Henry Parker

With its asymmetrical roof and restrained facade, the Saltbox house has become an icon of New England’s coastal areas. When Colonial-era families first developed the style, though, they weren’t aiming for aesthetic appeal. The Saltbox architectural style was born as an adaptation to the harsh realities of early Colonial life. Families learned to be inventive […]

With its complex structures and ornate embellishments, high-style British Victorian architecture conveys a distinct sense of luxury. To enjoy the beauty of this style for themselves, middle-class Americans of the era were inspired to find a more practical alternative. Enter the folk Victorian style. Built with a more inventive, eclectic approach, folk Victorian homes display […]

The words “Antebellum home” evoke visions of the grand, opulent mansions that often served as plantation homes throughout the Deep South. They’re homes like Gone With the Wind’s palatial Tara with its stately columns and broad, covered veranda. While certain traits characterize the Antebellum architectural style, the term covers a wide variety of Southern homes […]

When the Gothic Revival movement emerged in Europe, the buildings constructed displayed the same carved stone features as their Gothic predecessors. While many of these design features soon carried across the Atlantic, they were more likely to be hewn from wood. The result is a style known as Carpenter Gothic, also called Rural Gothic and […]