1950s House
Encyclopedia
The 1950s House is a hands-on exhibit building at Shelburne Museum
in Shelburne, Vermont
. The exhibit is designed to allow museum visitors to experience everyday life in 1950s Vermont.
The 1950s House, which opened at the Shelburne Museum in 2000, brings to life the transformative history of America during the mid-twentieth century when a vibrant consumer culture developed after World War II
. Having been built in the 1940s, it is outfitted in the late-1940s design and decoration. The furnishings and decor highlight the industrial boom of the late 1940s and early 1950s. Packed with the era’s fashionable furniture, books, toys, food, and magazines, the 1950s House provides a window into mid-century visual culture.
town residents Frank and Helen LaFlam built the 1950s House on land purchased in 1948 from the subdivision of a 200 acre (0.809372 km²) farm. In 1950 Vermont had abundant land and natural resources and the town of Shelburne, which did not institute zoning until 1957, encouraged new home building.
In designing their house, the LaFlams’ incorporated state-of-the-art amenities such as central heating
, public water, and modern bathroom and kitchen appliances including a refrigerator
and built-in cabinets. The burgeoning industry of the late 1940s enabled the LaFlams to purchase a ready-cut house (see prefabricated home
) modeled from architectural plans and specifications that was inexpensive and easily shipped to the building site. The one-story design, attached garage, plain overhanging eaves, and simple white clapboard
siding represent the hallmarks of mid-century house design. The LaFlams detailed the windows and doors with broad, stained wood trim, which is the kind of simple detailing available in a lumber-rich place like Vermont. The house, which is neither a traditional cape nor a typical ranch, has characteristics of do-it-yourself construction, with an engagingly awkward mix-and-match of new and old, typical and idiosyncratic, details.
In the summer of 2000, the house was opened to the public as a temporary exhibition entitled "The Fabulous 50's: Welcome Home to Postwar Vermont". In 2002, the exhibition was extended through 2005.
Shelburne Museum
Shelburne Museum is a museum of art and Americana located in Shelburne, Vermont, United States. Over 150,000 works are exhibited in 39 exhibition buildings, 25 of which are historic and were relocated to the Museum grounds...
in Shelburne, Vermont
Shelburne, Vermont
Shelburne is a town in southwestern Chittenden County, Vermont, United States, along the shores of Lake Champlain. The population was 7,144 at the 2010 census.-History:...
. The exhibit is designed to allow museum visitors to experience everyday life in 1950s Vermont.
The 1950s House, which opened at the Shelburne Museum in 2000, brings to life the transformative history of America during the mid-twentieth century when a vibrant consumer culture developed after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Having been built in the 1940s, it is outfitted in the late-1940s design and decoration. The furnishings and decor highlight the industrial boom of the late 1940s and early 1950s. Packed with the era’s fashionable furniture, books, toys, food, and magazines, the 1950s House provides a window into mid-century visual culture.
History
Shelburne, VermontShelburne, Vermont
Shelburne is a town in southwestern Chittenden County, Vermont, United States, along the shores of Lake Champlain. The population was 7,144 at the 2010 census.-History:...
town residents Frank and Helen LaFlam built the 1950s House on land purchased in 1948 from the subdivision of a 200 acre (0.809372 km²) farm. In 1950 Vermont had abundant land and natural resources and the town of Shelburne, which did not institute zoning until 1957, encouraged new home building.
In designing their house, the LaFlams’ incorporated state-of-the-art amenities such as central heating
Central heating
A central heating system provides warmth to the whole interior of a building from one point to multiple rooms. When combined with other systems in order to control the building climate, the whole system may be a HVAC system.Central heating differs from local heating in that the heat generation...
, public water, and modern bathroom and kitchen appliances including a refrigerator
Refrigerator
A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...
and built-in cabinets. The burgeoning industry of the late 1940s enabled the LaFlams to purchase a ready-cut house (see prefabricated home
Prefabricated home
Prefabricated homes, often referred to as prefab homes, are dwellings manufactured off-site in advance, usually in standard sections that can be easily shipped and assembled....
) modeled from architectural plans and specifications that was inexpensive and easily shipped to the building site. The one-story design, attached garage, plain overhanging eaves, and simple white clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
siding represent the hallmarks of mid-century house design. The LaFlams detailed the windows and doors with broad, stained wood trim, which is the kind of simple detailing available in a lumber-rich place like Vermont. The house, which is neither a traditional cape nor a typical ranch, has characteristics of do-it-yourself construction, with an engagingly awkward mix-and-match of new and old, typical and idiosyncratic, details.
In the summer of 2000, the house was opened to the public as a temporary exhibition entitled "The Fabulous 50's: Welcome Home to Postwar Vermont". In 2002, the exhibition was extended through 2005.