Architecture of the Historic Homes on Tour

Waterford Homes Tour & Crafts Exhibit

October 1, 2 & 3, 2010
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Weaver's Cottage on Water Street

As you walk around the village during the Waterford Fair, you will see an astonishing variety of architectural styles in this small village. The earliest vernacular buildings (1700-1780), exemplified by some houses on Bond Street and by the Weaver's Cottage, were usually one and one-half stories with steeply pitched roofs; large, exterior, end chimneys; small window openings; and batten doors.

Those of the Georgian-Federal period (1780-1830) usually have two stories and are constructed of brick or stone. Facades are symmetrical with a central entrance. Windows are small-paned, often with operable shutters. Some have roof dormers and decorative features such as dentillations or detailed cornices. A well-designed example is the Bank House at the lower end of Main Street.

The Federal/Greek Revival row house style (1780-1840) exemplifies urban townhouse design. These houses have two or three stories with a gable roof. The first floors were often mercantile establishments with no interior access to the residence above.

In the Greek Revival row house, details may include doorways with rectangular transoms and deep classical cornices on doors or windows. An excellent example of the Queen Anne style (1880-1910) is the stucco house on Second Street, with its complex roof, vertical proportions, asymmetrical facade, and roof turret.

The Vernacular Victorian style (1860-1910), or five-bay house, is usually of frame, has two stories, and has simple Victorian features, such a one-story front porch that extends over most of the facade with an oculus or decorative windows in the bay.

The American Foursquare style (1900-1920) is identified by its hipped roof with a deep overhang, a dominant central dormer, and a full-width front porch. There are some fine examples of this style on Second Street.

Some late twentieth-century additions to the village are the Good House on Bond Street, an example of a "new old house," which exemplifies history-friendly construction, and two vernacular houses on Second Street, which harmonize well with their surroundings.