CENSUS

The purpose is to analyze each house in respect to a considerable number of predominant features so as to arrive at totals which will indicate the prevailing characteristics of the old houses. These are exterior features on the front of the house or conspicuously visible from the street.

In these old districts we have tabulated 319 old dwellings, interspersed with 46 of modern or mixed design. As this includes about two-thirds of the old houses, it is representative of the whole as the rest are known to be of the same types.

Here is the list of features and the number of times each was recorded:

Walls—wood 311; brick 8.

Exterior Surface of Front Wall—shingles 179; clapboards 132; brick 8.

Exposed Foundations—brick 246; stone 65; modern replacements 8.

Height of Foundation above Ground, viz., height of first floor above ground—

High (generally with 3 or 4 panes of glass vertically in basement windows) 140.

Low (generally 1 or 2 steps to first floor; without basement windows) 97.

Intermediate (between high and low) 82.

Number of Stories—two 271; one and one-half 30; one 16; three 2.

Roof Type—gable 287; lean-to 19; hip 8; gambrel 5.

Windows—total panes of glass in the two sashes—twelve 216; twenty-four 49; eighteen 4.

Modern viz., two or four 50.

Dormers in front roof—the narrow gable roof, old type 29; wide or with shed roof 23.

Roof Walks—35 Cupolas—14 Front Roof Balustrades—11.

Door Location—toward one side of the front 227; at center of front 92.

Chimney Location—central 132; to one side of center 109; near side of building 78.

Main chimneys were always of brick, generally with six or less flues, now plastered or painted above roof and located at or near the ridge at interior of building.

Modern Detractions—noted occasionally in the 319 old houses:

Modern windows of four or two sheets of glass—50

Modern piazza or porch, generally with flat roof—51

Modern front door—odd panels, golden oak, plate glass, etc.—46

Modern bay window—35

Slim chimneys—23

Hood over front door with fancy gingerbread detail—13

Large lattice arbor obscuring front door—8

Conspicuous “sun parlors”—12

Other features. It was gratifying to observe that the following did not appear at all on the old houses or with sufficient frequency to note:

Fancy shingles—as in belts on walls and roofs or scalloped or diamond-shaped

Outside chimneys—including those of cobblestone

Gingerbread trim—except on hoods over front doors

Cement blocks—particularly those professing to simulate artificial stone

Conspicuous cement steps and walks to front door

Modern brick—such as the yellow and tapestry varieties

Conspicuous bright paint colors—particularly on blinds and doors