Victorian Stick Style Architecture
The well preserved architecture of the Victorian Stick style home seen above is one of several in Reedsville, Virginia. It's key location, where the Potomac River becomes the Chesapeake Bay, made the small city an important shipping port and permitted the arrival of the manufactured trim work that typifies the style. The name refers to the decorative trusses that appear in the buildings apex along with vertical, horizontal and diagonal boards raised from the exterior wall cladding. Taken together these adornments are known as “stickwork.” Built from 1860-1890 the houses feature steeply pitched, cross gabled roofs, overhanging eaves with exposed rafter ends. In town houses stickwork may appear as brackets. You can also look for diagonal or curved bracings around the porch but keep in mind that very few examples show all the features. Architectural drawings and floor plans are seen below. The house is a modest-sized home, laid out with a downstars parlor, kitchen with pantry, dining room, an attached wood shed. Upstairs contained a small master suite, and three additional “chambers.”
Seen below is an artist rendering of the same house. The front porch in the 1800 era drawing was referred to as a “Piazza,” denoting the styles lineage from European farm houses. Plans come from the “Village Builder” an architectural pattern book from the late 1800's. Here's an overview of the age that spawned Victorian Stick-Style architecture. style.
The one seen below is located in Garrett Park Maryland and may actually be Queen Anne. The town is a fascinating little village that's only reason for existence is it's proximity to the rail line. The trains have been stopping since 1895. The town has a number of Victorians scattered around the train station and bears it’s railroad roots proudly taking it’s name from Robert Garrett, the son of a former president of the B & O, John W. Garrett. The original 150 acre village was laid out to resemble an English village featuring winding lanes and irregularly shaped lots. William Saunders, who served in the Department of Agriculture during Lincoln’s administration contributed horticultural expertise. Early residents of Garrett Park’s Victorian homes included military officers, and railroad executives.
To spur development and to add fare payers to the neighborhood, the railroad offered incentives to potential homeowners including half price rates for transporting building materials and the workmen who would build the houses. According to handbills of the time, families could also take the first ride to their new homes for free while carrying “household supplies not bulky in character.”
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