Overall Visual Character: Trim
If one were to analyze the overall shape or form of this building,
it would be seen that it is a gable-roofed house with dormers and
a wrap-around porch. It is similar to many other houses of the
period. It is the wooden trim on the eaves and around the porch
that gives this building its own identify and its special visual
character.
Although such wooden trim is vulnerable to the elements,
and must be kept painted to prevent deterioration; the loss of
this trim would seriously damage the overall visual character
of this building, and its loss would obliterate much of the closeup
visual character so dependent upon craftsmanship for the moldings,
carvings, and the see-through jigsaw work.
Overall Visual Character: Setting
Even architecturally modest buildings frequently will have a setting
that contributes to their overall character. In this very urban
district, setbacks are the exception, so that the small front
yard is something of a luxury, and it is important to the overall
character because of its design and materials, which include the
iron fence along the sidewalk, the curved walk leading to the
porch, and the various plantings. In a district where parking
spaces are in great demand, such front yards are sometimes converted
to off-street parking, but in this instance, that would essentially
destroy its setting and would drastically change the visual character
of this historic property.
Arm's Length Visual Character: Materials
At arm's length, the visual character is most often determined
by the surface qualities of the materials and craftsmanship; and
while these aspects are often inextricably related, the original
choice of materials often plays the dominant role in establishing
the close range character because of the color, texture, or shape
of the materials.
In this instance, the variety and arrangement of the materials
is important in defining the visual character, starting with the
large pieces of broken stone which form the projecting base for
the building walls, then changing to a wall of roughly rectangular
stones which vary in size, color, and texture, all with accentuated,
projecting beads of mortar, then there is a rather precise and
narrow band of cut and dressed stones with minimal mortar joints,
and finally, the main building walls are composed of bricks, rather
uniform in color, with fairly generous mortar joints. It is the
juxtaposition and variety of these materials (and of course, the
craftsmanship) that is very important to the visual character.
Changing the raised mortar joints, for example, would drastically
alter the character at arm's length.
"Architectural Character" an Historic Preservation Brief
