In Praise of Porches

From 1860 through the 1940's, residential architectural design rarely omitted the front porch. From Gothic Revival to Queen Anne, from Italianate to Bungalow, porches served as a natural extension of the home's interior to the outside world, embracing nature in some cases, protecting against nosy neighbors in others.

Why were front porches so popular with American architects, and their consumers, the American public? To a large extent, the rise in popularity of the front porch happened simultaneously with the rise of the middle class, during a time when the concept of "leisure" entered American lives. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, there was little time to waste in a rocking chair observing the world go by from one's porch. The farm wife might sit by her back door shelling peas or churning butter, but it was still "work." Once the Industrial Revolution began to eliminate the backbreaking labor of survival, there arose the need for a place to enjoy one's after-work hours.

Technological advances also encouraged the design of houses with porches as well as turrets, balconies, larger and grander windows, etc. Lathe-turned ballisters and gingerbread ornamentation became readily available. Wicker furniture, porch swings, and the ubiquitous rocking chair were popular choices for this "outdoor room."

Americans were beginning to discover "nature", as a result of many pioneering social thinkers, artists, scientists and landscape architects. The concept of preserving natural resources, such as in city parks like Frederick Law Olmstead's Central Park and parks in nearly every town and city, increasingly provided a way to escape the dreariness of factory labor. Porches were symbolic of the newly discovered appreciation of nature and soon became an essential element of every home.

When World War II ended, the flood of returning GIs eager to settle down with their new families instigated the boom of suburban housing, constructed cheaply and quickly. Highways were built and automobile travel was encouraged, so every family bought a car, and garages were the new "symbol" of leisure and prosperity in residential architecture. Porches slipped from favor as plate-glass windows graced the front expanse of a house, bringing a view of nature into the home without obstruction. From the 1950's well into the 1980's, new housing grew larger, more substantial, more expensive, and the garage grew accordingly. The porch disappeared. Families in the suburbs didn't gather on porches anymore to share the day and relax after dinner. Family rooms, TV, air-conditioning, the backyard

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