CHICAGO VINTAGE HOME STYLES
Bungalows and Beyond
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Chicago’s residential buildings may seem commonplace to those of us who grew up around here, but our architecture (even the revival styles) are uniquely ours! The materials used to build these houses were determined largely by what we had around us—brick (clay), limestone, particular kinds of wood, etc.—and everything from lot sizes to building codes determined the form and scale of our dwellings. These adaptations have resulted in a collection of truly “Chicago” homes, as original as the people who inhabited them.
This is an overview of the main vintage home styles we’ve seen, and their typical features, but there were quirks, innovations, tweaks, and stylistic nods along the way. We went a little bungalow-heavy with our examples, but what can we say—we’re the Chicago Bungalow Association!
