| Styles of Homes: The Victorian Period 1860–1900. Second Empire 1855–1885. |
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| Style |
Material |
Orientations of structure |
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| Refined |
Wood |
Vertical |
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| Key features |
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Low-pitched roof; square cupola; single-story porch; tall,
arched windows, often paired or tripled.
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| Architectural Features |
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| Entrance Door |
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- Elaborate panel doors
- Narrow, vertical orientation
- Taller than average doors
- Large, curved windows
- Small panels
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| Shutters |
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- Not commonly used on this style due to elaborate window design
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| Garage Door |
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- Vertical orientation of surface material
- Flush face surface material
- Layered trim boards with molding
- Arched windows
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| Style Summary |
The contemporaneous Italianate and Gothic Revival styles were part of the Picturesque movement, which looked to the romantic past for inspiration. In contrast, the Second Empire style was considered very modern, for it imitated the latest French building fashions. The distinctive roof was named for the 17th century French architect Francois Mansart. Its use was extensively revived in France during the reign of Napoleon III, France’s Second Empire, from which the style takes its name. Exhibitions in Paris in 1855 and 1867 helped to popularize the style in England, from whence it spread to the United States.
The boxy roofline was considered particularly functional because it permitted a full upper story of usable attic space. For this reason the style became popular for the remodeling of earlier buildings as well as for new construction. The Second Empire style was used for many public buildings in America during the Grant Administration and has been facetiously called the General Grant style. It rapidly passed from fashion following the panic of 1873 and the subsequent economic depression.
Excerpted from A Field Guide to American Houses, Virginia and
Lee McAlester, Alfred Knopf, New York, © 2000. |
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