Porches of North America

by Thomas Durant Visser

Overview

The porch, whether simple or grand, evokes feelings of welcome, comfort, and nostalgia in all of us, yet there has been little published on the history of this omnipresent architectural feature. This book examines how porches in their many forms have evolved in the United States and Canada through innovations, adaptations, and revivals. Covering formal porches and verandas, as well as the many informal vernacular types, this book proffers insights into broad cultural customs and patterns, as well as regional preferences and usage. Lavishly illustrated with contemporary and historic photographs, Porches of North America provides a chronological and typological framework for identifying historic porches. All those who love to while away afternoons on a favorite porch will find this architectural history delightful as well as informative.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611682205
Publisher:	University Press of New England
Publication date:	04/10/2012
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

THOMAS DURANT VISSER is an associate professor and director of the Historic Preservation Program at the University of Vermont and is the author of Field Guide to New England Barns and Farm Buildings.

Table of Contents

Preface • HISTORY • Covered Approach • Loggias, Portales, and Corredores • Monterey Porches • French Galleries • Dogtrots • Dutch Influences • Stoops and Perrons • Symbolic Stages • English and American Piazzas • Veranda(h)s • Fashionable Retreats and Final Resorts • Summer Places • Most Public Place • Public Intimacy and Peculiar Privacy • Photographic Glimpses of Porch Life • Casinos and Clubhouses • Screened Porches • Cure Porches and Sleeping Porches • Porch Enclosures and Sun Porches • Changing Attitudes • CHARACTER, FUNCTIONS, AND FURNISHINGS • Location and Orientation • Dimensions and Plans • Twining Edges • Sounds • Porch Furniture • CLASSICAL ORDER • Porticos and Colonnades • Georgian • Neoclassical: Adam, Federal, and Classical Revival • Regency • Greek Revival • Renaissance Revival • Neoclassical Revival • Arcades • VARIOUS FORMS • Enclosed Attached Entry Porches • Open Attached Entry Porches • Side and Rear Porches • Charleston Piazzas • Arcaded Piazzas • Side-Wing Porches • Recessed Multitiered Porches • Gable Loggias • Attached Multitiered Porches and Galleries • Lattice Piazzas and Porches • Shotgun Porches • Porte-Cocheres • Marquees • VICTORIAN PORCH STYLES • Gothic Revival • Rustic • Bracketed Mode and Italianate Style • French Second Empire • Octagons • Richardsonian Romanesque • Stick Style • Queen Anne • Shingle Style • Colonial Revival • POST-VICTORIAN STYLES • Prairie • American Foursquare • Mission Revival • Craftsman Movement • Bungalows • Catalogue Porches • Tudor Revival • Modern Movement and International Style • Epilogue • Notes • Glossary of Porch Terms • Index

What People are Saying About This

Steven J. Hoffman

“This is a valuable book covering an important but under-studied subject. It makes a significant contribution to the field by presenting a careful and considered analysis of both the social and cultural significance and the stylistic details of porches.”

Editorial Reviews

“Does any architectural feature evoke more ‘tenacious feelings of welcome, comfort, and nostalgia’ than the porch? Visser here presents a comprehensive, well-researched, heavily illustrated (in black-and-white), and well-written discourse on the history of the porch. . . . A worthwhile read. . . . Recommended”—Choice


“Despite their nostalgic associations and unique status as hybrid indoor-outdoor spaces, porches often go unappreciated or, worse, are renovate beyond recognition. Visser’s 304-page, richly illustrate book aims to rally respect for the porch by examining its long history and paradoxical roles as a stage, a retreat, and an observation post.”—Seven Days

From the Publisher