Lexington’s Historic Resources: A Heritage in Architecture
1 Lexington’s Historic Resources: A Heritage in Architecture
Architectural Style Guide
Compiled from various sources including Mass. Sec’y of State, Architectural Heritage Education field guide (1980) Greater Portland Landmarks, Living with Old Houses (1975) Virginia and Lee McAlester, A Field Guide to American Houses (1993)
Lexington Historical Commission
Revised 08-18
2 Index of Styles ◦ (a) First Period Houses,1630 – 1730 ……………………………………… 4 ◦ (b) Georgian Style, 1720 - 1780 ……………………………………………. 6 ◦ (c) Federal Style, 1780 – 1830 ………………………………………………. 8 ◦ (d) Greek Revival, 1830 – 1860 ……………………………………………… 10 ◦ (e) Italianate, 1840 – 1880…………………………………………………….. 13 ◦ (f) Gothic Revival, 1840 - 1880 ……………………………………………… 15 ◦ (g) Mansard/Second Empire, 1855 – 1885 ……………………………. 17 ◦ (h) Stick Style, 1870 – 1890 .………………………………………………….. 19 ◦ (i) Shingle Style, 1880 – 1910 ………………………………………………… 21 ◦ (j) Queen Anne, 1875 – 1910 ……………………………………………….. 23 ◦ (k) Romanesque Revival, 1840 -1900 ……………………………………. 25 ◦ (l) Colonial Revival, 1885 – 1910 …………………………………………… 27 ◦ (m) Tudor Revival, 1900 – 1940 ……………………………………………. 30 ◦ (n) Arts & Crafts/Craftsman/Bungalow, 1905 – 1930 ……………. 32 ◦ (o) Dutch Colonial Revival, 1900 – 1940 ……………………………….. 34 ◦ (p) Spanish Colonial Revival/20th Century Eclectic, 1915–1940 36 ◦ (q) “Cape Cod,” 1930 – 1960………………………………………………… 38 ◦ (r) Mid-Century Modern, 1945 – 1970…………………………………… 41
3 First Period Houses, 1630 – 1730
Some things to look for are - steeply pitched, side-gabled roof with little or no eave overhang - no cornice detailing - small windows with narrow surrounds - vertical board doors - originally one room deep - First Period houses have always either been updated with later detailing or restored to their earlier appearance
4 First Period Houses, 1630 – 1730
Abraham Browne House, Watertown, ca. John Mason House, 1303 Massachusetts Avenue, 1698, restored, 1924 ca. 1715, altered ca. 1800
5 Georgian Style, 1720 - 1780
Some things to look for are - classical trim framing the front door – pediment, entablature and grooved (fluted) pilasters - house sits close to the ground - wide side walls - narrow, almost flat trim along the side edges of the roof (flush eaves) - windows with many small panes (12/12) - windows that fit tightly under front roof eaves - windows with small hip roofs over projecting window frames - large central chimney - row of glass panes (transom) set directly over the door
6 Georgian Style, 1720 - 1780
1377 Massachusetts Avenue, 1795 Buckman Tavern, 1 Bedford Street, 1710
7 Federal Style, 1780 - 1830
Some things to look for are - symmetrical appearance with flat, horizontal lines - two or four chimneys in gable end walls or set in from gable ends - windows usually spaced evenly, with shutters - occasional Palladian windows - delicate classical trim on windows and cornices - elaborate fan doorways, with side lights - occasional hip roofs - frequent brick construction
8 Federal Style, 1780 - 1830
517 Massachusetts Avenue, ca. 1830 782 Massachusetts Avenue, ca. 1833 177 Concord Avenue, ca. 1802
9 Greek Revival, 1830 - 1860
Some things to look for are Some things to look for are - pilasters at corners - pediment - a large porch across the entire front, with a pediment and entablature - entablature at front and side roof eaves - tall fluted columns with no moldings at the bottom - pilasters at corners - entrance with a row of glass panes (transom) at the top and long - entrance with a row of glass panes (transom ) at the top and long sidelights sidelights - small window panes (6/6) - long first floor windows in the front - entablature and pilasters that frame the doorway - pilasters at the corners with long panels inside
10 Greek Revival, 1830 - 1860
26 Hancock Street, c. 1840 14 Glen Road South, 1835, moved 1913
11 Greek Revival, 1830 - 1860
113 Concord Avenue, between 1830-1852; condo’d ca. 2001
12 Italianate, 1840 - 1880
Some things to look for are Some things to look for are - brackets at the roof edge, windows and porch - brackets at the roof edge, windows, tower and porch - round-arched windows - round or segmental- arched windows, some in pairs - windows with shelves at the top and tiny brackets at the bottom - windows with drip moldings - square posts on a long porch - deeply overhanging roof eaves - pilasters at corners with long panels inside - other classical features such as cornerblocks, railings (balustrades), pediments - one-story bay window and keystones in the arches - round arches in the door
13 Italianate, 1840 – 1880
89-91Bedford Street, 1851 Chandler House, 8 Goodwin Road, 1846
14 Gothic Revival, 1840 - 1880
Some things to look for are - steeply pitched roof with steep cross gables and dormers - decorated “vergeboards” or bargeboards - windows with pointed arches - one-story porch
15 Gothic Revival, 1840 - 1880
16 Hancock Street, probably 1840 186 Bedford Street, 1874
16 Mansard/Second Empire, 1855 - 1885
Some things to look for are - Mansard roof which can curve in, curve out or be straight-sided - windows with drip moldings - windows with shelves at the top and tiny brackets at the bottom - towers and bay windows - patterned slate on the roof - roof dormers that are almost flat and have rounded tops - a low, metal railing (cresting) along the top of the roof - Italianate trim: - brackets at the roof edge, windows and porch - round or segmental arched windows, sometimes in pairs
17 Mansard/Second Empire, 1855 - 1885
87 Waltham Street, 1870-75 5 Hancock Avenue, c. 1873
18 Stick Style, 1870 - 1890
Some things to look for are - diagonal, vertical and horizontal stickwork in trim, balconies and porches - high, steep roof - projecting eaves supported by exposed framing in gable end - many spindly chimneys - extensive porches with roofs supported by columns with diagonal braces
19 Stick Style, 1870 - 1890
36 Forest Street, c. 1886 39 Highland Avenue, 1887
20 Shingle Style, 1880 - 1910
Some things to look for are - walls covered completely with wooden shingles - roofs sweeping down over cave-like porch areas - broad gambrel or gable roofs - simple, narrow trim at the roof edges (flush eaves) - stonework with rough surfaces in the first story - rounded forms: towers, tower roofs, curved window tops (and sometimes sides) - thick porch posts – shingled or of stone
21 Shingle Style, 1880 - 1910
25 Oakland Street, 1887 7 Bennington Road, 1896
22 Queen Anne, 1875 - 1910
Some things to look for are - tower with a pointed roof - bay window with slanted sides underneath a rectangular projection - fancy wooden shingles in different patterns - vergeboards (hanging from the porch roof) that are made of solid pieces of wood - porch posts with rounded shapes - brackets with holes in them - doors with glass in the upper part
23 Queen Anne, 1875 - 1910
2016 Massachusetts Avenue, 60 Bloomfield Street, 1893 16 Oakland Street, 1888 between 1890-1903
24 Romanesque Revival, 1840 -1900
Some things to look for are - round topped arches over windows, porch support, entrance - masonry walls with rough-faced, squared stonework - round towers with conical roofs - asymmetrical facade
25 Romanesque Revival, 1840 -1900
Oakmount, Hayes Estate, Meriam Hill, 1884-1941 Hancock School, 33 Forest Street, 1891
26 Colonial Revival, 1885 - 1910
Some things to look for are - oversized features – huge dormers, large porches, wide entrances with large fanlight and decorated sidelights - two-story rounded bay windows on either side of the front door - extensive use of classical details: - windows with single panes in the bottom and small panes in the top - railings (balustrades) over porches and along decks - pediments with many shapes, especially in dormers - many columns - Palladian arched windows and oval windows - entablature and decoration at cornice - smooth columns in the porch - corner pilasters
27 Colonial Revival, 1885 - 1910
25 Adams Street, 1905 46 Hancock Street, 1897
28 Colonial Revival, 1885 - 1910
27 Meriam Street, 1889
29 Tudor Revival, 1900 - 1940
Some things to look for are - steeply pitched roof, usually side-gabled - prominent cross-gable on facade - half-timbering on facade - tall, narrow windows with multiple panes - massive chimneys
30 Tudor Revival, 1900 - 1940
11 Taft Avenue, 1933-1937 39 Meriam Street, 1939
31 Arts & Crafts/Craftsman/Bungalow ,1905 - 1930
Some things to look for are - low pitched, gable roofs with wide eave overhang - exposed roof rafters - decorative beams or braces under gables - porches with tapered square columns
32 Arts & Crafts/Craftsman/Bungalow, 1905 - 1930
44 Fletcher Avenue, 1928 67 Lowell Street, 1921
33 Dutch Colonial Revival, 1900 - 1940
Some things to look for are - one to one and one half stories - side-gabled or side- gambreled roof with little or no eaves - entrance doors with separately opening upper and lower halves
34 Dutch Colonial Revival, 1900 - 1940
42 Bertwell Road, c. 1924
35 Spanish Colonial Revival/20th Century Eclectic, 1915 - 1940
Some things to look for are - low pitched roof, with little or no eave overhang - red tile roof covering - one or more prominent arches placed above door or principal window, or beneath porch roof - wall surface usually stucco - façade usually asymmetrical
36 Spanish Colonial Revival/20th Century Eclectic, 1915 - 1940
Journey’s End, 110 Shade Street, 1937 39 Locust Avenue, 1919
37 “Cape Cod,” 1930 - 1960
Some things to look for are - side-gabled roofs - two-room widths - one to one and a half stories - central or paired end chimneys - symmetrical facades with shuttered windows - dormers on roof
38 “Cape Cod,” 1930 – 1960
10 Paul Revere Road, Wellington Estates 2 Constitution Road, 1941
39 “Cape Cod,” 1930 – 1960
1 Revolutionary Road, 1941
40 Mid-Century Modern, 1945 - 1970
Some things to look for are - flat or shallow pitched shed or gable roofs, without ledge at roof line; overall horizontality - bands of windows or glass walls, usually casements, set flush with outer wall - smooth, unornamented wall surfaces of stained wood or rough stone masonry with no decorative detailing at doors or windows - exterior walls - asymmetrical façade; irregular form and plan - irregular siting
41 Mid-Century Modern, 1945 - 1970
2 Rogers Road, 1960 9 Demar Road, 1956 34 Moon Hill Road, 1948
42 Lexington’s Historic Resources: A Heritage in Architecture
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