Victorian Domestic Architectural Plans and Details: 734 Scale Drawings of Doorways, Windows, Staircases, Moldings, Cornices, and Other Elements

by William T. Comstock

Victorian architecture, with its quirky diversity, eclectic origins, and exuberant ornamentation, continues to exert a strong attraction on today's architects, builders, and homeowners. For those interested in restoring, preserving, or even re-creating Victorian homes, authentic plans and designs are invaluable. This volume, meticulously reproduced from a rare nineteenth-century publication, offers an exceptionally rich pictorial record of actual mid- to late-Victorian designs.
Extremely clear and detailed engravings — drawn to scale — present elevations, floor plans, perspectives, and other drawings (in some cases, complete framing plans) for country houses and cottages in a variety of Queen Anne, Eastlake, Elizabethan, Colonial, Jacobean, Southern, Californian, and more. There are even designs for several store and office fronts, with counters, shelving, etc.
Supplementing the large number of complete designs are nearly 700 large-scale drawings of virtually every architectural detail, many embodying the unique "gingerbread" that characterizes Victorian buildings. Included are clear, precise renderings of balusters, brackets, dormers, fireplaces, finials, gables, mantels, moldings, newels, porches, rafters, rosettes, staircases, transoms, verandahs, wainscoting, windows, and hundreds of other features.
Restorers of old houses, preservationists, students of American architectural history, admirers of Victoriana, and anyone interested in the Victorian Gothic styles that dominated American domestic architecture in the late 1800s will want to have this inexpensive treasury of authentic century-old plans and details.

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference

96 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1987

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great reference for rehabbers. Book is full of floor plans and woodworking details that are sure to help an owner of a Victorian Home start uncovering what may have been the original layout. The details are work examination for creating new bookcases, eave work, and built ins. For the home owner who wants to have something contracted out to a carpenter, the illustrations would be a great way to jump start a conversation and make your desires clear with draftsman quality images.

In all black and white, the details come through better than any ideabook or other Victorian home books showcasing dated, heavy floral 1970s imagery.

The original plates referring to bedrooms as "chambers" makes the read of the floor plans a bit of cultural anthropology less than 120 years back in American history.

[India Lavoyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed looking through the plans and details. My husband is a Construction Engineer, so he looked through them with me to guess how much it would cost to build those type houses in modern times. One can only fantasize right now.

[Roger Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting collections of drawings. It is titled "Victorian" but it seems to include Queen Anne and Eastlake styles according to the introduction although none of the drawings are labelled as such.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me this is a drawing aid. It's really helpful.