Colonial is a very broad term for classic home styles in the United States. The Colonial family of homes is vast, starting with the post medieval English homes of Salem or Concord in New England, and ending with the soaring, ornate columned mansions of the classical revival period. Still, when referring to a Colonial style, most people think of a classic two-story gabled home with a chimney, symmetrical windows, and a central front door. By this standard, as well as materials, design, and character, the Centerville home is very much a traditional New England Colonial. This Colonial is a two-story, two-room deep design with a dominant side gable. Also called a center hall Colonial, the front entry leads to a central hallway and staircase to the second floor. Borrowing from the older Georgian and the newer Adam styles, this New England Colonial typifies the style in each of its elements.
House Elements
A. In a Georgian Colonial, the door is paneled, with square lites above and sometimes on the sides. This entry is a modified Georgian design in that it has the standard small lites above the door as well as an enhanced entablature above. The triangular entablature has been extended to form a hood. The columns stand away from the façade to support the hood or entry roof.
B. The shingled roof has a normal pitch, typical of northern Colonials.
C. There is a central chimney, which was common in Georgian Colonials in the Northeast.
D. The façade is wood framed and clapboard clad, the favored design of the northern colonies.
E. Windows on a Colonial façade should be symmetrical both horizontally and vertically. This design, featuring five windows on the upper floor and four below with a central doorway, is a favorite layout for Georgian and Adam Colonials. Georgian Colonials featured smaller panes of glass than the later Adam Colonials.
F. In keeping with the period, the side wings are set back from the main façade with side gables like the core of the home.
G. In keeping with its New England heritage, the Centerville Colonial has simple cornices and window frames (architraves).
H. The cupola is a visual reminder of this home’s New England rural and coastal lineage.
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