Part 10

Prepared by H. B. Boynton and J. M. Thompson for the department of agricultural engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute.

PLAN 6535

Floor areas: Superstructure, 820 square feet. Porch, 30 square feet.

This might well be considered the smallest story-and-a-half farmhouse that could be practicably built. The designer has utilized the space to good advantage, omitting a bath in the original structure for the sake of economy. The working drawings show a future addition to the house which provides a bedroom and bath on the first-floor. The alternate floor plan shows a dormer in the rear like the one on the front, to make room for a second-floor bath.

A distinctive feature of this compact design is the =L=-shaped kitchen with its well-grouped and well-lighted working surfaces and dining table. The arrangement of an =L=-shaped room is often a problem when enlarging or remodeling. The living room is arranged for both day and night use, with a folding bed in a closet.

Prepared by C. T Bridgman for the department of agricultural engineering, Iowa State College.

PLAN 6536, FOR THE NORTH

Floor areas: Superstructure, 1560 square feet. Cellar, 400 square feet. Porch, 210 square feet.

This design illustrates a type of farmhouse frequently built in recent years because of its simple lines and economy of construction. It illustrates the pleasing possibility of fitting the farmhouse to sloping ground, with ample light in the basement and easy flights of steps between the house proper, the large workroom at the rear, and the cellar.

The partition between the main rooms downstairs is carried up to divide the second-floor, giving these bedrooms ample size and good cross ventilation and making a strong construction that will not sag in years to come. A second bathroom may be provided in the storage space by the chimney, thus adding to the comfort of the home and making the upstairs rooms suitable for rental to tourists if desired. The roof should be insulated to give comfort both in summer and in winter.

The downstairs hall, lighted by the windows on the stairs, is compact and provides easy communication between all rooms. The living room is well-lighted and has good wall spaces for furniture. The combined kitchen and dining room, with the sink at right angles to the outside wall, as shown in the interior view, gives the housewife three walls of continuous work surfaces and in addition light and the view from all the windows of the room. Children can play or older members visit in the dining end with slight interference to the housewife's work. This is especially helpful on chilly days in the fall and spring when the kitchen stove provides the only heat in the house.

The part basement furnishes space for a furnace and for storage of fruits and vegetables.

Prepared by C. J. Poiesz and Eldred Mowery for the Bureaus of Agricultural Engineering and Home Economics, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

PLAN 6537

Floor areas: Superstructure (including enclosed porch) 1,520 square feet. Cellar, 840 square feet. Terrace and steps, 100 square feet.

House 6537 is similar in many respects to no. 6536, and has much the same advantages, though the rooms are somewhat smaller. A second downstairs bedroom can be added beside the bathroom, if needed, or the two bedrooms on the second-floor can be left unfinished if funds are not on hand to complete the building in the beginning.

The sketch indicates the roof line sweeping down snug over the window of the first-floor bedroom, a feature which is carried out with similar success in plan 6538. Designs of this type help to keep a two-story home from appearing too tall and make it a more harmonious unit in the farmstead scheme.

Prepared by T. A. Zink for the department of agricultural engineering, Purdue University.

PLAN 6538

Floor areas: Superstructure, 1,740 square feet. Cellar, 385 square feet. Stoops, 80 square feet.

House 6538 may be roofed in a number of ways, with slight alterations in the arrangement of the second-floor. The appearance is, of course, greatly altered; but in each case is pleasing. With the modernistic flat roof, any waste spaces caused by the sloping roofs in the other designs are eliminated. The storage room on the second-floor then becomes suitable for a child's bedroom, a sewing room, or an office, and the flat-deck porch roof will serve as a sleeping porch.

The plan is simple and well proportioned. Since the arrangement of the entrance is a little unusual, the location of the driveway and the path to the barn should be given careful study before deciding upon the site and placing of the house.

Construction should be simple. In the case of the modernistic house, concrete or stucco is suggested for the first story and boards and battens for the second.

Prepared by W. K. Bartges and Earl Barnett for the department of agricultural engineering. University of California..

PLAN 6539, FOR THE NORTH

Floor areas: Superstructure, original house, 1,100 square feet; with kitchen addition, 1,270 square feet; with all additions shown, 1,620 square feet. Porches, original house, 90 square feet; completed house, 285 square feet. Cellar, 565 square feet.

Thousands of farmhouses in all parts of the North and Middle West have begun like house 6539, and the development illustrated for this one should offer helpful suggestions both to farmers who plan to build new and those who expect to remodel present houses. It is a very practical design, expressing honest dignity.

The plans on this page show the original unit, which would supply a comfortable yet economical dwelling, with a basement for fuel and storage. The first addition might be either the new 7 kitchen and porch or the downstairs bedroom, bath, and laundry. If needed, a third upstairs bedroom and a bathroom can be added over those in the first-floor addition, as shown in the working drawings, with little loss of material or work, because the downstairs bedroom has a flat-deck roof. This would increase the floor area of the superstructure to 1,900 square feet.