Georgian style of today's single family homes in the United States

Modern single-family homes in the United States are fully modern buildings in terms of their space and layout decisions. But elements of architectural styles from the distant past are often used to decorate the facades. For example, elements of Georgian style are very popular. This style in the U.S. refers to the so-called Colonial era, when the North American states were a British colony, and therefore this style is often called Colonial.

A detailed history of the Georgian style can be found in encyclopedias, link. A brief history of the style can be summarized as follows. In 17th century Britain there was a glut of foreign architecture, which the British considered too motley, impractical and wasteful. Too much ornamentation on facades, requiring a lot of expense to maintain. In response, the British came up with their own style of facades - unpretentious brick boxes with modest blond accents on the openings. The only luxury is at the main entrance, and that is not marble, but something painted white.

That was in Britain, and the United States didn't exist at that time. The North American states were just one of Britain's colonies. The period before American independence is called colonial, meaning that the USA was a colony of the British Empire. Some modern U.S. territories were colonies of the Spanish, the French, and even the Russians. The architecture of that era in the US is called Colonial architecture.

The period after 1776, after U.S. independence, is called the Federal period. The architecture of that period is called “New Nation Architecture” or “Federal”. The Georgian style, the Georgian era occurred during the last 60 years of the Colonial period and the first decades of the Federal period, so the Georgian style is referred to both of these periods. But more often attributed to the Colonial, so the Georgian style in the United States is often called the Colonial style. U.S. architectural history, brief summary, ref.

The lifestyle of that era was different from the present day. Modern homes resemble the Georgian style only in appearance. In Georgian times, Federal ... toilets were outdoors, freestanding as were stables. There were no garages at all, cars hadn't been invented yet. Wooden elements of the building and furniture quickly rotted and easily ignited, unlike modern ones they were not treated with antiseptics and fire retardants. The relation of modern buildings to ancient styles is very conditional and is expressed only in the decoration of facades with ancient decorative elements. When the building has a modern layout, and facades are decorated with ancient elements it is called Postmodern style. Strictly scientifically, modern Georgian houses in the United States belong to the Postmodern style. This is a postmodernist stylization of the Georgian style - so it is called in professional language. But modern Americans, choosing a home, tell realtors simply “I want Georgian style”, of course, not requiring full compliance with the era of toilets on the street. Everyone understands that it is only a matter of stylization of the Georgian style.

Typical Georgian style stylization elements used in the United States

The effect of a Georgian façade is created by a combination of the following elements:

Facade walls made of red brick, in some places inserts of ashlar cladding

Window frames are white

Entrance doors with white frames

Decoration of window and door openings with decorative brickwork

Decorative brick surroundings of openings are lighter or darker than the wall

Main entrance porch decorated with white classical columns

Main entrance porch decorated with white classical cornice

Porch and balcony railings are white or black

Pitched roofing with gray or black covering

The socle is veneered with gray ashlar or tile

Windows have black, gray, brown, maroon, or dark green shutters

Outdoor spaces (porches, alfresco, etc.) have brutal-looking brick and stone fireplaces

It is not an easy task to make do with such modest resources and at the same time make a decent-looking facade. To work in this style is much more difficult than to make popular in the CIS houses covered with foam flowers. Work in the Georgian style requires experience and is impossible without prior training.

Examples gallery

Stylization of the facades of single-family houses in the United States in the Georgian style