Small Houses Which are Good 
I. 
E. S. Child, Architect 
T O erect a residence which is part of the land¬ 
scape and not an inappropriate dwelling 
which seems to have been transplanted 
from some foreign soil, is not an easy task, dliat 
is the problem which is before the architects of to¬ 
day; not to be satisfied to make merely livable houses 
but homes which have beauty of line and every 
modern convenience. 
■The architect, in this instance, has succeeded ad¬ 
mirably as is shown by the perspective. The quaint 
windows, the low, sweeping roof and the strong, 
white columns in the center and the stone ones at 
the ends, which assist in supporting the second floor 
which extends over the porch, all combine to make 
an exterior which is both harmonious and pleasing. 
The shingled sides and roof of the house are stained 
a rich brown and the twin porch columns and the 
trim of the windows and doors are painted white. 
The foundation, chimneys and two of the porch col¬ 
umns and the abutments on either side of the porch 
steps are all of local stone which gives a rustic ap¬ 
pearance which is very picturesque. 
The porch is so arranged that it does not darken 
the rooms in the Iront of the house. The reception 
hall, fifteen by sixteen feet, has an open fireplace 
of brick, opposite the front door. The stairway is 
at the side with a seat in the bay wdndow. At the 
left of the hall is a reception room, tw-elve by eleven 
feet, which has wide openings from the dining-room 
and the hall. The dining-room has an open fire¬ 
place and is connected with the kitchen by a butler’s 
pantry which is well supplied wdth dressers for 
china, etc. The kitchen has a stairw^ay to the 
second floor, a pantry and a back porch. One 
chimney contains flues for the kitchen range, furnace 
and fireplaces in the hall and dining-room. 
There are four chambers and a bath-room on the 
second floor. Each of the rooms has a good sized 
closet and there is a linen closet in the hall. Two 
rooms are finished on the third story and there is 
plenty of space for storage. The cellar contains the 
necessary coal bins, a laundry and a servants’ toilet 
room. It is specified to heat this house with steam 
heat and it is to be lighted by electricity. 
The first floor is finished in whitew-ood, stained 
chestnut in the hall, reception-room and dining¬ 
room and left natural in the kitchen and pantries. 
The bedrooms on the second and third floors are in 
whitewood, painted white and the bath-room has an 
Imitation tiled wainscot. 
This house, planned by E. S. Child, architect, of 
New York, can be erected now for about ^9,000. 
IE 
E. G. W. 'DiEi:Kicn, Architect 
I N the planning of small houses the architect is 
usually confronted with the request to incor¬ 
porate in it all of those devices and conven¬ 
iences which characterize a complete modern estab¬ 
lishment, to install them in a very small fraction of 
the space usually allotted to them and in addition 
thereto to perform the task with an expenditure of 
money which at once precludes the possibility of its 
accomplishment. To reconcile these widely diverg¬ 
ing conditions requires a master. A master of diplo¬ 
macy as well as a master of ingenuity and resource 
who will keep paring down from both sides of the 
proposition until it is brought within the range of the 
possibilities. Once arrived at this point the architect 
is filled with ambition to attain the desired end and 
enters into the work with enthusiasm. 
Those sterner qualities which are generally upper¬ 
most when engaged in designing public buildings or 
the elaborate homes of the very rich, are exchanged 
for a tender regard ; the home feeling is aroused, 
ideals are reared and the small house is an accom¬ 
plished fact, replete with the charm of a home, where 
more than protection from the elements is found. 
He at once discovers anew that which he has known 
for years, that beauty in buildings, inheres less to 
features than to line and proportion, and that while 
sincerity and truth in design and construction are 
qualities which can be departed from only under the 
most severe penalties, the omission of ornamentation 
carries with it no retribution. The architect who 
tries to attain the true domestic quality in his 
work, a feeling too often entirely lacking in homes 
of low cost, finds a peculiar pleasure in design¬ 
ing a small house. The restrictions of limited 
cost and consequent limited area in which to 
work, present new and interesting difficulties which 
have to be surmounted. 
In the house of Mr. W. A. Bradshaw, Jr., of James¬ 
town, N. Y., illustrated herewith, many points of 
extreme excellence are presented and among them 
may be noted a complete isolation of routes for 
servants, the hedging in of the kitchen which pre¬ 
vents sounds reaching the living-rooms, and the 
thorough ventilation of the kitchen by a separate flue. 
The house is compact and the relative position of the 
rooms renders it an easy one to care for. Wall space 
for furniture has been kept in mind, and abundant 
closet space has been provided. A gambrel roof is 
used and the exterior is covered entirely with shin¬ 
gles. The trim is a creamy white and the shingles 
are stained a rich brown. The house was built only 
a few years ago and cost complete, about ^4,000. 
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