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2024.0903.0003...
Early 1900s
None of these will embiggen.
#556 Why is the route between kitchen and dining, a 90 degree closet? I sure hope that's not the Teen boy's bedroom directly accessing the kitchen. Tho' fantastic for midnight snacks.
ReplyDeleteHey Paul - the "90 degree closet" is actually a butler's pantry (also known as a scullery); a common staple of Victorian and Gilded Age houses that held on until the 1920's or so (my house - built in 1902 - has one). The official role of a butler included overseeing other staff and table service to the family and guests during meals among other things. Existing butler's pantries with their original cabinetry are highly prized among old house owners.
DeleteButler's Pantries would be used do kitchen prep work and dishwashing as well as store china, glassware, serving pieces and cutlery (sometimes with the silver being locked up to keep the other servant's from stealing). It also often was used to stage plates and be inspected by the butler before being brought to the dining room. This room would (those that were used as a scullery) include a sink for dish washing, and modern, remodeled ones included a dishwasher.
Lately, they are coming back into vogue in modern builds as it helps keep the kitchen more organized and with a separation between prep and pro-washing, allows the kitchen space to be used specifically for cooking. Here's an article that describes them and trends: https://www.realtor.com/advice/home-improvement/what-is-a-butlers-pantry/.
As far as the "Teen boy's bedroom," LOL I can't help you there - that bedroom might have been a multiple-purpose bedroom; sure, for kids, but could just as easily been used as a servant's quarters if the family only included husband and wife. The door to the kitchen would facilitate that, as well as allowing children to enter and exit the bedroom without tromping through the dining room (perhaps during a dinner party) - "children seen, but not heard" type of thing.
Hope that helps!
RBrysco - Thank you for the link.
DeleteA couple of nice Craftsman there....
ReplyDeleteWhere to start? All have the kitchen smaller than the dining room, common in that era, since the kitchen was only used by servants but the dining room was used by the family. All have a butler’s pantry, as mentioned in previous comments. All but the first have a vestibule, actually a practical feature to prevent excessive loss of heat when opening the front door in the winter. The last design actually has two vestibules.
ReplyDeleteNow for the weirdness. 566 has a servant’s room outside the main house, with no access to a bathroom. Well, servants don’t need to go to the bathroom, or they can go in the yard like a dog, right? 566 has an extension of the upstairs hallway that serves no purpose except to provide a window for light, but there’s already a window at the other end of the hall. Instead of this useless space, the architect could have made the bedrooms bigger. In 574, the stairs have two separate flights going up that meet on the landing, serving no purpose and wasting space. Lastly, 574 has two walls between the dining room and the parlor, with a small space between the walls. As drawn, it would appear that the space between the walls is designed to accumulate bugs and dirt. Actually, I suspect that it’s supposed to house sliding doors to close off the dining room, though sliding doors would not require a double-thick wall.
That fourth house makes for a boarding house story of 1950’s suburbia.
ReplyDeleteMs DeHaviland and her boarding house, one of her boarders Mr Winterthur, a college lecturer and artist, and the athletic and muscular youth Troy, a very helpful neighbor who on occasion mows the lawns and trims the shrubs of the boarding house to earn money for performance parts for his hot rod.
In summer Troy will mow the lawns with no shirt and a pair of shorts, much to Mr Winterthur’s delight ! :) Sometimes Ms DeHaviland will have Troy take a coffee tray up to Mr Winterthur, in appreciation Mr Winterthur gives Troy books to read. Troy finds that the books cover subjects from French literature to Ancient Greek art and shockingly the homosexuality of warriors in ancient civilizations ! One day Troy once again takes a tray of coffee to Mr Winterthur. This time Mr Winterthur is drawing and requests that Troy pose for him. Troy sits on the divan and is surprised when Mr Winterthur tells him to take off his clothes ! After all Troy you are an athlete and should have no qualms posing nude says Mr Winterthur.
The helpful Troy then obliges his wish.
What Ms DeHaviland, Mr Winterthur and the whole neighborhood doesn’t know is that Troy goes downtown and hustles his sweet ass for a slew of gentleman clients. After all, those performance parts for Troy’s hot rod are expensive and have to be paid for. :)
-Rj
Rj - What a fascinating story.
DeleteNice hot text!
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