A Field Guide to American Houses: The Definitive Guide to Identifying and Understanding America's Domestic Architecture

by Virginia Savage McAlester

Overview

The fully expanded, updated, and freshly designed second edition of the most comprehensive and widely acclaimed guide to domestic architecture: in print since its original publication in 1984, and acknowledged everywhere as the unmatched, essential guide to American houses.

This revised edition includes a section on neighborhoods; expanded and completely new categories of house styles with photos and descriptions of each; an appendix on "Approaches to Construction in the 20th and 21st Centuries"; an expanded bibliography; and 600 new photographs and line drawings.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780385353878
Publisher:	Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication date:	07/29/2015
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	880
File size:	145 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Virginia and Lee McAlester have both avocational and professional interests in architecture. Virginia, a Radcliffe graduate, attended the Harvard Graduate School of Design. She is a founding member and past president of the Historic Preservation League, Inc. (Dallas), and for nine years was Texas Advisor and a member of the Administrative Committee of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. She is co-author of The Making of a Historic District: Swiss Avenue. Lee, a geologist, is a professor at Southern Methodist University and was formerly Dean of the School of Humanities. From 1960 to 1973 he was Professor of Geology at Yale University. He has an active hobby interest in architectural history and has been involved in historic preservation in New England, Georgia, and the Southwest. The McAlesters live in Dallas, Texas.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents
How to Use This Book | Preface | Looking at American Houses | Style: The Fashions of American Houses | Form: The Shapes of American Houses | Structure: The Anatomy of American Houses | Pictorial Key and Glossary | Folk Houses | Native American | Pre-Railroad | National | Colonial Houses (1600-1820) | Postmedieval English | Dutch Colonial | French Colonial | Spanish Colonial | Georgian | Adam | Early Classical Revival | Romantic Houses (1820-1880) | Greek Revival | Gothic Revival | Italianate | Exotic Revivals | Octagon | Victorian Houses (1860-1900) | Second Empire | Stick | Queen Anne | Shingle | Richardsonian Romanesque | Folk Victorian | Eclectic Houses (1880-1940) | Anglo-American, English, and French Period Houses | Colonial Revival | Neoclassical | Tudor | Chateauesque | Beaux Arts | French Eclectic | Mediterranean Period Houses | Italian Renaissance | Mission | Spanish Eclectic | Monterey | Pueblo Revival | Modern Houses | Prairie | Craftsman | Modernistic | International | American Houses Since 1940 | Modern | Neoeclectic | Contemporary Folk | For Further Reference | Index

What People are Saying About This

How to Use This Book

Preface

Looking at American Houses

Style: The Fashions of American Houses

Form: The Shapes of American Houses

Structure: The Anatomy of American Houses

Pictorial Key and Glossary

Folk Houses

Native American

Pre-Railroad

National

Colonial Houses (1600-1820)

Postmedieval English

Dutch Colonial

French Colonial

Spanish Colonial

Georgian

Adam

Early Classical Revival

Romantic Houses (1820-1880)

Greek Revival

Gothic Revival

Italianate

Exotic Revivals

Octagon

Victorian Houses (1860-1900)

Second Empire

Stick

Queen Anne

Shingle

Richardsonian Romanesque

Folk Victorian

Eclectic Houses (1880-1940)

Anglo-American, English, and French Period Houses

Colonial Revival

Neoclassical

Tudor

Chateauesque

Beaux Arts

French Eclectic

Mediterranean Period Houses

Italian Renaissance

Mission

Spanish Eclectic

Monterey

Pueblo Revival

Modern Houses

Prairie

Craftsman

Modernistic

International

American Houses Since 1940

Modern

Neoeclectic

Contemporary Folk

For Further Reference

Index

Editorial Reviews

"Magisterial . . . The illustrated story of why our houses—great and humble and everything in between—look the way they do."
—Michael Tortorello, The New York Times
 
"Once you've pored through Virginia McAlester's photo-packed bible of American home design, you'll be able to identify the saltboxes, Dutch colonials, and brownstones lining your own street, and you'll understand the historical significance of each one."
—Tina Jordan, Entertainment Weekly
 
"The go-to resource for architecture spotters."
—Peter Terzian, Elle Décor
 
"Chronicles the past 400 years of American styles, from wigwam to mobile to modern."
—Alexandra Wolfe, The Wall Street Journal
 
"A classic."
—Pilar Viladas, House Beautiful
 
"Encyclopedic . . . For lovers of historic homes, this is a rich trove of not just details, but reasons for them."
—Susan Clotfelter, The Denver Post
 
"880 pages of scholarly wonder."
—D Magazine
 
"The definitive guide to American housing styles."
—Jim Weiker, The Columbus Dispatch
 
"Outstanding . . . Expanded and completely revised . . . Both scholars and average readers will find much to enjoy in this volume."
—Rebecca Vnuk, Booklist (starred review)

From the Publisher