Vermont is the second to last state if you list the states by population. It is located on the far northeast side of the United States and is a close neighbor of Canada. Winters are extremely chilly in Vermont with an average temperature of four degrees. This cold weather makes for a slew of snow each year. Mountains and thick forests decorate the landscapes here, making it the perfect place for a nature lover. Vermont real estate is full of vernacular architecture. Given how relatively isolated Vermont is, this isn’t a big surprise.
Vernacular architecture is essentially homemade real estate. The homes and buildings of vernacular architecture are less designed and more assembled to fit a function. Famous architects like Frank Lloyd Wright have insulted vernacular architecture, insinuating that it is primitive and can be accomplished by any low-intelligence being. Although not a native real estate structure in Vermont, a common example of a vernacular home would be an igloo. Igloos are homes built by Arctic inhabitants. They are constructed with local, easily accessible materials, and serve the sole function of preserving heat and providing a safe home away from the elements. That is in a nutshell what vernacular architecture is all about.
Vermont vernacular homes and commercial buildings are seen throughout the state. They are simply buildings constructed from the natural materials of Vermont, with little to no consideration of artistic design and creativity. Many of these homes take on the look of log cabins.
On the flip side, Vermont has six more traditional housing styles that are common along this northern real estate landscape. These housing styles, from oldest to most recent, are: Federal, Gothic Revival, Greek Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, and Colonial Revival.
The Federal style started in 1780. The style was obviously inspired by Roman real estate with the sole use of circles and straight lines. These houses developed right after settlement had finally been decided, and the colonies had their first chance to put an effort into developing their own style. Because of the time period of this real estate style, large window panes were hard to make. Therefore, the windows in these homes were usually divided into six smaller paned windows. Typically there is a semi-circle window above the front door. The style by definition is more simple but keeps a delicate touch on all the finishings. Everything is kept in earth tones with a plain, flat exterior. In these Federal homes, the overall architecture is symmetrical and perfectly balanced. This home style ended in Vermont around 1830 with the entrance of Gothic Revival houses.
Gothic Revival homes are immediately recognized by their steep, pointed roofs. In contrast to the Federal homes, Gothic Revival real estate works slather on the decorative touches. Simplicity is not the goal of this style, but delicacy is still achieved. Pointed windows, bargeboard, and gable peaks are a few of the fanciful features on these homes. All the angles jut upwards, creating an appearance of height on the homes, even if in reality they are actually a shorter piece of real estate. Although less common in commercial buildings, Gothic Revival wasn’t sequestered to residential properties. Churches hugely utilized this style. They would exaggerate the already exaggerated roofs and create magnificent houses of worship.
The year 1830 was also the birth of the Greek Revival style in Vermont. By definition, when two styles coexist in one time period, they must be extremely different. True to this, the Greek Revival and Gothic Revival real estate styles were extreme opposites. The most obvious example of this is in the roofs. While the Gothic Revival homes had steep roofs, the Greek Revival houses had much lower hipped roofs. The Greek Revival, as hinted at with the name, was strongly influenced by the ancient Greek civilization. These houses featured grand porticos and white paint to mimic the appearance of marble. Greek Revival was widely popular with government houses, rich estates, and churches. Greek Revival was the second most popular real estate style in Vermont during the nineteenth century.
A famous residential and commercial style was the Italianate design. These homes and buildings were rich in decorative details based on Italian architecture. These homes are square-shaped with flat roofs. They are seldom one-story, but rather two or three stories tall. Real estate under this style almost always has large eaves with a large overhang. Ornate brackets decorated the homes under the cornices, windows, and above the porch. This style of home spanned across demographics from wealthy estate owners to average farmers.
The Queen Anne homes arrived in 1885, and with those houses came color! This new style of real estate exploded with fabulous colors and creative shapes. Homes were never symmetrical and featured towers, balconies, and turrets. Queen Annes were constructed as residential, commercial, and religious structures. This style was seen as a collaboration of all the previous ornate real estate designs. Windows were often stained glass and trim came in multiple colors.
The final architecture trend followed in Vermont was the Colonial Revival. This real estate movement began in 1880 and continued through much of the twentieth century until 1960. This style is the most prevalent in Vermont and can be seen all over the state. The style rebelled against the loose creativity of the Queen Anne style and returned to a more rigid, symmetrical design. In fact, these homes were almost twins of the Federal style houses. The only differences were that the Colonial Revival structures enlarged the home features. Larger window panes were now possible, and so the small Federal window panes were replaced. Additionally the front doors were given importance with large paneling and accent side lights.
From Vernacular primitive housing, to luxurious Italianate, or even artistic Queen Anne, Vermont has a lot to offer the architectural scene. Housing history can be admired throughout this state by simply walking down one of their streets. This small state covers the style map and attempts to appease all real estate tastes.
