Design with Jenn Martella: American Four Square 

Whenever I drove to Queen Anne County to tour a House of the Week, I always enjoyed stopping to shop at The Bohemian Trading Company across from Kingstown Park. Along the other side of the park was a row of houses that date from the early part of the 20th century. The architectural styles range from bungalows to today’s feature, a charming American Four Square house. The street ends at the Chester River where one can look across to Chestertown and admire the row of postcard perfect historic houses that always remind me of Charleston, South Carolina.

 

This one-half acre property is surrounded by mature trees and its full front porch overlooks Kingstown Park that is a wonderful neighborhood asset. Since the street ends at the Chester River, there is only neighborhood traffic making it safe for walking one’s dog or riding a bike to the riverbank. 

 

I was quite pleased that the photographer included this aerial view illustrating the square roof shape, full porch and attic dormer that clearly identifies this house’s  architectural style as American Four Square. I have written before that one of the former houses I called home was this style and it remains one of my favorites. The aerial also shows the property’s corner location for extra privacy, an outbuilding fronting the driveway, the deep rear yard and how the house is nestled in a clearing of mature trees. 

The street side elevation is classic American Four Square. The screened porch is detailed with rusticated stone piers, tapered columns and hipped roof.  The main square hipped roof is topped by a wide dormer with a double unit window. The asymmetry of the window arrangement at the second floor is due to the location of the stairs to the second floor that just adds to the house’s charm.  

One side elevation faces the gravel driveway with the screened porch’s second door and steps leading down to the gravel driveway for convenient access by guests since there are no town sidewalks along the street. The one-story shed roofed part of the house was probably an open porch that has been infilled to contain a short hall next to a full bath and the laundry. The laundry’s exterior door leads to a covered deck.

The deep yard offers plenty of space for play and gardening, with the clever re-use of a former grille as a greenhouse. The grille next to the deck and covered porch stands ready for al-fresco dining.

The rear yard offers privacy from its border of mature trees; all it needs is a hammock under the majestic trees that shades the yard.

The full front porch is a delightful outdoor room with its interior architecture of painted wood slat ceiling, yellow lap siding and slightly tapered columns resting on rusticated block piers and the stained wood flooring. The front door’s center position divides the porch into sitting and dining areas. 

The front door defines the two room wide floor plan. The large windows with blinds for privacy bring both indirect daylight from the front porch and direct daylight from the side wall. I especially liked the front door’s clever detail of alternating clear and frosted glass, which is a great way to have daylight without sacrificing privacy. The light wall color accentuates the beautiful hardwood flooring.  

I admired the zigzag look of the stair that overlooks the living room with its outline of the stained treads and the white skirt board. The openness of the stair visually expands the living room.

A wide wall opening connects the living room to the dining room. Like many houses of the early part of the 20th century, the fireplace is angled instead of being placed squarely on the wall. This corner fireplace not only allows the heat to radiate into a larger portion of the room and reach more distant areas but it also frees up more wall space for windows and art. With the sofa against the stair, the side chairs complete the seating arrangement around the fireplace.

The spacious dining room could easily accommodate a larger table and chairs for family celebrations. Like last week’s  featured house, I wondered if the wide wall opening once had pocket paneled or French doors but I did not see any clues it did. I admired the detailing of the  trim around the baseboard, windows and doorway and how both the window’s header and sill trim extend beyond the jamb trim.

The kitchen is located in the middle of the floor plan and is connected to the dining room, laundry and family room. The easy care flooring extends into the adjacent laundry and the wide window over the sink gives the cook a view of the side yard. The neutral finishes and stainless steel appliances await the next owner’s accessories.

I always envy houses with actual laundry rooms since I have only a stack W/D in a hall alcove. This laundry also can do double duty as a pantry with its upper cabinets and a microwave. The window and door overlook the roofed deck leading to the rear yard.

This cozy room off the kitchen and opposite the stair could be a great snug with a sofa against the stairs for views through the front and side windows providing  ample daylight. Adding a wall mounted TV and more shelving for books would be great finishing touches. The corner door leads to the basement with windows at each end for daylight and ample storage space.

The stairs to the second floor end at a short hall surrounded by three bedrooms and a family bath. Two bedrooms are located at the front of the house with this primary bedroom located at a quiet rear corner. The front bedrooms have single windows on each exterior wall but this primary bedroom has two windows overlooking the rear yard and another side window.  

The spacious family bath has easy care vinyl flooring that evokes the polygonal tiles usually found in houses dating from the 1920’s. The soaking tub outfitted with a hand held shower, the wide pedestal sink  and the wall mounted mirror/medicine cabinet are also vintage pieces. The white paneled wainscot and the light blue wall above, punctuated by the two windows for daylight, create a charming family bath. 

There is a second door to the adjacent primary bedroom. If a main primary bedroom ensuite were desired, the main floor’s bathroom and hall could perhaps be extended for a one-story primary ensuite that could wrap around the deck. 

This charming house has great appeal from both its neighborhood location along the Chester River and its highly desirable corner lot opposite Kingstown Park. The house’s American Four-Square architectural style creates a compact floor plan with minimal halls to maximize room sizes, enhanced by neutral wall finishes and beautiful hardwood floors with abundant daylight from large windows. Outdoor rooms of the front screened porch and rear deck expand your warm weather living space and the deep rear yard surrounded by mature trees creates a play space for children or family sports. Great property!

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For more information about this property, Courtney Chipouras, Vice President, TTR  Sotheby’s International Realty and MBA | RSPS: Resort & Second-Home Property Specialist at 410-410-3344 (o), 410-200-1224 (c) or [email protected] .For more photographs and pricing, visit www.mychesapeakehome.com . Equal Housing Opportunity”. 

Photography by Steve Buchanan Photography, 301-996-7295, http://www.buchananphotography.com .

Contributor Jennifer Martella has pursued dual careers in architecture and real estate since she moved to the Eastern Shore in 2004. She has reestablished her architectural practice for residential and commercial projects and is a real estate agent for Meredith Fine Properties. She especially enjoys using her architectural expertise to help buyers envision how they could modify a potential property. Her Italian heritage led her to Piazza Italian Market, where she hosts wine tastings every Friday and Saturday afternoons.