Page 116 - State College, PA Design Guidelines

06.28.2018 •

TUDOR

(1890-1940)

The Tudor style was commonly used for domestic architecture in the early
20 -century homes throughout the United States, comprising approximately
th
25 percent of houses built during the 1920s. The Tudor style began in England
and moved to the United States where the style took on many forms,
while keeping the steeply pitched, front-facing gables as key elements. The
Tudor style offered great versatility in floor planning, as symmetry was not
the focus of the style, and thus it became a very popular style. This allowed
rooms to be oriented in any direction and windows to be placed where
needed; it allowed simple inclusion of wings only one room deep; and later,
it allowed for attached garages to be effortlessly incorporated. While a large
majority of homes were Tudor in style, they varied greatly in detail with some
being landmark worthy and others less modest versions; therefore, the Tudor
style is represented in many different ways throughout the country.

Identifying features of the Tudor style include:
• Steeply pitched roof, usually side-gabled (less commonly hipped
or front-gabled)
• Facade dominated by one or more prominent front-facing gables,
usually steeply pitched
• Tall, narrow windows, usually in multiple groups, with multi-pane
glazing
• Massive chimneys, sometimes crowned by decorative chimney
pots

• Front door and/or entry porch with round or Tudor arch
• Decorative half-timbering present on about one-third of
examples

Eight principle subtypes can be distinguished:

• Front-gabled roof: About 15 percent of Tudor houses have a
full-width front gable that dominates the front facade. Pre-1920
examples may include a full-width one-story front porch, and
details from the contemporaneous Craftsman style, while later
examples often have a massive roof form, sometimes with large
side-facing dormers.

• Symmetrical paired gables: Only about 5 percent of Tudor houses
have a pair of symmetrical gables. Early examples sometimes
had a lower-pitched roof and details from the contemporaneous
Craftsman style.

110 STATE COLLEGE, PA • HERITAGE STATE COLLEGE DESIGN GUIDELINES