Hall and parlor house
Encyclopedia
A hall and parlor house is a type of vernacular house found in medieval to 19th century England, as well as colonial America. It is presumed to have been the model on which other North American house types have been developed such as the Cape Cod house and the Saltbox
and influenced the somewhat later I-house
. In England it probably was the origin of among others such types as the Wealden hall house
.
structure. Many could not afford a large house, however putting up a wall in the only room created a smaller area in the rear of the house, called a parlor. This was the private room, and usually contained a bed. In early examples, the house is one room wide and two deep. The two adjoining rooms are connected by an interior door. An exterior door leads to the hall
, the larger of the two rooms and the one in the front of the house. Behind the hall is the parlor. The hall may have been used for cooking, while the parlor was the general living space and bedroom.
In colonial America, hall and parlor houses were two rooms wide and one deep. They were often one and half stories tall, with a steeply pitched side-gabled roof. The style was at one time so ubiquitous that it was known colloquially as the 'Virginia style'. In the southern colonies there were usually flush or exterior gable-end chimneys on one or both sides of the house. Northern examples often featured a central chimney. The houses were most often of wood-frame construction on a brick or stone foundation, but sometimes the entire structure was masonry. The windows were often asymmetrically placed. Common dimensions for the entire house were between 16 to 20 ft (4.9 to 6.1 m) deep and 20 to 40 ft (6.1 to 12.2 m) wide. The larger hall
was the general purpose room and, if a loft existed, contained a stairway or ladder to it. The parlor was the smaller of the two rooms and more private. It commonly used for sleeping.
The central-passage house
, also known as the hall-passage-parlor house, is believed by architectural historians to have developed out of the earlier hall and parlor house-type. In fact, many examples are known where an earlier hall and parlor house had an additional room added to the side to form a central-passage house.
Saltbox
A saltbox is a building with a long, pitched roof that slopes down to the back, generally a wooden frame house. A saltbox has just one story in the back and two stories in the front...
and influenced the somewhat later I-house
I-house
The I-house is a vernacular house type, popular in the United States from the colonial period onward. The I-house was so named in the 1930s by Fred Kniffen, a specialist in folk architecture who identified and analyzed the type in his 1936 study of Louisiana house types...
. In England it probably was the origin of among others such types as the Wealden hall house
Wealden hall house
The Wealden hall house is a type of vernacular medieval timber-framed yeoman's house traditional in the south east of England. It is most common in Kent and the east of Sussex but has also been built elsewhere...
.
Origins and features
The hall and parlor style entails a rectangular two room configuration. The style began in medieval England, where it was often a timber-framedTimber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
structure. Many could not afford a large house, however putting up a wall in the only room created a smaller area in the rear of the house, called a parlor. This was the private room, and usually contained a bed. In early examples, the house is one room wide and two deep. The two adjoining rooms are connected by an interior door. An exterior door leads to the hall
Hall
In architecture, a hall is fundamentally a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age, a mead hall was such a simple building and was the residence of a lord and his retainers...
, the larger of the two rooms and the one in the front of the house. Behind the hall is the parlor. The hall may have been used for cooking, while the parlor was the general living space and bedroom.
In colonial America, hall and parlor houses were two rooms wide and one deep. They were often one and half stories tall, with a steeply pitched side-gabled roof. The style was at one time so ubiquitous that it was known colloquially as the 'Virginia style'. In the southern colonies there were usually flush or exterior gable-end chimneys on one or both sides of the house. Northern examples often featured a central chimney. The houses were most often of wood-frame construction on a brick or stone foundation, but sometimes the entire structure was masonry. The windows were often asymmetrically placed. Common dimensions for the entire house were between 16 to 20 ft (4.9 to 6.1 m) deep and 20 to 40 ft (6.1 to 12.2 m) wide. The larger hall
Hall
In architecture, a hall is fundamentally a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age, a mead hall was such a simple building and was the residence of a lord and his retainers...
was the general purpose room and, if a loft existed, contained a stairway or ladder to it. The parlor was the smaller of the two rooms and more private. It commonly used for sleeping.
The central-passage house
Central-passage house
The central-passage house, also known variously as center-hall house, hall-passage-parlor house, Williamsburg cottage, and Tidewater-type cottage, was a vernacular, or folk form, house type from the colonial period onward into the 19th century in the United States.It evolved primarily in colonial...
, also known as the hall-passage-parlor house, is believed by architectural historians to have developed out of the earlier hall and parlor house-type. In fact, many examples are known where an earlier hall and parlor house had an additional room added to the side to form a central-passage house.