Deco? Craftsman? D. All of the above?

Maybe I've been reading too many bungalow blogs lately, but I'm been thinking about the pedigree of Clark Creek house. Does its construction adhere to any identifiable style?

The house was originally quite a little cabin built in the mid-twenties in an area where there was no town for miles and swampy miles until 1923 (Longview the planned City). Clark Creek House was originally just a front room, a small kitchen, a bedroom, and two little upstairs rooms, with probably a cooking porch. The only bathroom in the original part of the house is in a narrow chunk I suspect to have been carved off the bedroom. If there was no indoor plumbing, I bet there was no electricity either. This theory is borne out by the one outlet per room, whether they needed one or not wiring plan. There wasn't even a foundation at first. The cedar timbers that now hold the house up from caving into the basement still have mud on them from when they used to sit on the ground.

All that being said, the original builders must have put a significant pile of cash into not strictly necessary niceties like the ceiling tiles, narrow strip flooring, and molding. Who were they and why were they all the way up this creek valley?

The posting about how far a restorer should go to stick with the original style of their house on House In Progress is what got me thinking about this. Our house was built during a time with identifiable styles but has been added onto or modified every decade since then. Is it worth even trying to identify an original architectural style to try to shoot for in restoration? I think the answer is probably not, but its not a foregone conclusion.

SD

posted by Scott in Washington at 9:21 PM |