. This may be wellc considered as of purely America origin for such a design is impossible of execution in any other material than wood; the use of wood being largely confined on this side of the water. The columns structurally no doubt run through to the cornice and are strongly braced by the arches below the frieze. They are subject to quite a bending stress due to wind, a stress which would be impossible to provide against were they of stone.”

Architectural Monographs: Design for a Rural Library Building

Posted on March 11, 2014October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

A 1923 architectural competition challenged architects to design a rural library for a small American town of 2,000 residents, with an exterior made almost entirely of Eastern White Pine. One hundred and one submissions were received from all over the country and Canada, and “the general high standard and good taste displayed particularly in the large scale details were remarkable,” making it hard for the judges to choose a winner.

The library was to be located on a main street and contain a variety of rooms, including a delivery room, reference room, librarian’s office and work room, storage for books not in constant rotation, a children’s area and an upper-floor Local Historical Museum. The siding, corner boards, window sash, frames and casings, outside blinds, cornice boards, brackets, ornaments and moldings had to be made of Eastern White Pine.

To reflect the changing interior designs of the time, the judges asked that entrants avoid using interior partitions and left the room open and airy instead, using low bookcases as room dividers. The jury also sought designs that reflected the rural nature of the setting, and eliminated those that were too urban or suburban. The top submission is described as beautiful, simple and consistent, with details offering “a pleasing variety and a harmonious design.”

See all of the entries at the White Pine Monograph Library.

Architectural Monographs: Colonial Charleston Mansions

Posted on February 28, 2014October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

The grand homes of Charleston, South Carolina may be larger and more ornate than the simple New England structures typically celebrated in the historic White Pine Series of Architectural Monographs, but they carry the same sense of human scale and homeyness. Those qualities are put on display in this issue, highlighting several notable Colonial houses in the southern seaside city.

These homes may often be separated from passersby by massive iron gates topped with intimidating spikes, but they still feel welcoming thanks to their placement close to the street. The Miles Brewton Mansion (also known as the Pringle House) is one example, one of very few old houses that survived several disastrous fires throughout the city’s history.

The author of this monograph describes the qualities of this mansion and others that “astound Northerners,” including architectural details reminiscent of Tudor England and Spanish-style tiled roofs. Sturdy bricks and tiled roofs were adopted as time went on to make homes more fireproof. Other details described as unique Charlestonian features include many-sided bay windows.

Architectural Monographs: Colonel Robert Means House, New Hampshire

Posted on February 19, 2014October 21, 2021 by Jeff Easterling

One of the greatest pleasures of reading the historic White Pine Monograph series is looking at photographs of how historic buildings looked nearly a century ago, when most of these explorations of Colonial architecture were written. This issue from 1918 is no exception, taking a look at the ‘picturesque village’ of Amherst, New Hampshire. Today, this small town located 15 miles southwest of Manchester is still very much characterized by its historic New England flavor.

Amherst was an even smaller town when this edition was written – the influx of residents that have swelled the town’s population to a whopping 11,000 didn’t come until after World War II. The author of this monograph describes Amherst as ‘unspoiled,’ writing “There are electric lights and the general store and garage have gasoline for sale; but the woodbine twining around the electric light poles seems to give a symbolic suggestion of its real aloofness from the world.”

The home of Colonel Robert Means stars as one of Amherst’s most noteworthy historic structures, and it’s pictured throughout this issue. A single family inhabited the home for nearly 80 years leading to a minimum of change, and no dilapidation. In the early 1900s, the home still contained the furniture that it was filled with some twenty years after the Colonel’s death in 1846.