Did you know?
Capitol Hill is the unofficial birthplace of Denver's preservation movement. Following the 1970s demolition of the Moffat Mansion (at 8th and Grant) Historic Denver, Inc. was created by concerned citizens in time to save another of our city's precious historic homes, that of the "unsinkable" Margaret Brown.
SHINGLE STYLE (1879-1893)
Shingle-style architecture can be considered an Americanization of Queen Anne and a uniquely American invention. A quieter, simpler, and more horizontal style than Queen Anne, it started in the Northeast with the post-centennial interest in American Colonial architecture, especially the shingled Colonial architecture of northeastern coastal towns. As such, it is sometimes deemed to be a reinterpretation and revival of early northeast Colonial forms. The term “Shingle style” was coined by architectural historian Vincent Scully, who considers a house in Mount Desert, Maine (1879), by William Ralph Emerson, its first monument. This style became fully developed in the 1880s. The Hotel del Coronado (1886-1888) in San Diego, by James and Merritt Reid, is probably the largest Shingle-style building still standing.
The most famous proponents of the style were H.H. Richardson and McKim, Mead and White in the East and Willis Polk in San Francisco. Even Frank Lloyd Wright built in the style early in his career. Full-blown examples are not common in Denver, but Queen Anne buildings with some Shingle-style attributes are frequently found. Many of William Lang’s houses exhibit Shingle-style tendencies but are usually too exuberant to be considered pure examples. The Adam-Fitzell House (1890) at 1359 Race Street, by Kidder and Humphries, and 1375 Josephine Street (1892) are both excellent examples of the Shingle style.
Defining characteristics:
• Continuous wood shingle surfaces
• Wavy wall surfaces
• Extensive porches
• Eyebrow dormers
• Rusticated stone
• Round arches
