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Book Cover
Book
Author Smeins, Linda E.

Title Building an American identity : pattern book homes and communities, 1870-1900 / Linda E. Smeins
Published Walnut Creek, CA : AltaMira Press, [1999]
©1999

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Location Call no. Vol. Availability
 WATERFT ART&ARCH  728.097309034 Sme/Baa  AVAILABLE
Description 335 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Contents 1. National Identity and an American Style of Architecture -- 2. A House in Civilized Nature -- 3. Building America with Pattern Book Houses -- 4. True Americans Own Homes -- 5. The American Architect and Categories in the Profession -- 6. Defining the Modern House: Seeds of Disagreement, 1876-1881 -- 7. The Modern Suburban House Holds Its Own
Summary The Late Nineteenth Century landscape of houses was characterized by variety - Queen Anne, Eastlake, Stick, to name a few. These homes are often put under the aegis "Victorian" as a means of identifying houses that defy precise stylistic categorization. Linda Smeins explores the development of these homes, considered the new "modern suburban homes" of the late nineteenth century, whose designs were widely circulated in architectural pattern books. Through a discussion of pattern book designs, plans and pattern book-inspired houses, Smeins traces the evolution of this architectural style and the advance of American suburban development to explore the meanings embodied in the notions of home, community and American identity. Building an American Identity is an excellent resource for architectural historians, historic preservationists, educators and anyone interested in the social history behind the building of America's Victorian homes
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 310-325) and index
Subject Architecture -- United States -- History -- 19th century.
Architecture, Domestic -- United States -- Designs and plans.
Architecture, Domestic -- United States.
Eclecticism in architecture -- United States.
Nationalism and architecture -- United States.
Suburban homes -- United States.
LC no. 98040127
ISBN 0761989625 (cloth)
0761989633 (paperback)