A Dutch Colonial without a Gambrel roof

[LTParis]

My first post is a ID post. We are about to close on our first home, a 1930 Colonial in Kingston NY that was a big Dutch settlement. However most Dutch Colonials that I have seen have a gambrel roof. However this home looks more like a modern colonial.



Thoughts?

[airgrabber]

My first post is a ID post. We are about to close on our first home, a 1930 Colonial in Kingston NY that was a big Dutch settlement. However most Dutch Colonials that I have seen have a gambrel roof. However this home looks more like a modern colonial.



Thoughts?

My house is a Twenties-era Dutch Colonial "Revival" and does not have the gambrel roof so common to the breed. I don't think a house must have a gambrel roof to be considered a Dutch Colonial, but it sure helps when you're trying to put a label to the style of a particular house.

[airgrabber]

Here's an example (top image)of an original mid-18th century Dutch Colonial (NOT a revival) that does not have a gambrel roof. From the 1926 public-domain booklet Byways and Boulevards In and About Historic Philadelphia, which is a great historical document, by the way.



Using my own house as a comparable, we can see a few similarities:

1. Continuous, connected gable returns. Wide, overhanging eaves.
2. Symmetrical main facade with centered entry door.
3. Dormer windows, in this case three.
4. Secondary "roof" above first story, sometimes wrapping around the sides, sometimes incorporating a covered entryway

Of course, there are a few differences that I attribute to the romanticized nature of the "revival" styles...such as the exaggerated covered entry, the grouping of "banks" of windows, the decorative cutouts in the shutters, etc. Obvious differences in building materials don't really affect this style, as DCR's can be built in brick, wood clap, stone, or a combination of these materials.

Based upon the previous stuff I wrote, I'd think that your house is not specifically a Dutch Colonial Revival. It may be a vernacular form of Colonial Revival, or it's true identity may have been obscured through change. In other words, more details are needed if "remodeling" has been done. Is that the original siding? Windows? Any pictures of the home from "back in the day"? These will all help in determining a "style".

[LTParis]

My house is a Twenties-era Dutch Colonial "Revival" and does not have the gambrel roof so common to the breed. I don't think a house must have a gambrel roof to be considered a Dutch Colonial, but it sure helps when you're trying to put a label to the style of a particular house.

What in the heck is the name when you have windows protruding from the roof line? One thing we were considering is making a master suite/bath on the top floor that has a bonus/wreck room right now and we would desire more lighting.

[airgrabber]

What in the heck is the name when you have windows protruding from the roof line? One thing we were considering is making a master suite/bath on the top floor that has a bonus/wreck room right now and we would desire more lighting.

Those are called dormer windows, or dormers.

[mross_pitt]

Agreed, the original poster's house is in no way a dutch colonial.

Probably the interior details would give more clues as to what to call it.

Probably Colonial Revival fits best. Could be called any number of things....vernacular farmhouse style etc.

[LTParis]

Here are some other pictures of the house.















Some of my future neighbors

[Don M]

I like all the built-ins you have in this house; very nice. The house appears to have been well maintained. Did someone break the top to the toilet? You might be able to locate a replacement or make one from wood & paint or stain it.

[LTParis]

I like all the built-ins you have in this house; very nice. The house appears to have been well maintained. Did someone break the top to the toilet? You might be able to locate a replacement or make one from wood & paint or stain it.

No the tops are just to the side. They had weatherize for the winter.

[Don M]

That's good; is the house not being lived in at this time?