Period Houses of Brunswick, Maine
Page 3
by David H. Boggs
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Greek Revival: Gable-roofed

12. Note the points of similarity and difference between this house and transitional House 11. Both have symmetrical five-ranked facades facing the street, and giant corner pilasters supporting an entablature below the cornice of the main roof. This house has no roof balustrades, and the chimneys are internal, permitting the cornice returns to be extended across the bases of the end gables to form a continuous cornice/entablature all the way around the house. The roof slope of this house is lower, more typical of Greek Revival. Interestingly, contrary to the most common practice, the downstairs windows have been reduced in height to match that of the upstairs windows, which have to be limited in height to permit use of the entablature without disproportionately heightening the facade.

13. Although this house has no entablature below the main-roof cornice (brick Greek Revival houses often don't), and the portico columns are Tuscan, the moderate-slope roofline with wide overhangs and prominent cornice returns, and the 19th-century six-over-six windows, mark it as period Greek Revival.

14. Here is a classic one-and-a-half-story Greek Revival house built in 1851. This type of Greek Revival design, known as "corner-entry," has a gable end facing the street (the better to evoke the image of a porticoed Greek temple facade; also a good design for narrow urban lots). Note the prominent, full-height corner pilasters supporting a deep entablature below the eaves cornice. Limiting the length of the cornice returns in the gable end permits the use of a relatively large front upstairs window. The bay window is also a Greek Revival feature. The dormer is a little unusual, but is in good proportion and may be original. (Window placement in Romantic houses is generally dictated more by the interior arrangement than by exterior symmetry, as was the case with the earlier Renaissance styles.)

15. This brick corner-entry house has its long axis parallel with the street, probably to permit use of its T-shaped plan on a long, narrow city lot. As is often the case with brick Greek Revival houses (e.g., House 13), there is no visible entablature below the roof cornice, but the height of the upstairs windows is reduced as if there were. Note that in this fairly simple house, wooden construction is used above the tops of the walls. Also, this house has wider roof overhangs than we have heretofore seen, with the beginnings of the under-cornice brackets which will reach their full expression in the Italianate style.

16. Like House 15, this frame house has its long axis parallel to the street but the main entry (with a small entrance portico in this case) off-center in a gable end. Greek Revival features include small upstairs windows above tall (triple-hung) downstairs windows; giant corner pilasters; and an entablature and cornice which completely encircle the house below the main roof.

17. Comparing this house with House 16, we see the same basic plan: long axis parallel to street, corner entry in a gabled end wall, and upstairs windows smaller than those below. However, there are interesting differences. Although pilasters are present, a deep entablature is not (unusual in a frame Greek revival house). Main-roof cornice returns are present but minimal. The small entry portico has been replaced by a full-width porch with balustrade on the roof. The columns supporting the porch are of square cross-section (a vernacular adaptation). Note also that the rear wing also has a balustraded portico echoing that of the main house.

18. Here is yet another variation on the stylistic theme seen in Houses 15, 16 and 17. Corner pilasters are present, along with an entablature and cornice composition which completely encircle the house. The full-width porch is supported by square columns. But note the large demilune window in the gable of the entry facade, something we have not seen previously.

19. One more variation, this time in brick: note the now-familiar Greek Revival window scheme, the moderate-slope roof with well-defined cornice returns and the corner entry covered by a full-width porch. The porch of this house differs in several respects from those of previous examples: it is deeper, the Roman Doric columns are more massive, and the ends have been enclosed with fixed many-paned window sashes above a low, paneled solid section.

20. Compare this brick Greek Revival house with House 19. The present house is a more high-style example, prominently sited facing the village green. It has massive corner pilasters and entablature formed in brickwork. The roof overhangs are wide, the cornice returns are very prominent, and there are dentils in the cornice composition and beneath the overhangs in the gables. The entry porch is more than full width, and totally enclosed and windowed. A rear wing echoes the styling of the main house.

21. This house, otherwise much like Houses 16, 17 and 18, is remarkable for its wrap-around porch on two sides (the long side facing Brunswick's main street, as well as the entry facade in the gabled end). Note also the elaborate brickwork of the chimneys.

22. This stylish brick example of the later Greek Revival style can be considered to be the prototype of the vernacular Greek Revival "gable front and wing" house which was immensely popular throughout New England, New York and the Upper Midwest in the mid-to-late 19th century. Like most of the other Greek Revival houses we've seen, this one has a gable-end entry facade with corner entrance, and a moderate-slope roof with prominent cornice returns. The corners have brickwork quoins painted in the trim color, effectively forming massive giant pilasters. The small entry portico is enclosed and balanced by a bay window. The roof overhang tends toward the Italianate, with broad overhangs and paired brackets. Note, however, the L-shaped plan and the markedly tall-and-narrow silhouette of both the main house and the wing, as seen from the gable ends.

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