Building Styles Explored - Carpenter's and Builder's Math, Plans, and Specifications - page 283

was often steep and tortuous, often with tricky winders. However,
in the later and better homes, the stairs were often beautiful, taste-
fully designed and elaborately carved, with superb craftsmanship.
Such stairs cannot be duplicated today.
While the basic design was rectangular, many of the Colonial
homes had attached ells or sheds. With a roof continuous down
over a one-story shed at the rear, this house becomes the well-known
saltbox , with a claim to fame all its own. All types of Colonial homes
use windows of small glass or lights, often rectangular, sometimes
diamond-shaped. In the early days, the muntins were often made
of lead. Later, wood muntins were used. Large sheets of glass were
almost unknown, and very expensive.
A predominant feature in the Colonial house is the privacy af-
forded, the privacy that is lacking, and so often deplored, in many
modern designs. There are no unnecessarily large areas of glass to
give one the eerie feeling of being spied upon at night.
Aside from the fact that this house is excellent architecturally, it
need not be an expensive house (relative to other houses) to build.
The downstairs bathroom is convenient, and the two complete bath-
rooms upstairs help prevent congestion (see Figures 10-3 and 10-4).
A complete basement is suggested for convenience to heating and
KITCHEN
FAMILY ROOM
BATH
DOWN
30'0"
LIVING ROOM
DINING ROOM
UP
ENTRANCE HALL
36'0"
Figure 10-3 First-floor plan of a Colonial-type home.