Historic Styles / Italianate 1840-1885

Overview

Often included in the so-called Picturesque Movement, the Italianate style began in England as a reaction to the rigid formalism that had come to dominate nineteenth-century architecture. The style derived from Italy's rambling farmhouses, usually built of masonry, with their characteristic square towers and informal detailing. By the 1830s, Italianate had spread to the United States, where architects began to transform it into something truly American with only hints of its Italian origin. Thus, working in this style, architects had a higher degree of artistic freedom than they had in earlier, more rigid styles.

Much of the style's popularity can be credited to architect Andrew Jackson Downing, whose own Italianate home designs were featured in two books he published: Cottage Residences (1842) and The Architecture of Country Houses (1850). Widely read by designers and the public alike, his influential book set off a wave of Italianate homebuilding around the country. The best surviving examples are wood frame with clapboard exteriors. The style waned during the economic depression of 1873. Of the many Victorian-era variants represented in Washington, DC's historic neighborhoods, Italianate is one of the most passionate feast for the eyes. Washington dwellings in this style generally date from 1840 to 1885, with the majority built in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War. The expense and craftsmanship lavished on the exteriors offer testament to the prosperity and optimism of the era. An attractive group of Italianates can be seen at 204 Ninth Street SE. The 600 block of East Capitol Street NE also has good examples.

Characteristics

The typical Italianate was a two-story building, but examples survive in many variations, from three-story detached homes with towers and cupolas to urban town houses. For stand-alone houses, there were six basic categories (noted here in architectural shorthand): box with a hip roof; box with a centered gable; L or U plan; L plan with a tower, and a front gable.

Italianate town houses are identifiable by their wide projecting cornices with heavy brackets and their richly ornamented windows, porches, and doorways. Most American examples of Italianate mix details derived from both informal rural models and formal renaissance town houses.

Materials

Brick and wood clapboard were the most common building materials used for Italianate homes with brick being more expensive. The ornamentation was typically wood and occasionally the brick homes had elaborate, durable cast iron window and door hoods.

Roof

Italianate roofs were low pitched, often with a square cupola on top. Projecting eaves with large brackets in a variety of shapes and spacing dominated the cornice. Arranged singly or in pairs, the brackets were usually underscored with wide decorative bands and sometimes further elaborated with panel moldings.

Windows

Italianate window sashes typically had one-over-one or two-over-two glazing. Window trim had exuberant variations, for example, U-shaped crowns with brackets or pedimented crowns with decorated hoods. Arched and curved windows were popularized in America by the Italianate trend.

Entrance

Doors occurred in as much variety as windows. Paired and single doors were both common, often announcing themselves with a large, elaborate hood supported by brackets. Italianate doors were the first to have large panes of glass in the door itself in lieu of sidelights with small panes.

Italianate porches were restrained in their size and decoration, compared to other Victorian styles, and often only one story. The most common type of porch column was a square post, usually 6" square with beveled or chamfered corners.

Want to find out more about Italianate architecture? Visit our glossary of terms and learn more architecture definitions.