Readers
respond to Mystery House #37
1900s
Puzzler
"I think it is a mistake for you to want a single term answer to identify your home. The fact is that at the turn of the century architecture that was an amalgam of many styles was the status quo. If a home was built by a builder (which most homes were) rather than that of an architect this fact is especially evident.
Popular trends at the century's end were Neo Classical styles, Arts and Crafts, and various other Victorian mainstays as the Queen Anne/Shingle Style and Stick/Eastlake styles--not to mention Gothic Revival and Tudor.
I used to live in Kentucky (I'm assuming not too far from your position in Indiana). The homes of your time period there were largely Queen Anne and Small "Kit" variety Bungalows.
You have given no clue as to whether or not your home is vinyl or aluminum sided or if it originally was all covered in clapboard. However, based on the asymmetrical silhouette of the home, various protruding gables and wrap around porch, it appears to be in the vein of a Queen Anne. However, some of the roof lines on the gables suggest an Arts and Crafts influence with their English Cottage form.
As far as the Art & Crafts influence is concerned, it is definitely more English inspired than it is Swiss chalet or indigenous American Arts & Crafts. But if you want a single term answer, I think you're safe to call it a Queen Anne.
It would be very helpful to know interior trim details, mantel style, and the presence of any built in features. Although these things were often replaced, or removed altogether.
Hope this helped."
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