About Colonial Housing
Colonial American housing in the 17th and 18th centuries reflected the country of origin of settlers and locally available construction materials. Housing evolved over the years as some colonists acquired more wealth. Interestingly, many early housing concepts continued in popularity influencing architecture today.
Misconceptions
Log cabins. Yes, they were important structures, but certainly not the only ones. Colonists built homes based on their roots. They adapted to local materials and conditions, but houses varied greatly in form. Cape Cod houses built in the 17th century were one-room houses modeled after the English. Other groups such as the French, Dutch and Spanish built structures based on their homelands. Native American techniques also were incorporated.
The Facts
Early colonists roughed it with one-room houses. In New England, they adapted old English one-story houses as type, built of wood with central fireplaces, eventually adding sloping wood roofs. Southerners coming over in the late 17th and early 18th centuries built small homes that mimicked larger English structures. As colonists acquired wealth, the homes grew greatly in size. Structures also grew in complexity extending to churches, public places and other architectural forms.
Time Frame
Jamestown in 1607. Plymouth in 1620. Boston in 1630. Settlers from England and Europe came to America in earnest in the 1600s. The colonial period lasted more than 150 years, taking the area from subsistence agriculture to the complex society forming the basis of American life today. English standards predominated through the 18th century with the period coming to an end, historically, in 1775 as the United States came into being.
Evolution
Settlers had lots of forest and split logs for their cabins. Clay filled the cracks and bundled reeds for roofs. Fire danger, however, changed the roofs. Single-story houses with one main room and a fireplace at its end became the norm, expanding in size through the years as colonists became more prosperous. In the 18th century, much larger "colonial Georgian" structures became standard for the wealthy class.
Function
Originally, houses were part of survival. Colonists grew fruits and vegetables around the house and made necessary products such as soap inside. Depending on local materials, housing resembled those of European origins. Early houses were simple shacks. As society grew, so did the types of structures. As centers for home life, houses featured a common area where all activities were done, including cooking, cleaning and washing. Larger estates in the south had large structures with many room surrounded by smaller cottages.
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