East Coast Traditional: A Family of Styles
By Don Browne
It’s more than a style – it’s a family of styles. Its deep roots in so many European designs go far beyond the region that bears its name. But because it started in the American colonial era, when European settlers came with their own building traditions, and evolved into rich styles like Georgian, Federal and Classical Revival, Greek, Gothic, Dutch Revival and French Revival, we call it East Coast Traditional.
It’s not known for having exterior adornments and other garish decorative elements, but it does boast boxy facades and crown moldings. If your next project is a neighborhood development, the East Coast Traditional offers so many opportunities for variety while maintaining a consistent block face.
In their book, Architectural Design for Traditional Neighborhoods, authors Korkut Onaran, Fernando Pagés Ruiz, Ronnie Pelusio and Tom Lyon share the exciting possibilities of integrating East Coast Traditional styles for neighborhood developments. Imagine a French Revival home with intricate rooflines, decorative woodwork and larger windows next door to a colonial-style home with columns, wide porches and a central front door. On this same block, you could have a federal-style home with more slender moldings, Palladian windows and an elliptical fanlight over the front door, followed by a Georgian style home with a more unadorned façade and emulated brick siding. You could have a gable roof with small dormers on another Georgian-style home next door to a Dutch Revival with a gambrel roof.
No matter how diverse you choose with the various style options, you will still have a consistent block face given the boxy building massing and strict adherence to symmetry and straight lines that define the East Coast Traditional.
This family of styles is known for clarity, rigid structure and functionality while also allowing for innovative design opportunities such as varying roof slopes and cornices, operating shutters, second-story balconies and more. And when you specify vinyl siding and other polymeric exterior materials, you can choose from an enormous catalog of colors and emulated styles that can give your East Coast Traditional neighborhood curb appeal and character, including a historic feel.
To discover more ideas with East Coast Traditional, go to pages 26-29 of Architectural Design for Traditional Neighborhoods. To learn about more design possibilities with vinyl siding, visit the PEPA website, which has a dedicated section for architects and developers.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Don Browne is a writer, entrepreneur and local legislator who believes that the power of words can change the world. He provides unique writing services for clients in the construction, health care, IT and hospitality sectors. He has a passion for small business and start-ups, as well as writing about Irish history, family and corporate biographies. As a homeowner and father of four who is passionate about community development, Don looks forward to writing more about the exciting possibilities of creating traditional neighborhoods and more sustainable communities using modern materials.
