NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES: ADAPTATIONS OF BUNGALOWS IN THE LOWER PENINSULA/CYPRESS SWAMP ZONE OF DELAWARE, 1880-1940+/- Prepared by Susan A. Mulchahey Rebecca J. Siders Gabrielle M. Lanier Nancy K. Zeigler Bernard L. Herman Center for Hist0ri.c Architecture and Engineering College of' Urban Affairs and Public Policy University of Delaware Newark, Delaware The University of Delaware is committed to assuring equal opportunity to all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, handicap, or veteran status in its educational programs, activities, admissions, or employment practices as required by Title IX of' the Educational Amendments of' 1972,, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and other appli.cable statutes. Inquiries concerning Title XI, Section 504 compliance and information regarding campus accessibility and Title VI should be referred to the Affirmative Action Office, 307 Hullihen Hall, (302) 451-2835. The activity that is the subject of this document has been financed in part with federal funds from the National Park Service, Department of the Tnterior. However, the contents and opinions do not necessarily reflect the views or' policies of the Department of' the Interior, nor does the mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation by the Department of the Interior. NPS Form 10400,b (Jan 1987) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form This form is for use in documenting multiple property groups relating to one or several historic contexts See instructions in Guidelines for Completing National Register Forms (National Register Bulletin 16) Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information For additional space use continuation sheets (Form 10-900-a).. Type all entries. A. Name of Multiple Property Listing Adaptations of Bungalows in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone of Delaware, - - 1880-1940 +/- B. Associated Histodc Contexts Architectural. Trends of the Lower ~eninbula/~~~ress Swamp Zone of Delaware, -____I_______---- --- 1880-1940 +/- -------- -.- C. Geographical Data - All. of the houses included in this nomination are located in Baltimore Hundred. Other examples will likely be found throughout Sussex County. For this reason, all of Sussex County is designated as the geographic area for this the ma ti.^ nominati.on. See continuation sheet 0. Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, I documentation form meets the National Register documentation standards and sets forth requirements for the listing of related properties consistent with the National Register criteria. This submission meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60 and the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Planning and Evaluation Signature of certifying official Date ---- / State or ~eza~enc~ and bureau - - -- - I, hereby, certify that this multiple property documentation form has been approved by the National Register as a basis for evaluating related properties for listing in the National Register. Signature of the Keeper of the National Register Date E. Statement of Historic Contexts Discuss each historic context listed in Section B. Architectural Trends of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone of Delaware 1880-1940+/- The period between 1880 and 1940 was a time of great growth in the urban population of the United States and Delaware. Accompanying this growth was the development of suburbs and new building types that expressed the values, desires, and economic situation of the suburban population. One of these new forms was the bungalow. Its thrifty style and easy- to-build design made it very attractive to urban dwel.lers seeking a new environment. During this period, a proliferation of bungalow advertisements, floor plans, and decorating appeared in the popular literature of the period. The bungalow was not restricted, however, solely to urban areas--the same qualities that attracted urban residents to the bungalow also appealed to the rural population. The rural landscape of Sussex County, Delaware, contains bungalows both in the vicinity of small towns and on agricultural land. Built as replacement or expansion housing, these bungalows demonstrate the integration of high-style suburban architecture with traditional rural forms and the beginning of a new perception of the rural landscape as suburban. The survivi.ng structures enrich and inform our understanding both of the form itself and of the widespread impact of suburbani.zation during the period. The three buildings included in thi.s nomination--the Rickards-Hudson House (S-2501); the Miller-Hudson House (S- 8119); and the McCabe House (S-2320)--are located in Baltimore Hundred, the southernmost hundred in the state. They present important testimony both as examples of the bungalow style and as evidence of the influence of urban styles on a rural region of' the state. In 1880, 28 percent of the Ameri.can population was considered urban; by 1940 that figure had risen to 57 percent.1 While the total population grew at an average rate of 18 percent in each decade of that sixty-year period, the urban rate of growth for the entire period (33 percent) far exceeded the rural rate (8 percent). Following the national pattern, the urban population of Delaware rose from 33 percent in 1880 to 52 percent in 1940. The growth of Wilmington accounted for much of this increase: in 1880, Wilrningtonians accounted for 29 percent of the state's residents; by 1920 it had reached 49 percent. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1957, 14. See continuation sheet 2 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page * Cue A0PW.l Ho r0zca)rb Beginning in 1920, the United States census broke the rural population into farm and nonfarm. The "rural farm" included all persons living on farms, while "rural nonfarm" referred to "all persons living outside cities or other incorporated places having 2,500 inhabitants or more who do not live on farms. "2 Between 1920 and 1940, the national nonfarm population increased from 39 percent of the total rural population to 47 percent; in Delaware it was much higher, rising from 50 percent to 64 percent. The growth of the nonfarm rural population in Delaware may be partly explained by the lack of municipal incorporation among Wilmington suburbs. Though many suburbs appeared in the rural area around the city, few organized themselves into towns. Most remained merely as clusters of houses attached only to the hundred in which they were built and to the county. As cities grew nationally, the transportation networks that linked the urban areas to adjacent outlying territories increased the influence cities exerted on these hinterlands .3 Between 1880 and 1940, the number of miles of railroad track and paved highways increased rapidly. The railroad was soon surpassed in importance by the automobile, though the early use of this vehicle was on paved streets within cities rather than over unpaved rural roads.( Improved rail and highway transportation had several important consequences. It provided a much wider area to which farmers could market their crops, particularly perishables which required quick delivery to processing or sales points. This had a marked effect on the financial situation of many of these farmers. During this period, the nature of agriculture in Sussex County underwent a major transformation. Between 1880 and 1930, there was a steady decline in the average number of acres Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Pred, 4; Dorau and Hinman, 36. Gilmore, 114. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 3 per farm (from 123 to 78), the total number of acres farmed (from 516,697 to 391,486), and the percentage of land used for farming (from 88 percent to 67 percent). At the same time, however, the production of certain crops increased dramatically. Poultry production rose by 354 percent between 1880 and 1920; it rose another 315 percent in the next decade. (In 1930, Sussex County poultry farmers raised 2,495,514 chickens.) Correspondingly, the production of eggs also rose, climbing from 640,972 dozen in 1880 to 2,161,475 dozen in 1920. Between 1920 and 1930, egg production rose another 253 percent. Poultry farminghad become a mainstay in the agricultural scheme of Sussex County. Corn production also changed during this period. While the number of acres used for corn decreased from 105,442 to 68,620 between 1880 and 1930, the amount of corn produced per acre increased from 13 bushels to 29 bushels in the same time frame. Some of the reasons for this increase include soil improvement through the use of imported guano as fertilizer, stock improvement in terms of more productive varieties, and improved equipment that allowed more efficient use of space by planting in rows rather than in grids. Finally, peach production, which had been a major truck farming crop in the late nineteenth century, plummeted due to the peach blight and was replaced by the production of strawberries. First appearing in the agricultural census in 1900, strawberry production peaked in 1910 with 11,154,730 quarts, but Sussex County continued to produce in excess of 86 percent of the state's strawberries through 1930. Poultry, eggs, and strawberries were all products that required quick shipment to market. With the coming of the railroad to Sussex County, farmers could produce greater amounts of the crops with the assurance that they would reach their intended markets in good time. This resulted in greater revenues for those farmers who were able to take advantage of these simultaneous improvements. The ease of physical access to distant places also encouraged more frequent personal travel and less reliance on postal communication. As travel by automobiles became more common, people from rural areas like Sussex County were more likely to NPS Fum tm 4- United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 4 have the opportunity to see first-hand the suburbs and new building forms developing in the northern part of the state. It was also possible to have kit houses, like those offered by Sears, Roebuck and Company, shipped to railway depots very close to proposed buildi.ng sites in Sussex County. Between 1900 and 1.940, auto ownership in Delaware increased from 30 vehicles to 72,730.' In 1911, when the state had 1,380 motor vehicles registered, the state legislature endorsed T. Coleman duPontls plan to build a motor highway from Wilmington to the southern border of the state. The General Assembly authorized duPontls Boulevard Commission to exerci.se the power of eminent domain in order to 0btai.n the necessary land and rights of way for the construction. Sussex County residents were skeptical, when the first stretch of highway was proposed there. Governor John G. Townsend voiced their change of heart when, at the highway's opening, he declared that "it is no idle boast that Sussex County has the greatest road in the United States. "' A distinction emerged between the old urban areas and the new suburban developments as the urban-rural balance tipped in favor of the city during the early twentieth century. In the midst of the general prosperity that characterized the period, a variety of factors combined to enable city dwellers to move to the surrounding countryside. The marketing of inexpensive lots of land on credit coincided with the extension of both trolley lines and city utilities to the suburban areas. The urban family contemplating a move to a new development could thus anticipate continued easy access to the city by streetcar and use of such city amenities as electric, gas, and water company service. ' Highway Statistics Summary to 1975, 48. ' Mack, 2:543. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 5 These practical considerations were buttressed by popular endorsements of home ownership and the equally widely held conviction about the virtues of country life. A move to the suburbs meant a return to nature and a departure from the heat, crowding, bad water, and wicked influences of the city. Ideally, such a relocation would satisfy both the practical goal of comfortable daily living conditions and the intangible hope for a more satisfying way of life. The growth of suburbs in the countryside surrounding Wilmington began in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. In 1886, Joshua T. Heald established one of the city's first suburbs, Elsmere, southwest of Wilmington. A company map of the suburb in 1889 bore a legend strikingly similar to the real estate advertising that would sing the praises of subsequent developments. "'Elsmere,'" declared the legend, "Wilmington's New Suburb. Beautiful Home Sites. 66 Trains Daily. Fare 5 Cts. Time from Elsmere' - Market Street, 8 minutes. Terms Easy. "' In the next three decades, other suburbs were platted and sold. Their advertisements demonstrate how these developments followed the national patterns in the amenities they emphasized. They stressed, for example, proximity to trolley service. Penn-Rose was "only eight minutes ride from the very centre of the city, "8 Baldton was "along line of (the) New Castle Tr~lley,"~ Gordon Heights had "choice lots on the Darby Trolley Line, "lo and Richardson Park was "only twelve minutes to Fourth and Market streets. Only one fare."ll Developers were equally eager to ' Elsmere . The Sunday Morning Star, Wilmington, Delaware, 2 August 1903, 5. Ibid. , 12 June 1904, 5. lo Ibid. , 27 May 1906, 7. l1 Ibid. , 1 November 1908, 6. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page Cue -4 NO lOZCOO1d trumpet easy terms of credit, paved streets, and city conveniences such as gas, electricity, sewers, and telephones. Many of these enticements were not available in Sussex County at that time. Certainly there was no tro1.ley system, but there was also no need for it since the primary occupation was farming and required no transportation except that provided by the railway for transporting supplies and produce. The towns that were found in Sussex County were, for the most part, too small to need a mass transit system. The majority of the dwellings in the county operated off of their own wells and septic tanks. Although many of the small towns were electrified early in the century, electricity and telephones were not widely available in the county until after World War 11. One of the building types most often associated with the process of suburbanization is the bungalow. Originally conceived as a rustic leisure cottage for the seaside or the mountains--a place to "get away from it allnl2--it was not long before the image of the bungalow changed from one of a pleasant seasonal lodging to that of a desirable permanent home. A persistent impression associated with the bungalow is that of frugality. In 1910, paint manufacturer Sherwin-Williams published Cottage-Bungalow, a pamphlet filled with decorating advice and offers of assistance from the company's decorative department. Clearly identifying the bungalow clientele, the pamphleteer acknowledges that "busy with other interests, few people have the opportunity to investigate the full possibilities of practical and artistic home decoration, while only those of large means can afford to employ ... expert decorators and designers." The assistance of the decorative department was, the writer continued, "by no means intended only l2 King, 1; Lancaster, 35. cue *.I NO IOZUWld United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 7 for expensive homes. "13 The following year, Alabastine , another paint company, issued Walls and how to decorate them, in which the manufacturer touted its paint as "economical enough for the most unpretentious cottage. To the householder of refined taste but limited means, it is a veritable blessing. "14 The public for whom the bungalow was intended was comprised of those individuals who earned enough to buy their own homes but needed to husband their resources. The dwellings themselves were shaped by these practical limits. Publications of the period identify the primary characteristics of the bungalow. Most striking initially is the low-pitched roof, projecting in deep, overhanging eaves and supported by substantial , though simple, brackets. The ground-hugging outline of the one - or one - and-a-half-story house was graced by a broad porch that ranged across the front and was anchored solidly at the corners by heavy pillars. The fenestration and door placement varied among structures, though there was regular use of bay windows to add light and interest to the design. Published plans discussed adaptation of the structures to the charms and peculiarities of the environments in which they were to be built. The 1908 description of a suburban bungalow, for example, stressed that "a careful study has been made of the surroundings in the endeavor to make the house fit in with them. "I5 The Cottage-Bungalow pamphlet reiterated the connection between dwelling and setting. In reference to a shore location, the pamphleteer suggested that "If the coast is precipitous and rocky the house foundation may effectively grow up out of the solid ledge and its form follow that of the cliff." Alternatively, if the bungalow was l3 Cottage-Bungalow, n.p. l4 Walls and how to decorate them, 3. l5 Comstock, 21. UWed States Department of the Intertar National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page on a country site, "Its low roof lines conform with the slope of surrounding hills. . . "I6 Capitalizing on the image of a snug, safe home, plans often included fireplaces with rustic hearths. In keeping with the often limited resources of the buyers, the houses also frequently offered such built-in furniture as cupboards, buffets, bookcases, and window seats (Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4). A sampling of house floor plans published between 1910 and 1924 indicates that the average bungalow had five or six rooms, living room, dining room, kitchen, two or three bedrooms plus bath. Of the typical dwellings, 80 percent had fireplaces, 41 percent had at least one bay window, 50 percent had built-in buffets, and 30 percent had built-in seat or bookcases. One newspaper article characterized built-in furniture as "a modern thing. " The writer justified the expense of built-in furniture for rental properties by claiming that "built-in furniture will help to keep ... houses filled with good tenants when plain houses are left with many vacancies. "17 The plans also reflected late nineteenth and early twentieth-century changes in the organization and management of homes. There were, for example, few bungalows that provided living quarters for servants. Prior to this time, many people with the means to own a detached house on its own lot would have maintained a staff of servants. With the advent of the bungalow, not only were servant rooms rare, but the publishers of bungalow plan books openly acknowledged that the arrangement of the kitchen and dining room was planned with the unassisted homemaker in mind. In August 1913, the Sunday Morning Star published a plan of "An Attractive Bungalow" described as follows : "It has a very jaunty appearance, the arrangement is convenient l6 Cottage-Bungalow, n.p. l7 Sunday Morning Star, July 13, 1913, p. 11. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet E Section number - 9 Page - Figure 1 "The ~lmwood", indicating spaces for furniture. From Stevenson and Jandl, Houses by Mail, p. 114, 1986. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 10 Mnin Floor Plan of Bungalow. WB Size . by 2s fi't. Figure 2 "Four Room Western Bungalow", with built-in window seat, buffet, and pantry cupboards. From Shrewsbury's House Plans, p. 11, 1923. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet 11 Page- Section number - Figure 3 "Extra Ornamental ~un~alow", with built-in "nook" and buffet . From Shrewsbury's House Plans,, p. 21, 1923. 12 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 12 r"39cn #I ) I j 26:,5- / I Floor ]tDlnn of ltun$Zal~\~. $$ze. by 41 E*f. Pfgure 4 "Six Room Bungalow", witn built-in sezt, buffet, and pantry cupboards. From Shrewsbury's House Plans, p. 23, 1923. NPS 1C-m (-a United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 13 and. . .will appeal to the housewife who does her own work. "I8 The attention given bungalows by developers in Delaware was underscored by a series of bungalow floor plans published in Wilmington's Sunday Morning Star, beginning in February 1910. In his comments accompanying the plans, the architect asked, "What is a bungalow?" After a brief discussion of the East Indian origins of the style, he catalogued its characteristics: one story, living room, dining room, three bedrooms, kitchen, bath, wide porch, overhanging eaves. 19 In the months that followed, several sets of plans were published in the Sunday paper which para1 lelled in their particulars the characteristics of plans published nationally. Two writers, for example, noted the desirability of adapting the bungalow to its setting, "so as to be in perfect harmony with the surroundings. "20 The plans also incorporated interior features similar to those found in other nationally-published plans. Of the eleven bungalow floor plans which appeared on the real estate pages of the Sunday Morning Star in 1910, ten had fireplaces, five included bay windows, and two provided for built-in buffets. The houses displayed remarkable flexibility and variability. It was this "limitless adaptability," the license to vary inbuilding detail, that contemporaries seemed to prize as "one of [the bungalow's] chief beauties.. .the desires of the owner and the demands of the situation being the only guides to planning such a house. The result.. .is a large amount of individuality among the houses of the bungalow type. "21 As one bungalow builder stressed, the interior could be modified "to suit l8 Sunday Morning Star, August 3, 1913, p. 11. l9 The Sunday Morning Star, 20 February 1910, 14. 20 Ibid. , 10 October 1909, 6 ; 7 August 1910, 15. 21 The Book of Little Houses, 42. NPS Form 1- (bes) United States Department of the interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page l4 individual tastes without changing the outside appearance. "22 Between 1880 and 1900 bungalows began to attract attention as suburban developments began to appear in the periphery around cities. After the turn of the century, they became an increasingly common part of the urban landscape. The bungalow was a suburban form. Its appearance on the rural landscape of Baltimore Hundred reflectedthe increased influence of urbanization on Sussex County. Though certainly not urban in terms of absolute population nor in comparison with the rest of Delaware, Baltimore Hundred nonetheless had access to urban styles. As the Sunday Morning Star stated in 1905, "Since the establishment of rural mail service even the remotest sections [of Sussex] have been in touch with current events through the medium of the daily papers."23 Newspapers such as Wilmington's Sunday Morning Star were not the only publications to feature the bungalow style in articles and floor plans; popular magazines did so as well. The Ladies' Home Journal initiated a house-plan service in 1919 that would allow readers to purchase for the sum of one dollar the working drawings, details, and elevations necessary to create a complete set of blueprints.24 This magazine published various styles of housing, including several plans designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. As early as 1908, House Beautiful carried advertisements for several booklets of bungalow plans that could be ordered by mail, again for the sum of one dollar. One, advertised by a California architect, claimed that his plans were "practical in any part of the country" and could be made "suitable for building. . . in cold as well as in warm climates. "25 (See Figure 5) In addition, plans and construction materials were available from a number 22 Yoho, introduction n.p. 23 Sunday Morning Star, February 12, 1905, p. 1. 24 Gowans, p. 67. 25 Lancaster, p. 148. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 15 BUNGALOWS DIRECT FROLM DUNGALOIV LAND Perfect Gems of Home Corn- fort and Atfroctlveness My designs have been selected from the very best typell of bungalows in Southern California, which have becoine so popular throughout America. They are pructirul in nny part of the country. Special specifications are prepared by an expert familiar with all the details of eastern and northern localities. Now is the time to build. aa lumber and labor are 50 - per cent cheaper than it was six months ago. If You are Interested in Home Building- Desjgo N~. 18 Railt of Stained Rustic Siding and Shingko Cost $2,200 Take Advantage of My Special Offer My experience of over tcn ye:trs in the East enables me to prepare specifications and ~nnke strttcturnl dot:tils suit- able for buildiirr: thc%e houses in cold as wcll as in warm climates. MY terms. for makine pians. etc.. arc stnm;>ed on the back of each photogr:&pI~. Thae designs are crlttrr!~ diffcrellt !roll1 anything that has been pul~lislted alot~p thcsc Itt~rs. 1 F. G. BROlVN, Architect 1 will send my book containing exterior and interior views of typical one and a half and two-story Cnliforn~n residences -. also 24 Cali- fornia Bungalows-. prepaid in one package for one do!lar post office or express money or- der. These houses range in price from $1 5UO to SlOlr(ln. :and :Ire thr very best exampla of Southern C:alrtor:~! t Architecture. 70 all whc~ orcitr p!;4n~ 1111s dollar will be reb;.trd. Figure 5 Bungalow advertisement. From Clay Lancaster, The American Bungalow, 1880-1930, p. 148, 1985. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page l6 of companies manufacturing ready-made houses. Perhaps best known among the producers of pre-f abricated homes was Chicago ' s Sears, Roebuck and Company, one of whose houses is included in this nomination. The combination of mass media and mass production helped plant the suburban bungalow on the rural landscape. Both advertisements and stories found on the real estate pages of Delaware newspapers mentioned the suitability of suburban lots for the construction of bungalows. A notice for lots in Gordon Heights in May 1909 described the suburb as the location of "desirable residence and bungalow sites. "26 Three months later, the National Real Estate Trust offered for sale two frame bungalows in the suburbs, characterizing them as "worth investigating by anyone wishing a fine suburban home. "27 In August 1910 an articl.e, "The Day of the Bungalow, " clearly identified bungalows with suburbs. Bungalows "are springing up everywhere, but more especial.1~ in the pretty suburbs. "28 Such dwellings were not limited to the new developments around Wilmington, but were found in a variety of settings throughout the state. The physical siting of the bungalows in Sussex County also follows a suburban pattern. Many of the bungalows located in rural settings have been made to appear as if they are part of a suburb. They sit on small lots along the road, often with sidewalks leading to the front doors and hedges marking out the yards. Two of the three nominated bungalows are located on rural lots and are situated between 20 and 30 feet from the road. The builders treated the country road as it if were a city street and constructed an architectural form that followed a suburban, rather than rural, pattern in size, orientation, and utilization of space. Each bungalow has only a garage or garage-shed in the adjacent yard. This is a clear contrast to 26 The Sunday Morning Star, 23 May 1909, 6. 27 Ibid. , 8 August 1909, 6. 28 Ibid. , 7 August 1910, 15. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Sectionnumber Page 17 neighboring farm houses, which are built back from the road and are generally set in a farmstead made up of a variety of agricultural outbuildings. Yet, at the time these bungalows were constructed, they were intended to function as the main dwellings of extensive agriculturalproperties. The average size of a farm in Sussex County in 1910 was 85 acres; by 1930, the average size was 78 acres. When the McCabe House was built circa 1910 and by 1924 had been moved to a farm of 46 acres. The Miller-Hudson House was constructed in 1928 by Levin Mi.ller, who was farming a total of 113 acres. An additional plot of five acres was purchased as the bungalow site. The Rickards-Hudson House, converted to a bungalow circa 1930, was located on a 26- acre parcel of land. This land was part of a 65-acre farm owned in thirds by Samuel Rickards, his brother John, and their sister Dora Turner. The entire 65 acres was cultivated by Samuel Rickards and his wife Lizzie. The orientation of the Rickards-Hudson House (CRS# S-2501) differs from that of the other bungalows. The dwelling i.s composed of two wings. The smaller rear wing is an early nineteenth-century one-room plan timber-framed house. The larger bungalow wing was built onto the south side of the west end of the original dwelling in the early twentieth century. The construction of the bungalow as an adjunct to an earlier farm dwelling accounts for the fact that the house is sited farther from the road. Located approximately 50 feet from the road, i.t resembles nearby farmsteads more than other bungalows. All the nominated structures were adapted to the climate and environment in which they were built. Two of the bungalows utilize exterior shingles, long produced in Baltimore Hundred from locally harvested cypress. The McCabe House (CRS# S-2320) is clapboarded, In the case of the Miller-Hudson House (CRS# S- 8119) , which has both shingles and clapboard, the clapboarding was also locally milled. Cut on the Miller Farm, the timber was sawn into siding boards in Williamsville, less than a mile away. All the structures possess the major exterior characteristics of the bungalow style--each has a long gable roof, full front porch, and deep, overhanging eaves. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 18 The interiors, however, have few of the features one expects to find in bungalows. While the Miller-Hudson and Rickards-Hudson houses have open string stairs with plain balusters and simple, square newel posts, the stairs in the McCabe House are enclosed. Only the Mi.ller-Hudson House, whi.ch was built from a Sears, Roebuck mail. order plan, has a bay window (Figure 6). None of the dwellings has a fireplace or any sort of built-in furniture. There i.s a striking contrast between the "modern" appearance of the exterior and the lack of detail on the interior. In fact, most of the bungalows have interior arrangements that represent a localized attempt to incorporate traditional. uses of customary space with new architectural forms. These interiors are housed wi.thi.n exteri.ors chosen by the inhabitants from among the new high-style architectural forms available during this peri.od. The population data demonstrate the growing urbanization of the nation and the state, in contrast to Sussex County and Baltimore Hundred which remained primarily rural. With urbanization and the development of peripheral suburbs, distinctly suburban architectural forms, of which the bungalow is a key example, emerged. Improvements in transportation increased commerce between the southern, agricultural portion of Delaware and the more urbanized world at large. This contact encouraged the appearance on the rural landscape of the bungalow, a style usually associated with suburban communi.ties. The rural bungalows of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone present the exterior attributes which the type prescribes. They are clearly distinguished, however, by their lack of the characteristic interior features. It is the contrast between exterior and interior detail that sets them apart from their northern, suburban counterparts. Bungalows were built throughout Delaware between 1880 and 1940, but those erected in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone testify to the ambi.guity that characterized the urbanization of the area. While outwardly adopting a suburban architectural form, the owners stopped short of fully transforming the interior space. United States Depafiment of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places continuation Sheet 19 Section number 2 Page - United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 20 Comprehensive Planning Examination of the rural bungalows of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone provides signifi.cant i.nsights into the impact wrought by increased urbanization and by the emergence of suburbanization in Delaware during the 1880-1940+/- period. The primary historic theme is therefore Settlement Patterns and Demographic Change with a secondary theme of Transportation and Communication. Architecture and the evolution of the built environment reflect both demographic history and individual and social tastes and trends. For that reason, Archi.tecture, Engineering and Decorative Arts is the other major theme. Studying the material culture of the period expressed in its bui.ldings will help us to understand the needs and motivations of the people who erected them. The nominated structures were bui.lt during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The period of significance established in the Statement of Historic Contexts is 1880-1940+/-: Urbanization and Early Suburbanization. The properties considered in the nomination are located in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone. The soils in the area range from moderately well to poorly drained with a subsoil. of sandy clay or loam. Much of the zone is under agricultural cultivation. The proximity of the area to the Coastal Zone, however, puts the current land use and many existing structures at risk. The rural landscape is severely threatened by development which seeks to take advantage of easy access to coastal beaches and communities. Many inland sites have already been destroyed and replaced with resort housing. F. Associated Property Types I. Name of Property Type dw ellln~/Consolidated ' planslBungalow or Craftsman style 11. Description The rural bungalow is characteristically a one- or one-and-a-half story house, either of frame or brick construction. The frame version is often shingled, though clapboarding is also frequently used on the exterior. The structure has a low- pitched roof that terminates in deep, overhanging eaves and is supported by substantial., though simple, brackets. The building generally has a broad, deep porch ranged across the front and anchored at the corners by pillars. Fenestration and door placement varies, though there is frequent use of bay windows. The typical bungalow floor plan has five or six rooms: living room, dining room, kitchen, Ill. Significance The dwellings 1.isted in this nomination are eligible for listing on the National Register of Hi.storic Places as examp1.e~ of housing that embody the distinctive characteristics of early twentieth century suburban archi.tecture. Reflecting major economic and cultural developments that are linked to architecture and the landscape, the rural bungalows relate to the following property type in the Delaware Comprehensive Historic Preservation Plan: dwelling/Consolidated plans/Bungalow or Craftsman style. IV. Registration Requirements The primary criteria for determining whether individual historic properties are eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places within the Statement of Historic Contexts established within this nomination are as follows: 1) An eligible property must illustrate the period 1880-1940+/-. 2) An eligible building must clearly illustrate the following attributes: form (the massing of the house in terms of elevation, roof style, and porches); construction (buildingmaterials and cladding); interior finishes (rooms should follow the pattern of decoration discussed in the Statement of Historic Contexts); and siting (the historic property should occupy a place in the local topography consistent with siting patterns discussed in the Statement of Historic Contexts). 3) Bungalows are frequently subject to significant alteration. Any building which has undergone substantial changes is not eligible. @See continuation sheet Osee continuation sheet for additional property types 2 2 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number F-ll Page 2 two or three bedrooms plus bath. The rural bungalows of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone differ from their suburban counterparts in the fact that they do not possess as many of the interior features such as fireplaces wi.th rustic hearths and built-in furniture such as cupboards, buffets, bookcases, and window seats. G. Summary of Identification and Evaluation Methods Discuss the methods used in developing the multiple property listing The thematic property listing for the Adaptations of Bungalows in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone of Delaware, 1880-1940 +/-, ini.tially includes all houses in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone meeting the criteria established in section F- 1.V , "Registration Requirements. " The nominati.on is based on a comprehensive cultural resource survey and National Register of Historic Places eligibility evaluation for Baltimore Hundred in Sussex County. The comprehensive cultural resource survey was conducted by the Bureau of Archaeology and Historic Preservation in 1985. The comprehensive cultural resource survey methodology is designed to record all standing structures built prior to 1945. All roads in the survey area are traversed, all standing structures are mapped and cross referenced to historic atl.ases and contemporary USGS and State Planning Office maps, and initial field assessments regarding integrity and significance are included in written survey summaries. A subsequent evaluation i.ncludi.ng the comprehensive review of all see continuation sheet H. Major Bibliographical References Comstock, William T. Bungalows, Camps and Mountain Houses. New York: William T. Comstock, 1908. Cottage-Bungalow. (pamphlet) Clevela~ld, Ohio: Sherwin-Williams Company, 1910. Dorau, Herbert and Albert Hinman. Urban Land Economics. College Park, Maryland: McGrath Publishing Company, 1928 (reprinted 1969). Elsmere. (unpublished map) Wilmington, Delaware: Heald and Company, 1889. On file at the Historical. Society of Delaware. Gilmore, Harlan W. Transportation and the Growth of Cities. Glencoe, Illinois : The Free Press, 1953. a see continuation sheet I Primary location of additional documentation: State historic preservation office nother State agency 0 Federal agency Local government &I University Other Specify repository: Center for Historic Ardtecture h mi ne~ri n~, ITni vorci +y nfDe1awar.e I. Form Prepared By . . Bernard L. Herman (D- inve-tnr), R~herra T Siclprc (~~fearch raduate research inwnsl nameltitle associate), Susan Mulchahev andy ancp~i 51 PT (IT organization Center for Historic Architecture & Emneerim date AIily 1990 street 8 number U~versity of Delaware telephone 451 - F4f-197 city or town Newark state ,- zip code 1971h United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number G Page 2 cu1,tural resource survey materials to determine historic contexts, property types, integrity, and significance regarding eligibility for listing in the Nati.ona1 Register of Historic Places was conducted in 1989-90. The written eligibility evaluation is on file in the Bureau. The typology and identification of significant property types has been based on function and association wi,th Architectural Trends of Delaware's Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone, 1880-1940+/-, which has been identified in the Delaware Comprehensive Historic Preservation Plan. The nominated properties were selected for their close association with the hist0ri.c theme and their representation of a property type defined in architectural terms relating to important aspects of' settlement patterns and demographic change. The standards for integrity are based on established National Register guidelines for assessing integrity. Information gl.eaned from research literature, survey data, and statistical analysis has been employed to assess relative condition and scarcity of the property type, as well as to determine the degree to which allowances should be made for alterations, deterioration, and vandalism. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number * Page 2 Gowans, Alan. The Comfortable House: North American Suburban Architecture, 1890- 1930. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1986. Highway Statistics Summary to 1975. Washington, DC: United States Department of Transportation, 1975. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 19.57. Washington, DC: United States Bureau of the Census, 1960. Ki.ng, Anthony. The Bungalow. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1984. Lancaster, Clay. The American Bungalow 1880-1930. NewYork: Abbeville Press, 1985, Mack, warren W. "A History of Motor Highways in Delaware," in Delaware: A History of the First State, volume 2, edited by H, Clay Reed. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1947. Pred, Allan R. The Spatial Dynamics of U. S. Urban-Industrial Growth, 1800-1914: Interpretive and Theoretical Essays. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1966. Rae, John B. "The Internal-Combustion Engine on Wheels," in Technology in Western Civilization - Technology in the Twentieth Century, volume 2, edited by Melvin Kranzberg and Carroll W. Purse11 Jr. New York: Oxford University Press, 1967. Schaeffer, K.H. and Elliott Sclar. Access for All: Transportation and Urban Growth. Baltimore, Maryland: Penguin Books, 1975. Schnore, Leo F. The Urban Scene: Human Ecology and Demography. New York: The Free Press, 1965. Stevenson, Katherine Cole and H. Ward Jandl. Houses by Mail - A Guide to Houses from Sears, Roebuck and Company. Washington, D.C.: The Preservation Press, 1986. The Little Book of Houses. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1914. The Sunday Morning Star. (newspaper) Wilmington, Delaware. 1903-1910. U.S. Bureau of the Census. Decennial Population Census of the United States. Washington, DC, 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940. NPS Fm 1- 1- United States Department of the Interfor National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page Walls and how to decorate them: the Alabastine Book. (pamphlet) Grand Rapids, Michi.gan: The Alabastine Company, 1911. Yoho, Jud. The Craftsman Bungalow Book. Seattle, Washington: The Craftsman Bungalow Company, 1913. NPS Fam 1OQ)O (*. bes) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations of eligibility for individual properties or districts. See instructions in Guidelines for Completing National Register Forms (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. if an item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, styles, materials. and areas of significance, enter only the categories and subcategories listed in the instructions. For additional space use continuation sheets (Form le900a). Type all entries.. 1. Name of Property historic name McCabe House other nameslsite number CRS# S-2 3 20 2. Location street 8 number R. D. #2, Box 114 - U not for publication city, town Frankf ord kf vicinity state Delaware --A DE coun Sus sex- code 005 zipcode 19945 3. Classification Ownership of Property Category of Property Number of Resources within Property private building@) Contributing Noncontributing C] public-local district 3- 0 buildings public-State site 0 0 sites public-Federal structure 0 structures object 0 0 objects 3 n Total Name of related multiple property listing: Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register 4. StatelFederal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, I hereby certify that this C] nomination request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60 In my opinion, the property =meets udoes not meet the National Register criteria. 0 See continuation sheet. 1 Signature of certifying official Date I 7, the propew meets does not meet the National Register criteria. See continuation sheet I - ---- Signature at commenting or other official Date I State or Federal agency and bureau 5. National Park Service Certification I, hereby, certify that this property is: nentered in the National Register. [I7 See continuation sheet.. -- Ddetermined eligible for the National Register. [7 See continuation sheet Cr]deterrnined not eligible for the National Register. oremoved from the National Register. other, (explain:) - --- Signature of the Keeper Date of Action 28 -- - Historic Functions (enter categories from instructions) 6Function or Use Current Functions (enter categories from instructions) Domestic/single dwelling Vacantlnot in use 7. Descdption Architectural Classification Materials (enter categories from instructions) [enter categories from instructions) . . foundation brirh,Dlllno.; Bunnalow/craftsman walls wood w~a t-rd roof -1 I- -hi ne' ps other - wood Describe present and historic physical appearance. The McCabe House is located in Baltimore Hundred, Sussex County, southeast of Roxana on the north side of County Road 383, 0.4 miles west of County Road 384. The bungalow, once part of a 46-acre farm, remains in its original location close to the road. The house was built off the property around 1.910, and, according to the owner, moved to its present site before 1924. The one-and-a-half-story three-bay gable-roofed dwelling was partially renovated circa 1930. Renovations included the addition of a front porch, the enclosure of the back porch as a "summer kitchen," and the replacement of almost all the siding. A privy and a smokehouse stand in the northern corners of the bungalow's backyard and are considered contributing elements to the hist0ri.c context defined by the nomination. The bungalow has overall dimensions of 22' x 37'and is built on a hall- parlor plan with a lean-to that stretches the entire length of the structure's northern side. The hall-parlor area consists of two rooms: the main living area in the southwest, and the adjacent parlor in the southeast. The lean-to contains two rooms: the kitchen in its western half and the later enclosed porch in its eastern half. The dwelling does not have a basement, but rests on a foundation of brick piers sheathed with galvanized tin pressed to resemble ashlar masonry. An interior chimney stack is located at the west gable end. The structure has an asphalt shingle gable roof. Exterior walls are covered with painted white clapboard, much of it applied during the circa 1930 renovation. The southern, or front, elevation has a three-bay fenestration. One-over-one double-hung sash windows flank a central doorway with a modern screen door. Two wooden centrally positioned a See continuation sheet United States Department of the lnterior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 7 Page 2 steps lead up to the circa 1930 front porch that extends the entire length of the bungalow. Four tapered wooden columns support the porch. The north, or rear, elevation has an original single one-over-one double-hung sash window near the west end. A triple window arrangement of one-over-one double-hung sash windows is found in the later enclosed porch, along the east gable side. Exterior clapboard on the eastern enclosed porch ?s more recent than the original clapboard from circa 1910 on the west side of the lean-to. An original exposed vertical post divi.des the two periods of clapboarding on the exterior and also reveals where the two rooms join. The first floor of the west elevation is fenestrated with two one-over- one double-hung sash windows; the southern one was added circa 1930. The second floor also has two one-over-one double-hung sash windows. A single vertical wood post interrupts the clapboards running between the original block of the house and the front porch. A second post in the building's wall marks the joint between the main block and the lean-to. The entire west elevation also displays the circa 1930 wood clapboards. The east elevation of the main block has no windows on the first floor, but the enclosed porch contains a door flanked by two one-over-one double-hung sash windows. Two one-over-one double-hung sash windows are located in the second floor of the @ main block. No vertical posts are present on the east elevation, and the entire exterior is sheathed in circa 1930 white clapboard. The interior of the bungalow retains its original first-floor plan. Modern carpeting and linoleum cover the original wood floors of the bungalow, while drywall covers the original plaster and lath. All of the interior woodwork is painted white. The front door of the bungalow leads into the 12' x 16' main living area. Although no evidence exists for fireplaces within the house, a chimney stack probably used for a stove is centrally located on the west wall of the main living area. A steep enclosed staircase is located OUB Ippord No, 102e4018 United States Department of the Interior National Park Sewice National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 7 Page 3 in the southwest corner of the living area and leads up to the second floor. On the east side a room measuring 8' x 16' adjoins the living area. The kitchen is located in the northwest half of the lean-to and measures 9' x 11'. A wood stove sat along the west wall of the kitchen. The 11' x 12' enclosed porch, or summer kitchen, is found in the northeast half of the lean-to. A built-in wooden cupboard, now found in the enclosed porch, was once located in the northwest corner of the living area. The east room, the kitchen, and the enclosed porch are accessible from the main living area. Another door connects the two rooms in the lean-to. The rear door is located on the east wall of the enclosed porch. The privy is located behind the house and to the northeast. It is a one-story, single-bay, gable-roofed structure of frame construction. The door is located in the center of the south gable end. There are no other openings on the building. It is sheathed in clapboard and the roof is covered with asphalt shingles. The smokehouse is located behind the house and to the northwest. It is a one-story, single-bay, gable-roofed structure of frame construction, approximately 8' by 10'. The only opening is a door in the center of the /.. east gable end. It is sheathed in clapboard. Contributing Structures Noncontributing Structures dwe 11 ing privy smokehouse 8. Statement of Significance Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties: nationally statewide a locally Applicable National Register Criteria A B C D Criteria Considerations (Exceptions) Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions) Period of Significance Significant Dates Architecture C.A. 1910 Cultural Affiliation Significant Person ArchitecUBuilder N /A wn - --. -.- --..-- State significance of property, and justify criteria, criteria considerations, and areas and periods of significance noted above. The McCabe House is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion C as a type or method of construction that represents the bungalow/craftsman style used in rural Sussex County during the early twentieth century. The rural bungalows as a functional type relate to the followi.ng historic context in the Delaware Com~rehensive Historic Preservation Plan: Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone; 1880-1.940+/-; settlement patterns and demographic change/architecture, engineering, and decorative arts. The period between 1880 and 1940 was a time of great growth in the urban population of the United States and Delaware. Accompanying this growth was the development of suburbs and new building types that expressed the values, desires, and economic situation of the suburban population. One of these new forms was the bungalow. Its thrifty style and easy-to-build design made it very attractive to urban dwellers seeking a new environment. The bungalow was not restricted, however, solely to urban areas--the same qualities that attracted urban residents to the bungalow also appealed to the rural population. The rural landscape of Sussex County, Delaware, contains bungalows both in the vicinity of small towns and on agricultural land. Built as replacement or expansion housing, these bungalows demonstrate the adaptation of a suburban building form to rural purposes and the beginning of a new perception of the rural landscape as suburban. See continuation sheet United States Department of the Interlor National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 2 Though certainly not urban in terms of absolute population nor in comparison with the rest of Delaware, Baltimore Hundred nonetheless had access to urban styles. During this period, a proliferation of bungalow advertisements, floor plans, and decorating ideas appeared in the popul.ar literature of' the period. Not only did newspapers such as Wilmington's Sunday Morning Star feature the bungalow style in articles and floor plans, but popular magaz i.nes such as House Beautiful, Good Housekeeping, and Ladies ' Home Journal did so as well. In addition, plans and construction materials were avai.lable from a number of' companies manufacturing ready-made houses. Improvements in transportation increased commerce between the southern, agricultural portion of Delaware and the more urbanized world at large. This contact encouraged the appearance on the rural landscape of the bungalow, a style usually associated with suburban communities. Many of the rural bungalows have been made to appear as if they are part of a suburb. They sit on small lots along the road, often with sidewalks leading to the front door and hedges marking out the yard. During this period, the nature of agriculture in Sussex County underwent a major transformation. Although the average farm size declined along with the percentage of land used for farming, the production of crops such as poultry, eggs, corn, and strawberries increased significantly. Poultry, eggs, and strawberries were all products that required quick shipment to market. With the coming of the railroad to Sussex County, farmers could produce greater amounts of the crops with the assurance that they would reach their intended markets in good time. This resulted in greater revenues for those farmers who were able to take advantage of these simultaneous improvements. The rural bungalows of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone present the exterior attributes of the classic bungalow- -a low-pitched roof, deep Unlted States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 3 overhanging eaves, a ground-hugging outline, 1 or 1% stories, and a broad porch with heavy pillars. They are clearly distinguished, however, by their lack of the characteristic interior features. While outwardly adopting a suburban architectural form, the owners stopped short of fully transforming the interior space, choosing instead to retain their traditional uses of domestic space. The McCabe House follows the pattern of bungalow design and siting which is common in Sussex County and Baltimore Hundred. It is located 20 feet from the road on the north side of County Road 383, 0.4 miles west of County Road 384. The one-and-a-half story, three-bay frame structure has a sweeping gable roof ending in wide, overhanging eaves. These eaves shelter a broad porch that extends across the entire face of the dwelling. The exterior is covered in painted white clapboarding. The interior also conforms to the rural bungalow typology in that it follows a singularly plain pattern. The house is built on a traditional hall-parlor plan and consists of two rooms plus a lean-to that extends across the back of the building. Characteristically, the house lacks such suburban features as a fireplace or built-in furniture. When the McCabes purchased their farm in 1924, it consisted of 46 acres. The bungalow was the main house for the property. The McCabes raised corn, beans, strawberries, and chickens. At one point, their crop of strawberries was large enough to warrant bringing in migrant pickers from Virginia for the harvest. The pickers lived in a strawberry pickers house on the McCabe property. The builders of the rural bungalows in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone modeled their work on examples they saw elsewhere in Delaware or encountered in the popular literature of the period. The facade of the McCabe House, like those of the others in the nomination, closely resembles United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Sectionnumber 8 Page 4 in outward appearance the suburban bungalow form in its size, massing, and exterior finish. While the interiors of the typical bungalows frequently featured fireplaces and built-in furniture, the McCabe House is markedly unadorned. This divergence toward simplicity and away from the usual degree of decorati.on and furnishing sets this and the other rural bungalows apart. The McCabe House has integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling. 9. Major Bibliographical References Comstock, William T. Bungalows, Camps and Mountain Houses. New York: William T. Comstock, 1908. Cottage-Bungalow. (pamphlet) Cleveland, Ohio: Sherwin-Williams Company, 1.910. Dorau, Herbert and Albert Hinman. Urban Land Economics. College Park, Maryland: McGrath Publishing Company, 1928 (reprinted 1969). Elsmere. (unpublished map) Wilmington, Delaware: Heald and Company, 1889. On file at the Historical Society of Delaware. Gilmore, Harlan W. Transportation and the Growth of Cities. Glencoe, Illinois: The Free Press, 1953. [I;] See continuation sheet Previous documentation on file (NPS): preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been requested previously listed in the National Register Opreviously determined eligible by the National Register designated a National Historic Landmark C] recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey # -. C] recorded by Historic American Engineering Record # Primary location of additional data: (xl State historic preservation office =Other State agency Federal agency Local government (xl University other Specify repository: University of Delaware Center for - Historic Architecture & Engineering 10. Geographical Data Acreage of property 0.23 acres UTM References A 1 1, 81 141 8, 71 4, 81 91 141 21 51 91 91 81 01 Zone Easting Northing BLJ w u Zone Easting Northing c w uu LLU DI u - See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description The boundary for the McCabe House is shown on the accompanying Sussex County tax parcel map (tax parcel 5-33-11-59) and is outlined in bold black lines. The nominated property is a roughly square plot measuring 100 by n~ee continuation sheet --- Boundary Justification The boundary includes the house and immediately surrounding land that maintain historic integrity. The rest of the parcel is not included in the nomination. See continuation sheet 11. Form Prepared By Bernard L . Hemn ( arl-~st i g t nr) . . Rebecca J. Siders (reseach ,,ameltitle associate), Susan Mulchahey and Nancy Zeigler (graduate research-- oroanization Center for Historic Architecture & Ewineerinp; date str"mt & number University of ~~~e telephone 451 Fu-197 - city or town -- *mark state -DF: zip code la7lh United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page Gowans, Alan. The Comfortable House: North American Suburban Architecture, 1890-1930. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1986. Highway Statisti.cs Summary to 1975. Washington, DC: United States Department of Transportati.on, 1975. Historical Statisti.cs of the United States, Colonial Times to 1957. Washington, DC: United States Bureau of the Census, 1960. King, Anthony. The Bungalow. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1984. Lancaster, Clay. The American Bungalow 1880-1930. New York: Abbeville Press, 1985. Mack, Warren W. "A History of Motor Highways in Delaware," i.n Delaware: A History of the First State, volume 2, edited by H. Clay Reed. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1947. Pred, Allan R. The Spatial Dynamics of U.S. Urban-Industrial Growth, 1800- 1914: Interpretive and Theoretical Essays. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1966. Rae, John B. "The Internal-Combustion Engine on Wheels," in Technology in Western Civilization - Technology in the Twentieth Century, volume 2, edited by Melvin Kranzberg and Carroll W. Purse11 Jr. New York: Oxford University Press, 1967. Schaeffer, K.H. and Elliott Sclar. Access for All: Transportation and Urban Growth. Baltimore, Maryland: Penguin Books, 1975. Schnore, Leo F. The Urban Scene: Human Ecology and Demography. New York: The Free Press, 1965. Stevenson, Katherine Cole and H. Ward Jandl. Houses by Mail - A Guide to Houses from Sears, Roebuck and Company. Washington, D.C.: The Preservation Press, 1986. The Little Book of Houses. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1914. The Sunday Morning Star. (newspaper) Wilmington, Delaware. 1903-191.0. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 9 Page 3 U.S. Bureau of the Census. Decennial Population Census of the United States. Washington, D.C., 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940. Walls and how to decorate them: the Alabastine Book. (pamphlet) Grand Rapids, Michigan: The Alabastine Company, 1911. Yoho, Jud. The Craftsman Bungalow Book. Seattle, Washington: The Craftsman Bunga1.0~ Company, 1913. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Sectionnumber 10 Page 2 100 feet containing 0.23 acres. Beginning at a point on the north curb line of County Road 383 approximately 0.4 miles west of its intersection with the curb line of County Road 384, proceed approximately 100 feet west along the north curb line of County Road 383. Then turn north and proceed approximately 100 feet to the rear of the plot before turning east and proceeedi.ng approximately 1.00 feet. The parcel boundary is completed by proceeding south approximately 100 feet to the starting point on the north side of County Road 383. The location of the property is UTM reference point 18 487489 4259980. McCABE HOUSE ROXANA VICINITY BALTIMORE HUNDRED SUSSEX COUNTY, DELAWARE NPS Fam 1 &BOO mws) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations of eligibility for individual properties or districts. See instructions in Guidelines Ibr Completing Nationdl Register Fonns (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. If an item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "NIA" for "not applicable." For functions, styles, materials. and areas of significance, enter only the categories and subcategories listed in the instructions. For additional space use continuation sheets (Fm 10-900a). Type all entries.. 1. Name of Property historic name Rickards-Hudson House other nameslsite number CRSP S-2501 2. Location street & number Route 2, Box 86 U not - for publication &town Dagsboro - LA vicinity state Delaware code DE county Sussex code 005 zipcode 19939 3. Classification Ownership of Property Category of Property Number of Resources within property private building(s) Contributing Noncontributing public-local district -1 1 buildings q public8tate C] site L n sites public-federal CZ] structure 0 0 structures n object L n objects 1 1 Total Name of related multiple property listing: Number of contributing resources previously Adaptations of Bungalows in the Lower Peninsula listed in the National Register - -/Caress Sw -Zone of D-e. 1880 - 1941) +I - 4. StatelFederal Agency Certification -- -- As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, nomination request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60 In my opinion, the property C] meets Cr] does not meet the National Register criteria. See continuation sheet r I Signature of certifying official Date - State or Federal agency and bureau ( In my opinion, the property a meets 0 does not meet the National Register criteria. Signature of commenting or other official I -- Date I State or Federal asencv and bureau pp -- - - -- - -- - - 5. National Park Service Certification I, hereby, certify that this property is: Oentered in the National Register. Cr] See continuation sheet. .- ndetermined eligible for the National Register. See continuation sheet. --- Odeterrnined not eligible for the National Register oremoved from the National Register other, (explain:) - -- -- - Signature of the Keeper Date of Action 4 5 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (enter categories from instructions) Current Functions (enter categories from instructrons) Dornestic/single dwelling Domestic/sin~le dweluno 7. Description Architectural Classification Materials (enter categories from instructions) (enter categories from instructions) foundation concrete bk2s.k~ Bungalow/craftsman walls wood shiwes roof - -asshalt ahinnle other wood Describe present and hiitoric physical appearance. The Rickards-Hudson House is located in Baltimore Hundred, Sussex County, southeast of Dagsboro on the southeast side of County Road 341., northeast of County Road 327. The dwelling was once part of a larger agricul.tura1 complex that included a barn, chicken houses, a smokehouse, and a strawberry pickers' house. The only outbuilding in existence today is a modern shed. The bungalow is located 50 feet from the road and is reported to have incorporated an early nineteenth-century building, possibly a hall or hall-parlor house. The one - and- a-half story three-bay gable roof bungalow was probably built in the 1920s or 1.930s. The small wing attached to the bungalow's southwest corner dates from the early nineteenth century and was moved up to the bungalow at the time of its construction. The bungalow measures 22' x 31', including the front porch. The older one-room wing measures 12' x 15'. The balloon-framed bungalow does not have a basement, but rests upon formed concrete blocks. Brick piers support the nineteenth-century timber-framed structure. An asphalt roof covers both buildings. The exterior of the bungalow retains its original wood shingles and white-painted trim. The nineteenth-century section of the building has more recent wood shingles (probably contemporary with the bungalow's construction) on its north or road elevation, wood clapboarding on its gable ends, and original two-foot cypress shingles attached with wrought nails on its south elevation. The three-bay north, or front, elevation of the bungalow has a central. door and two one-over-one double-hung sash windows on either side. A porch with a waist-high wall extends across the entire length of the elevation. A central concrete slab step leads to the porch, which is @ See continuation sheet United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 2 supported on four wooden posts. A gable dormer with a double one-over-one double-hung sash window is located on the second floor. The south, or rear, elevation has a central door and two one-over-one double-hung sash windows on the first floor, and a gable dormer with a double one-over-one double-hung sash window on the second floor. A chimney is located directly above the gable of the second story dormer. The east gable end has three one-over-one double-hung sash windows on the first floor bays and two one-over-one double- hung sash windows on the second floor. The west gable end has two one-over- one double-hung sash windows on the first floor and one asymmetrically placed one-over-one double-hung sash window on the second floor. The nineteenth- century building is connected to the south side of the west gable elevation. This wing is notable because it contains only the second documented example of a tilted false plate in the state of Delaware. The adaptive reuse of this dwelling is characteristic of the Sussex County practice of moving buildings to new locations and combining them with new construction. The front door of the bungalow opens into the 16' x 21' main living area of the house. A kitchen measuring approximately 7' x 21' stretches along the entire south end. No evidence exists for a fireplace or stove directly under the exterior chimney stack, but a modern stove pipe exits the house near the - northeast corner of the living area. A simple staircase leading to the inaccessible second floor is located along the west wall of the living area. At the west end of the kitchen, a doorway leads to the earlier one-room structure. The bungalow retains its original plaster and lath walls and wood floors. No built-in furniture exists in the bungalow today, and its trim has been painted white. Contributing Structures dwe 11 ing Noncontributing Structures shed 8. Statement of Significance Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties: nationally statewide locally Applicable National Register Criteria A B C D Criteria Considerations (Exceptions) Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions) Period of Significance Significant Dates Architecture C.A. 1930 Cultural Affiliation NIA Significant Person ArchitectlBuilder N/A - unknown ---- - -- -- -----. State significance of property, and justify criteria, criteria considerations, and areas and periods of significance noted above. The Rickards-Hudson House is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion C as a type or method of construction that represents the bungalow/craftsman style used in rural Sussex County during the early twentieth century. The rural bungalows as a functional type relate to the following historic context in the Delaware Com~rehensive Historic Preservation Plan: Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone; 1880-1940+/-; settlement patterns and demographic change; architecture, engineering, and decorative arts. The period between 1880 and 1940 was a time of great growth in the urban population of the United States and Delaware. Accompanying this growth was the development of suburbs and new building types that expressed the values, desires, and economic situation of the suburban population. One of these new forms was the bungalow. Its thrifty style and easy-to-build design made it very attractive to urban dwellers seeking a new environment. The bungalow was not restricted, however, solely to urban areas--the same qualities that attracted urban residents to the bungalow also appealed to the rural population. The rural landscape of Sussex County, Delaware, contains bungalows both in the vicinity of small towns and on agricultural land. Bui1.t as replacement or expansion housing, these bungalows demonstrate the adaptation of a suburban building form to rural purposes and the beginning of a new perception of the rural landscape as suburban. [Z;I See continuation sheet United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 2 Though certainly not urban in terms of absolute population nor in comparison with the rest of Delaware, Baltimore Hundred nonetheless had access to urban styles. During this period, a proliferation of bungalow advertisements, floor plans, and decorating ideas appeared in the popular literature of the period. Not only did newspapers such as Wilmington's Sunday Morning Star feature the bungalow style in articles and floor plans, but popular magazines such as House Beaut.ifu1, Good Housekeeping, and Ladies' Home Journal did so as well. In addition, plans and construction materials were available from a number of companies manufacturing ready-made houses. Improvements in transportation increased commerce between the southern, agricul.tura1 portion of Delaware and the more urbanized world at large. This contact encouraged the appearance on the rural landscape of the bungalow, a style usually associated with suburban communities. Many of the rural bungalows have been made to appear as if they are part of a suburb. They sit on small lots along the road, often with sidewalks leading to the front door and hedges marking out the yard. During this period, the nature of agriculture in Sussex County underwent a major transformation. Although the average farm size declined along with the percentage of land used for farming, the production of crops such as poultry, eggs, corn, and strawberries increased significantly. Poultry, eggs, and strawberries were all products that required quick shipment to market. With the coming of the railroad to Sussex County, farmers could produce greater amounts of the crops with the assurance that they would reach their intended markets in good time. This resulted in greater revenues for those farmers who were able to take advantage of these simultaneous improvements. The rural bungalows of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone present the exterior attributes of the classic bungalow--a low-pitched roof, deep United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 3 overhanging eaves, a ground-hugging outline, 1 or 1% stories, and a broad porch with heavy pillars. They are clearly distinguished, however, by their lack of the characteristic interior features. While outwardly adopting a suburban architectural form, the owners stopped short of fully transforming the interior space, choosing instead to retain their traditional uses of domestic space. The Ri.ckards-Hudson House follows the pattern of bungalow design which is common in Sussex County and Baltimore Hundred, varying only in its siting. It is located approximately 50 feet from the southeast si.de of County Road 341, northeast of County Road 327. The one-and-a-half story, three-bay frame structure has a sweeping gable roof ending in wide, overhanging eaves. These eaves shelter a broad porch which extends across the entire face of the dwelling. The interior also conforms to the rural bungalow typology in that it follows a singularly plain pattern. The house is based on a traditional single-pile hall plan with a leanto kitchen at the back. Characteristically, it lacks such suburban features as a fireplace or built-in furniture. Documentary and architectural evidence suggest that the bungalow appeared on the property between 1928 and 1930. In 1928, the original 80- acre farm was divided into three equal pieces of 26 2/3 acres each as part of the settlement of the estate of Samuel D. Rickards. Each of his three children (Samuel, John, and Dora) received an equal share. Samuel apparently was given the piece with the farm dwelling on it because John lived in Philadelphia and Dora was married and living in her husband's house. Shortly after taking possession, tax assessments indicate that Samuel made some improvements to his property. He may have refurbished an older house to look like a bungalow or he may have built an entirely new addition in the bungalow form. Coincidentally, Samuel was single at the time of his father's death in 1928, but was married by 1930 and may have improved the dwelling in United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 4 preparation for the arrival of his bride. Although John Rickards and Dora Rickards Turner owned two-thirds of the land, they apparently allowed their brother Samuel to farm their land along with his own parcel until. shortly before he died in 1948. He raised chickens and strawberries, both crops being large enough to warrant chicken houses and a strawberry pickers house on the property. All of the outbuildings connected with this period were destroyed for firewood by tenants between 1951 and 1956. After Samuel's death in 1948, his wife Lizzie remained on the farm for two more years. Followi,ng her death in 1950, her heirs sold all of the personal effects and farming equipment and then allowed the dwelling to be rented until it was sold to Thomas B. Helm in 1956. The present owner rented it from Helm from 195'7 to 1961 and then purchased the 26-acre property. The builders of the rural bungalows in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone modeled their work on examples they saw elsewhere in Delaware or encountered in the popular literature of the period. The facade of the Rickards-Hudson House, like those of the others in the nomination, closely resembles in outward appearance the suburban bungalow form in its size, massing, and exterior finish. While the interior of the typical bungalow frequently featured fireplaces and built-in furniture, the Rickards-Hudson House is markedly unadorned. This divergence toward simplicity and away from the usual degree of decoration and furnishing sets this and the other rural bungalows apart. The Rickards-Hudson House has integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling. 9. Malor Blbliographical References Comstock, William T. Bungalows, Camps and Mountain Houses. New York: William T. Comstock, 1908. Cottage-Bungalow. (pamphlet) Cleveland, Ohio: Sherwin-Williams Company, 1910. Dorau, Herbert and Albert Hinman. Urban Land Economics. College Park, Maryland: McGrath Publishing Company, 1928 (reprinted 1969). Elsmere. (unpublished map) Wilmington, Delaware: Heald and Company, 1889. On file at the Historical Society of Delaware. Gilmore, Harlan W. Transportation and the Growth of Cities. Glencoe, Illinois: The Free Press, 1953. See continuation sheet Previous documentation on file (NPS): opreliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) Primary location of additional data: has been requested State historic preselvation office Opreviously listed in the National Register C] Other State agency q previously determined eligible by the National Register Federal agency designated a National Historic Landmark Local government recorded by Historic American Buildings University Survey # -- Other U recorded by Historic American Engineering Specify repository: Record # University of Delaware Center for Historic Architecture & Engineering 10. Geographical Data Acreage of property 0.3 acres - UTM References A j1181 1418131917101 14121618(81510] Zone Easting Northing BL. u - Zone Easting Northing C] See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description The boundary for the Rickards-Hudson House is shown on the accompanying Sussex County tax parcel map (tax parcel 1-34-6-172) and is outlined in bold black lines. The nominated property is a roughly See continuation sheet Boundary Justification The boundary includes the house and surrounding land that maintain hist0ri.c integrity. The rest of the property is not included in the nomination. See continuation sheet 11. Form Prepared By Bernard L. Herman (principal investigator), Rebecca J. Siders (research associate), Susan Mulchahey and Nancy Zeigler (graduate research interns) organization Center for Historic Architecture & Engineering date May lgW street 8 number University of Delaware telephone ( 302 ) 451-8097 city or town Newark state DE - zip code 19716 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 9 Page 2 Gowans, Alan. The Comfortable House: North American Suburban Architecture, 1890-1930. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1986. Highway Statistics Summary to 1975. Washington, DC: United States Department of Transportati.on, 1975. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial. Times to 19.57. Washington, DC: United States Bureau of the Census, 1960. King, Anthony. The Bungalow. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1984. Lancaster, Clay. The American Bungalow 1880-1930. New York: Abbeville Press, 1985. Mack, Warren W. "A History of Motor Highways in Delaware," in Delaware: A History of the First State, volume 2, edited by H. Clay Reed. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1947. Pred, Allan R. The Spatial Dynamics of U.S. Urban-Industrial Growth, 1800- 1914: Interpretive and Theoretical Essays. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1966. Rae, John B. "The Internal-Combustion Engine on Wheels," in Technology in Western Civilization - Technology in the Twentieth Century, volume 2, edited by Melvin Kranzberg and Carroll W. Purse11 Jr. New York: Oxford University Press, 1967. Schaeffer, K.H. and Elliott Sclar. Access for All: Transportation and Urban Growth. ~altimore , Maryland: Penguin Books, 1975. Schnore, Leo F. The Urban Scene: Human Ecology and Demography. New York: The Free Press, 1965. Stevenson, Katherine Cole and H. Ward Jandl. Houses by Mail - A Guide to Houses from Sears, Roebuck and Company. Washington, D.C.: The Preservation Press, 1986. The Little Book of Houses. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1914. The Sunday Morning Star. (newspaper) Wilmington, Delaware. 1903-1910 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 3 U.S. Bureau of the Census. Decennial Population Census of the United States. Washington, D.C., 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940. Walls and how to decorate them: the Alabastine Book. (pamphlet) Grand Rapids, Michigan: The Alabastine Company, 1911. Yoho, Jud. The Craftsman Bungalow Book. Seattle, Washington: The Craftsman Bungalow Company, 1913. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 10 Page 2 rectangular plot measuring 80 by 125 feet containing 0.3 acres. Beginning at a point on the south curb line of County Road 341 approximately 0.2 miles east of its intersection with the curb line of County Road 327, proceed approximately 80 feet east along the south curb line of County Road 341. Then turn south and proceed approximately 125 feet to the rear of the plot before turning west and proceeding approximately 80 feet. The parcel boundary is completed by proceeding north approximately 125 feet to the starting point on the south curb line of County Road 341. The location of the property is UTM reference point 18 483970 4268850. RICKARDS - HUDSON HOUSE DAGSBORO VICINITY BALTIMORE HUNDRED SUSSEX COUNTY. DELAWARE BMCK CAD RCUAII1IWI FROM DEUOCUWCD CHlUYET . . .. . . . 45- -4ry mum . %&-nz 0 t ..a> *. .a' * MAP 1-34-6 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations of eligibility for individual properties or districts. See instructions in Guidelines for Completing National Register Fofms (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. If an item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "NIA" for "not applicable." For functions, styles, materials, and areas of significance, enter only the categories and subcategories listed in the instructions. For additional space use continuation sheets (Form 10-900a). Type all entries. 1. Name of Property historic name Miller-Hudson House -- other namedsite number CRSII S-8119 2. Location street & number ~t . 1 . BOX 6 1 U not for publication city, town -- vicinity - code DE - state Delaware county Sussex code 005 zipcode 19975 3. Classification Ownership of Property Category of Property Number of Resources within Property private building@) Contributing Noncontributing public-local district -- 1 1 buildings public-State q site 0 0 sites public-Federal q structure Q structures q object 0 Q objects 1- i Total Name of related multiple property listing: Number of contributing resources previously Adaptations of Bungalows in the Lower Peninsula listed in the National Register 0 '/Cv~ress Swamp Zone of Delaware. 1880 - 1940 +I - 4. StatelFederal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic nomination request for determination of eligibility National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60 In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria. See continuation sheet. I Signature of certifying official Date - I I State or Federal agency and bureau Iamynion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria. see continuation sheet 1 Signature of commenting or other official Date I I State or Federal awnw and bureau 5. National Park Service Certification I, hereby, certify that this property is: entered in the National Register. q See continuation sheet mdetermined eligible for the National Register See continuation sheet q determined not eligible for the National Register Dremoved from the National Register. other, (explain:) - Signature of the Keeper Date of Action 6 1 - 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (enter categories from instructions) Current Functions (enter categories from instructions) Domestic/single dwelling Domestic/single dwelling 7. Description Architectural Classification Materials (enter categories from instructions) (enter categories from instructions) foundation concrete block Bunnalow/craftsmanW walls wood shinnles roof -a~s~halt shhnales other wood -- Describe present and historic physical appearance. The Miller-Hudson House is located in Baltimore Hundred, Sussex County, near Williamsville on the southwest corner of the intersection of State Route 54 and County Road 389. Built in 1928 from a Sears, Roebuck plan called "The Westl.~," the bungalow retains its original appearance. The enclosure of the back porch circa 1930 has been the only alteration and has not compromised the integrity of the structure. The one-and-a-half story three-bay gable roof bungalow was once part of a large farmimg complex. A few chicken houses, a corncrib used as a smokehouse, and a strawberry-pickers' house once were located behind the bungalow on the property. Only one outbuilding, a modern garage, stands today on the remaining 5 3/4 acres. The outbuilding is not considered contributing to the historic context defined by the nomination. The four- room plan bungalow with enclosed rear porch measures 44' x 31' . The structure rests on a formed concrete block foundation and has a cellar. A chimney is located in the central part of the building, and the roof is covered with asphalt shingles. Exterior walls retain their original brown- stained cedar shingles. The north, or front, elevation has a three-bay fenestration composed of a central door with sidelights flanked by two one- over-one double-hung sash windows. An open porch with four formed concrete block piers extends the length of the elevation. Five centrally located cement steps lead to the porch. A gabled triple window with a balcony is located on the second floor. The central six-over-one double-hung sash window has a four-over-one double-hung sash window on either side. The See continuation sheet United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 7 Page 2 OLIS A,xxw.l No. 1024a1a balcony is decorated with turned balusters. The south, or rear, elevation, has three bays, including a triple window in the enclosed back porch. Each of the three is a six-over-one double-hung sash window. The top floor has a single six-pane fixed sash window. Two sets of paired six-over-one double- hung windows are located in the first floor of the west elevation, and a double six-over-one double-hung window is located on the second floor. The east elevation possesses a triple bay window in the dining room. The central six-over-one double-hung sash window has a four-over-one doulbe-hung sash window on either side. There is an exterior door to the basement, and a single six-over-one double-hung sash window in the kitchen wall. Access to the outside can be obtained through the rear door, located in the kitchen. The second floor has a double window consisting of a pair of six-over-one double-hung sash windows. The interior floor plan has remained relatively intact. The centrally located front door opens directly on to the closed string staircase of the four-room structure. Plain turned or stick balusters adorn the stairway. The two northern rooms of the bungalow include a 13' x 13' dining room with a bay window on the east side, and a 13' x 15' living room on the west. A / bathroom measuring 6' x 9' is centrally located on the south side of the building. The bathroom is flanked by a kitchen that measures 11' x 22' in the southeast corner. The enclosed porch on the south side of the house is now part of the kitchen. The first floor has one 11' x 13 ' bedroom with closet in its southwest corner. The basement can be reached by the stairs located between the kitchen and the dining room. The interior woodwork has always been painted white. Contributing Structures - Noncontributinn Structures dwe 11. ing garage 8. Statement of Significance Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties: nationally 17 statewide locally Applicable National Register Criteria A C] B C D Criteria Considerations (Exceptions) A C] B C]C D E F OG Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions) Architecture Period of Significance Significant Dates LA. 1978 Cultural Affiliation NIA - Significant Person ArchitectBuilder N /A T.p77i n Mi I1 er State significance of property, and justify criteria, criteria considerations, and areas and periods of significance noted above. The Miller-Hudson House is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion C as a type or method of construction that represents the bungalow/craftsman style used in rural Sussex County during the early twentieth century. The rural bungalows as a functional type relate to the following historic context in the Delaware Com~rehensive Historic Preservation Plan: Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone; 1880-1940+/-; settlement patterns and demographic change/architecture, engineering, and decorative arts. The period between 1880 and 1940 was a time of great growth in the urban population of the United States and Delaware. Accompanying this growth was the development of suburbs and new building types that expressed the values, desires, and economic situation of the suburban population. One of these new forms was the bungalow. Its thrifty style and easy-to-build design made it very attractive to urban dwellers seeking a new environment. The bungalow was not restricted, however, solely to urban areas--the same qualities that attracted urban residents to the bungalow also appealed to the rural popul.ation. The rural landscape of Sussex County, Delaware, contains bungalows both in the vicinity of small towns and on agricultural land. Built as replacement or expansion housing, these bungalows demonstrate the adaptation of a suburban building form to rural purposes and the beginning of a new perception of the rural landscape as suburban. See continuation sheet Unlted States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 2 Though certainly not urban in terms of absolute population nor in comparison with the rest of Delaware, Baltimore Hundred nonetheless had access to urban styles. During this period, a proliferation of bungalow advertisements, floor plans, and decorating ideas appeared in the popular literature of the period. Not only did newspapers such as Wilmington's Sunday Morning Star feature the bungalow style in articles and floor plans, but popular magazines such as House Beautiful, Good Housekeeping, and Ladies' Home Journal did so as well. In addition, plans and construction materials were available from a number of companies manufacturing ready-made houses. Improvements in transportation increased commerce between the southern, agricultural portion of Delaware and the more urbanized world at large. This contact encouraged the appearance on the rural landscape of the bungalow, a style usually associated with suburban communities. Many of the rural bungalows have been made to appear as if they are part of a suburb. They sit on small lots along the road, often with sidewalks leading to the front door and hedges marking out the yard. During this period, the nature of agriculture in Sussex County underwent a major transformation. Although the average farm size declined along with the percentage of land used for farming, the production of crops such as poultry, eggs, corn, and strawberries increased significantly. Poultry, eggs, and strawberries were all products that required quick shipment to market. With the coming of the railroad to Sussex County, farmers could produce greater amounts of the crops with the assurance that they would reach their intended markets in good time. This resulted in greater revenues for those farmers who were able to take advantage of these simultaneous improvements . The rural bungalows of the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone present the exterior attributes of the classic bungalow--a low-pitched roof, deep United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 3 overhanging eaves, a ground-hugging outline, 1 or 1% stories, and a broad porch with heavy pillars. They are clearly distinguished, however, by their lack of the characteristic interior features. While outwardly adopting a suburban architectural form, the owners stopped short of fully transforming the interior space, choosing instead to retain their traditional uses of domestic space. The Miller-Hudson House follows the pattern of bungalow design and siting which is common in Sussex County. It is located 20 feet from the road at the corner of State Route 54 and County Road 389. The one-and-a-half story, three-bay frame structure has a sweeping gable roof terminating in wide, overhanging eaves. The eaves shelter a broad porch which extends across the entire face of the dwel.li.ng. The house was built in 1928 from a Sears, Roebuck floor plan called "The Westly." The Miller's purchased only the plan; the house was built of wood timbered on the property and milled locally. Modification of these floor plans was possible if the plans were ordered through a sales office rather than directly through the mail-order catalog. The nearest sales office at that time was located in Philadelphia, where the Millers' married daughter was living. The balusters for the dormer balcony were brought from Philadelphia by Charles Hudson, son-in-law of the original owner, Levin Miller. The Millers made extensive modifications to their floor plans, adding four feet to the length of the house, removing the fireplace, adding a porch to the rear, moving the exterior access to the cellar from the rear to the east side, and relocating the bathroom from the second floor to the first. The most significant change, however, was made in the front entry. The original floor plan called for a front entry hall. with a staircase located at the rear of the hall. The Millers shifted the staircase to the opposite interior wall and moved it closer to the front door. They also United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Sectionnumber 8 Page 4 removed the wall that would have separated the entry hall from the living room, creating a traditional hall-parlor plan at the front of the house. The interior finish conforms to the rural bungalow typology in that it follows a p1ai.n pattern. The house has a bay window in the dining room, but lacks such suburban features as a fireplace or built-in furniture. At the time of its construction, the Miller-Hudson House was intended as the main house for a farm of 113 acres. The Millers raised chickens, corn, and strawberries, all major income-producing crops in Sussex County at that time. Profits from these crops may have provided the funds for the constructi.on of' the new bungalow. The builders of the rural bungalows in the Lower Peninsula/Cypress Swamp Zone modeled their work on examples they saw elsewhere in Delaware or encountered in the popular literature of the period. The facade of the Miller-Hudson House, like those of the others in the nomination, closely resembles in outward appearance the suburban bungalow form in its size, massing, and exterior finish. While the interiors of the typical bungalows frequently featured fireplaces and built-in furniture, the Miller-Hudson House is markedly unadorned. In addition, while the house was built from a Sears, Roebuck floor plan, the plan was heavily modified so that the interior arrangement of the house more closely resembles a traditional hall-parlor plan. This divergence toward simplicity and customary conventions of domestic space and away from the usual degree of decoration and furnishing sets this and the other rural bungalows apart. The Miller-Hudson House has integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling. 9. Major Bibliographical References Comstock, William T. Bungalows, Camps and Mountain Houses. New York: William T. Comstock, 1908. Cottage-Bungalow. (pamphlet) Cleveland, Ohio: Sherwin-Williams Company, 1910. Dorau, Herbert and Albert Hinman. Urban Land Economics. College Park, Maryland: McGrath Publishing Company, 1928 (reprinted 1969). Elsmere. (unpublished map) Wilmington, Delaware: Heald and Company, 1889. On file at the Historical Society of Delaware. Gilmore, Harlan W. Transportation and the Growth of Cities. Glencoe, Illinois: The Free Press, 1953. See continuation sheet Previous documentation on file (NPS): npreliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been requested npreviously listed in the National Register npreviously determined eligible by the National Register q designated a National Historic Landmark recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey # . .-- recorded by Historic American Engineering Record # -- Primary location of additional data: State historic preservation office C] Other State agency Federal agency Local government University C] Other Specify repository: University of Delaware Center for Historic Architecture & Engineering 10. Geographical Data Acreage of property 0.3 acres UTM References A 11 ,8 1 [418,7)9,4,0) 14,2)5,617,4[5j Zone Easting Northing BW u u Zone Easting Northing DW llLllll l1l1llll See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description The boundary for the Miller-Hudson House is shown on the accompanying Sussex County tax parcel map (tax parcel 5-13-18-64) and is outlined in bold black lines. The nominated property is a roughly trapezoidal plot See continuation sheet Boundary Justification The boundary includes the house and immediately surrounding land that maintain historic integrity. The rest of the parcel is not included in the nomination. See continuation sheet 11. Form Prepared By Bernard L. Herman (principal investigator). Rebecca J. Siders (Rewrch namehitie associate), Susan Mulchahey and Nancy Zeigler (graduate research interns) - -- -- - organitation Center for Historic Architecture & Ennineerinn date Mav 1990 street 8 number University of Delaware telephone (307) 451 8097 - city or town Newark state DE zipcode -19716 CUB -.I Wq 102C4118 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 9 Page 2 Gowans, Alan. The Comfortable House: North American Suburban Architecture, 1890-1930. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1986. Highway Statistics Summary to 1975. Washington, DC: United States Department of Transportation, 1975. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1957. Washington, DC: United States Bureau of the Census, 1960. King, Anthony. The Bungalow. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1984. Lancaster, Clay. The American Bungalow 1880-1930. New York: Abbeville Press, 1985. Mack, Warren W. "A History of Motor Highways in Delaware," in Delaware: A History of the First State, volume 2, edited by H. Clay Reed. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1947. Pred, Allan R. The Spatial Dynamics of U.S. Urban-Industrial Growth, 1800- 1914: Interpretive and Theoretical Essays. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1966. Rae, John B. "The Internal-Combustion Engine on Wheels," in Technology in Western Civilization - Technology in the Twentieth Century, volume 2, edited by Melvin Kranzberg and Carroll W. Purse11 Jr. New York: / Oxford University Press, 1967. Schaeffer, K.H. and Elliott Sclar. Access for All: Transportation and Urban Growth. ~altimore, Maryland: Penguin Books, 1975. Schnore, Leo F. The Urban Scene: Hu~l~an Ecology and Demography. New York: The Free Press, 1965. Stevenson, Katherine Cole and H. Ward Jandl. Houses by Mail - A Guide to Houses from Sears, Roebuck and Company. Washington, D.C.: The Preservation Press, 1986. The Little Book of Houses. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1914. The Sunday Morning Star. (newspaper) Wilmington, Delaware. 1903-1910. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number Page 3 U.S. Bureau of the Census. Decennial Population Census of the United States. Washington, D.C., 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940. Walls and how to decorate them: the Alabastine Book. (pamphlet) Grand Rapids, Michigan: The Alabastine Company, 191.1. Yoho, Jud. The Craftsman Bungalow Book. Seattle, Washington: The Craftsman Bungalow Company, 1913. United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 10 Page * measuring 100 feet along the north boundary and 115 feet at the south boundary. It contai.ns approximately 0.3 acres. Beginning at the southwest corner of the intersection of the curb lines of State Road 54 and County Road 389, proceed approximately 100 feet west along the south curb line of State Road 54. Then turn south and proceed approximately 115 feet to the rear of the plot before turning east and proceeeding approximately 115 feet to County Road 389. The parcel boundary i.s completed by proceeding north approximately 120 feet along the west curb line of County Road 389 to the starting point where State Road 54 and County Road 389 intersect. The location of the property is UTM reference point 18 487940 4256745. MILLER-HUDSON HOUSE WILLIAMSVILLE VICINITY BALTIMORE HUNDRED SUSSEX COUNTY, DELAWARE