A Colonial Revival Gambrel Roof Home of the 1920s

The celebrations around the 1876 Centennial jump started an interest in all things Early American, architecture chief among them. This Colonial Revival reached its peak in the first decades of the 20th century, gracing our country with homes built along practical, simple lines, in a unified but infinitely varied style based on Palladian and Classical precedents.

In the last 3 blog posts we looked at 2 original Colonial and Early American examples of the gambrel or Dutch roof home, ranging from a cottage just one room deep, to a rambling farmhouse with plenty of space in its wide attic.

Dover Publications reprint of some of the plans made by ASHSB

In this post we'll see the gambrel roof used in a Colonial Revival home of the 1920s, from a pattern book of the time.

The Architects' Small House Service Bureau (ASHSB) started in 1919 as a joint effort among a group of architects to design and publish practical small home designs. Their work helped to spread good quality home design across the country at a time when there was major growth in home construction. The results of their efforts are visible in the pleasure people today have for the homes of the early 20th century.

Design 5-B-10 of the ASHSB

The plan comfortably accommodates a spacious living room, separate dining room, and a built-in kitchen containing all the conveniences that were to become the norm in the 20th century. It also had a dining porch to one side.

The upper level, in the expanded attic space enabled by the gambrel, contained a full bath and 2 bedrooms that were comfortably large for the period.

Floor Plans

The use of shed dormers to expand the attic space results in a design that is effectively almost a full 2 stories, while maintaining the lower lines and proportion of a single story home. The lovely ink rendering of the exterior shows it sensitively integrated into its surroundings with landscaping that softens edges and provides a seamless transition from street to home.

Exterior Perspective

Very little would need to be done to adapt a design such as this to modern day requirements. The design shows a stair descending to a basement. If this house were built without a basement the space under the stairs could serve as a powder room off the back entry. Enclosing the porch in glass might be desirable in many parts of the country where weather does not permit for outdoor living during much of the year.

Gambrel Roof Cottage at Eltonhead Manor

Nothing is known about the builder of this lovely little house buried in the woods at Little Cove Point, Maryland. But based on its construction it dates from the pre-1776 period. By 1913 it had been abandoned and when measured in 1925 it was rapidly falling into ruin. Some of the fine paneling and the staircase, documented in these drawings, were donated to the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1925. By now this lovely cottage must long have succumbed to the elements and returned into the earth of the forest from which its timbers were originally cut.

All photos and drawings are from the Historic American Building Survey

Copies of the full set of drawings are available at my eBay store.

Living Room paneling now on display at Baltimore Art Museum

The cottage was built of a simple timber frame over a stone foundation. Unfortunately, when documented, no information about the timber frame itself was recorded. However the interior wood paneling was carefully measured. The exterior walls appear to have been framed in posts about 4 inches thick. The interior partitions have no stud work and are simply wood panels directly attached to the floor and ceiling.

First Floor and Attic Floor Plans

Elevations and Section

The gambrel roof attic is divided into 3 communicating bedrooms, each with dormers.

Wood Paneling in Living Room

The chimneys are freestanding, separated from the walls. This was probably to reduce risk of fire.

Living Room, View from Fireplace towards Entry