Colonial Home Style Guide

Colonial Homes

According to Wikipedia, a colonial house is a style that was popular in America from 1690 to 1830. Colonial homes were built by wealthy Americans in New England and the Southern colonies. The style drew much of its influence from the Italian Renaissance style. The first basic colonial house, in the 1600s, was a one story two room (hall and parlor) house with a central chimney. This evolved into a two story colonial home, essentially a four room building. By 1700, the salt-box evolved with a shed-like addition on the back. By 1740, the shed had become a full story, or a four-on-four room house. This, with a central hall with stair case, is the basic colonial house plan outline. The standard Colonial design, a symmetrical front -- with a central door and two windows on either side and five windows across the second floor -- remains the most popular architectural plan in the United States today.

Characteristics of a Colonial Home

A symmetrical, square shape

A central door

Paired chimneys

Medium pitched roof

Straight lines of windows on the first and second floor

Often a decorative crown above the door and flattened columns to either side of it

The door leads to an entryway with stairway and hall aligned along the center of the house and all rooms branch off of these

Colonial Home Websites

About: Colonial Homes

Pictures of Colonial Homes from around the U.S.

Colonial House Plans Style Information

Colonial Houses History

The Rise Of The Colonial Revival Style

Colonial/Federalist architecture

Colonial Homes on HGTV

Colonial Style typified

Colonial Home Design Books on Amazon: