Posted May 25, 200916 yr I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this -- or if there is such an appropriate place on this site -- but I'm trying to find out if my house fits into any obvious architectural style. I got all the books Cleveland Restoration Society recommends from the library and I wasn't able to figure it out... (I have zero architecture background.) So, let me know if you can help! I am slowly trying to restore the place. The exterior has got that cement fiber board siding (we believe ours is the non-asbestos variety, but it looks the same). Right now, due to budget contraints, I am just painting the siding. But I have removed the siding from the porch and balcony so there's now some woodwork visible. Underneath the fiber board is cedar wood shingle on the top half of the house and lap board siding on the bottom half (I assume both are original but I'm not sure.) On the interior it's got your typical two story, four bedroom set up. While it doesn't look like it from the outside, the first and second floor are both about the same size. The only stand out (presumably original) features are hardwood floors with inlays in all the downstairs rooms, and a fancy jade-looking tile fireplace. The house is at least 100 years old. It's in the Edgewater/Cudell neighborhood of Cleveland. (A few blocks from the east end of lakewood.) I know not all houses fit into a clear cut style.. but I was curious and figured it wouldn't hurt to throw it out there! Some photos.. (click on for larger versions): 1. The exterior of the house in its current state, after we tore some siding off and partially painted. (Don't worry.. we're not lazy... we just started painting a couple days ago.) 2. This is our house before we did any renovations to it. 3. This is NOT my house. It's one that I thought looked pretty similar and thought it might help it determining style since its more in tact. This house is in Lakewood, on Clifton Blvd. 4. This is my living room after I restored the floors. I believe the mantel on the fireplace was replaced at some point as it doesn't really match... Also, I should mention that the arched entry way to the right of the fireplace is not original. it was originally pocket doors... why I don't have them now is a long and sad story... 5. A detail of the porch that we uncovered.
May 25, 200916 yr I have no idea about the style, but it looks like a great house. Nice job on the floors, good luck!
May 25, 200916 yr Thanks! You might not have said that a year ago, though! Check out this before pic of the living room:
May 25, 200916 yr Looks kind of like a Craftsman Bungalow, although the roof is a little more pitched than most I've seen.
May 25, 200916 yr I can't help with the style either. Did you completely sand and refinish the floors, or did you just clean them up after taking out the carpet?
May 25, 200916 yr oh lawd. that salmon colored living room was as bad as he hallucinogenic wall paper that was in my house. Good luck with your reno.
May 26, 200916 yr The positioning and the style of the mantle seems to put your house somewhere between an Ohio City victorian and the 1910-era Lakewood style.
May 26, 200916 yr It has that classic bungalow look but to me if looks to be more the earlier "shingle style" of Victorian architecture. Popular on the east coast the style migrated to the midwest as well but wasnt as popular. The house has some very nice "free classic' /colonial detailing that makes me believe its an earlier house. Also the fact you mentioned pocket doors which is an earlier indication. Many late Victorian houses were "updated/remuddled" into the craftsman style when it became popular. Great work so far!!! I would guess the house dates to 1890-1895.
May 27, 200916 yr Restoration Consultant -- Those are all styles I have read about and couldn't choose one that I thought this house fit into the best. The house seems to have victorian elements -- the porch as well as the floors just seem too ornate to be craftsman. The only thing that seems craftsman about it is the general shape of the house. (It doesn't have the other tell tale elements like the stone/brick front porch or the visable rafters.) "Shingle style" could be the case as it does have cedar shingles on the top half. I'll have to look into that more! I remember seeing that in one of those books and thinking it could be a possibility. What do you mean by "free classic"/colonial detailing? What would be an example of that? 3231 --- That would make sense since my house is in between Lakewood and Ohio City! I didn't know Lakewood had it's own style, though. JRC -- Yes, we completly sanded and refinished the floors. There were actually pieces of the floor missing so we had to have matching floor milled and installed. The guy did an awesome job replicating the inlays, you really can't tell where the replacements are, except for the wood grain being a bit different. There was one section of floor missing that was about 4 feet by 7 feet or so that it appears there was a staircase that was removed! We can also tell because there is replacement trim on the stairs. It's hard to explain but it seems very apparent that there used to be a staircase there. I can't believe someone would do that... it seems like they removed it so that they could have another room instead of a foyer. (It would have been one of those Y-shaped staircases, where there's two different ways you can go up, now there's only one route, and the remaining staircase is very basic.) MyTwoSense --- Silly the "salmon" walls are in the AFTER pictures!! Ouch! In defense of my taste... the saturation in that photo is rather high. It's actually more of a terra cotta color. I love having deep colors on the walls! But to each their own! I'll make sure to paint that room a nice boring tan if I ever sell the house :P
May 27, 200916 yr MyTwoSense --- Silly the "salmon" walls are in the AFTER pictures!! Ouch! In defense of my taste... the saturation in that photo is rather high. It's actually more of a terra cotta color. I love having deep colors on the walls! But to each their own! I'll make sure to paint that room a nice boring tan if I ever sell the house :P OMG I am sooooooo sorry, I wasn't trying to be offensive. I am so sorry, please accept my apology. I posted some pictures of my house before I renovated it and that color just reminded me of the wall paper that was in my kitchen. Trust me, I am not a "plain jane" kind of boy when it comes to home decor. So I understand the need for color.
May 27, 200916 yr No offense taken! Where is the post/pics about your house? I want to see the resemblance!
May 27, 200916 yr No offense taken! Where is the post/pics about your house? I want to see the resemblance! the kids need to take a dramamine before I post it. Last time CornerCurve had a bout of motion sickness and I think Doc Broc had case of vertigo. LOL
May 27, 200916 yr No offense taken! Where is the post/pics about your house? I want to see the resemblance! the kids need to take a dramamine before I post it. Last time CornerCurve had a bout of motion sickness and I think Doc Broc had case of vertigo. LOL I did?
May 27, 200916 yr No offense taken! Where is the post/pics about your house? I want to see the resemblance! the kids need to take a dramamine before I post it. Last time CornerCurve had a bout of motion sickness and I think Doc Broc had case of vertigo. LOL I did? I thought you said something about the wall paper giving your vertigo. hummm.
June 1, 200916 yr Probably the greatset example of the shingle style was "Kragsyde" designed by Peabody and Sterns. You can google it and find photos but I think you will get an idea of how that house relates to yours. On your house the porch column design is more "colonial' in design. This "variant" of the shingle is more common as you go more into the midwest as more east coast houses would have square shingled columns that wopuld perhaps gently curve up into the top.
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