Product Description

A reprint of a rare architect’s catalog of 1923, presenting a full range of home designs, from bungalows and cottages to larger, more formal dwellings, in photographs, floor plans and descriptions of interior and exterior detailing. Fascinating reading, and ideal as a reference for architects, architectural and social historians and all who are interested in American home design. 345 black-and-white illustrations.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #131531 in Books
• Published on: 1992-01-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 144 pages

Customer Reviews

A superb resource in architectural history
"117 House Designs of the Twenties" is a reprint of the 1923 mail-order house catalogue of the Gordon-Van Tine Company. This crisp reproduction is thus an accurate window into this era in United States home architecture. The wealth of detailed artistic renderings also make this a book of great charm and beauty.

Based in Davenport, Iowa, Gordon-Van Tine was a trailblazer in the field of prefabricated houses. This catalogue covers the company's products in amazing detail. We see cutaway views of homes that reveal the construction technique. We also see plumbing fixtures, lights, and cutaway views of furnaces.

But the heart of this catalogue lies in the detailed floor plans, as well as in the detailed artists' renditions of both exteriors and interiors. This catalogue contains structures ranging in size from a humble one-room vacation cottage to roomy nine-room farmhouses. Both one- and two-story houses appear. The main styles represented are bungalow and colonial revival (the latter including "Dutch colonial" designs), in many different configurations.

The exterior drawings capture many features: columned porches, sun porches, various roof types (gabled, hipped, gambrel), dormers, exposed rafter tails, and more. Equally detailed and charming are the depictions of furnished interiors. This is truly a marvelous book.

Very entertaining look at 1920s houses
I was looking for some reference material for houses built in the 1920s, particularly pictures of various rooms, so that I can restore some rooms in a 20s house to original condition. This book not only has exterior pictures of many different houses, but also lists things like color schemes and construction methods. It also shows pictures of garages, doors, and even manufacturing methods for the houses. The pictures may be in black and white, but they're valuable references. ... this book is an absolute steal.

Another keeper for those who are obsessed...
As I am!

"117 House Designs of The Twenties" is a reprint of the 1923 Gordon Van Tine catalog. There are a few errors in the introduction (such as the statement that Sears started selling kit homes in 1909; it was 1908) and some other frustrating mis-information, but that's a minor point.

For those sick puppies (such as myself) who like to sit and read old catalogs for hours and hours, this book is a gem. There's lots of reading material in the front and back, giving good detail about the company and how they did business.

Gordon Van Tine was a worthy contender in the kit home business, selling roughly 50,000+ kit homes in their four decades in the housing business. (Thanks to Dale Wolicki for the stats.)

Plus (and this is a biggie) GVT was the front man for Montgomery Ward homes. Unlike Sears, Montgomery Ward did not have their own mills, architects and catalogs but turned to Gordon Van Tine to supply their kit homes.

So, if you suspect you have a Montgomery Ward home, you'll want to peruse this GVT catalog.

Rose
author, "The Houses That Sears Built"
co-author, "California's Kit Homes"