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Their embellishments were modeled after those found on the Victorian homes of wealthier whites, usually located elsewhere in town. The shotgun house brought a new home design concept to the United States -- the porch. The overhanging roof along the front of the house created a stoop where a family could congregate on a hot evening. The front of a traditional shotgun house would usually encroach upon the sidewalk, and the house's porch gave rise to the longstanding New Orleans custom of visiting outside with neighbors in the evening.
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A shotgun house is a narrow rectangular domestic residence, usually no more than about 12 feet (3.5 m) wide, with rooms arranged one behind the other and doors at each end of the house. It was the most popular style of house in the Southern United States from the end of the American Civil War (1861–65) through the 1920s. Alternative names include shotgun shack, shotgun hut, shotgun cottage, and in the case of a multihome dwelling, shotgun apartment; the design is similar to that of railroad apartments. In some cities, shotgun houses were torn down to make way for high-rise apartments or commercial buildings. Sometimes, historic home preservation societies stepped in to prevent them from being completely obliterated. Homebuyers tend to gravitate toward open concept living and dining spaces; they like bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms.
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As demolition begins on Louisville shotgun homes, advocates reaffirm need for housing in city - WHAS11.com
As demolition begins on Louisville shotgun homes, advocates reaffirm need for housing in city.
Posted: Wed, 01 Nov 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The Santa Monica shotgun house almost didn't survive, and the community's efforts over more than a decade—detailed by the LA Conservancy—stand as an example of how historic buildings can be salvaged and repurposed. Houses like the Santa Monica shotgun house were once as common as seagulls at the beach. They were tiny board-and-batten cottages along the strand where, late in the 19th century, families spent a weekend or a week or a season away from the stifling heat of Pasadena or Downtown Los Angeles.
Shotgun House Floor Plans (with Drawings)
Yoruba people in West and Central Africa, specifically, were known to build dwellings like this. These nostalgic houses can be a great purchase, as long as buyers do their due diligence. In early 2017, the Shotgun House earned LEED™ Gold certification, proving that even a century-old structure can be rehabilitated and adapted for sustainable, contemporary use. Some of the green features of the building include the reuse of ninety-five percent of the original building, energy efficiency, and a drought-resistant garden.
Types of Shotgun Houses
Shotgun-style houses originate in the American south, often built in Black neighborhoods in New Orleans, Charlotte, and Houston at the turn of the 19th century. The distinctive, narrow footprint effectively accommodated smaller lot sizes, while the streamlined layout with two doors at either side of the house allowed homeowners some much-needed fresh air in the hot, humid southern climates. "The shotgun style of consecutive rooms with aligned doors allows for excellent airflow," O'Connor says. Their narrow, front-to-back design, with doors aligned in a row, aids air circulation during the summer. The houses often do not have windows on side walls, as their close proximity to neighbouring houses does not allow for ventilation or light from the side. Such close proximity does, however, maximize socializing, with residents often sitting on front porches and chatting with neighbours and people passing by on the street.
Curating the City
The original shotgun design places the kitchen and bathroom at the very back of the house. While helpful in reducing hot airflow, this setup restricts ease of movement for its residents. A design that moves them towards the center of the house simultaneously creates easy access and more privacy for everyone. The kitchen sat in the back of the original shotgun since it was the hottest room of the house.
Shotgun House Exterior
Many feature sweet details like spacious gabled front porches and charming gingerbread trim. Almost all shotgun houses are raised a few feet off the ground, which allows for airflow beneath the home and protects against minor flooding. A traditional shotgun house features a rectangular footprint with a narrow frontage — sometimes only 12 feet wide. Many (but not all) have a deep, gabled front porch designed for relaxed socializing in the shade. The shotgun house design thrived in New Orleans following two disastrous fires in the late eighteenth century.
The History of Shotgun Homes
City-based shotgun homes tend to be close together, meaning you can expect very little separation from your neighbors. Inside, you’ll be living in close quarters with your co-habitants as well, a reality that Kattengell says may deter buyers with larger families. While shotgun houses have plenty of perks, there are a few downsides that you’ll want to consider before…jumping the gun. However, there is some indirect truth to the idea of shotgun house tax savings. Property taxes are based on assessed home values, which are influenced by appraisals.
The rooms are built one behind the other – with each room opening into the other – and only partial walls between the rooms. With this design, shotgun houses found inventive ways of fitting all of the necessities without much square footage. At the time they were built, there was no indoor plumbing, so bathrooms didn't exist.
Developers often bought 10 to 15 acres and filled them with shotgun houses squeezed tightly in rows along small streets and alleys. They housed low-income and working-class African American families, who often paid rent to absentee landlords. Typical of any house in New Orleans, most shotgun houses are raised a few feet off the ground. The simpler and typically oldest versions of these homes have an almost flat roof that doesn't hang over the sides (meaning there's no covered porch).
With such narrow floor plans, shotgun homes were constructed closely together on streets, creating close-knit communities. Residents often gather outside on their porches to cool off from the city’s subtropical climate, helping foster New Orleans’ culture of congeniality as folks interact with each other from their stoops. Don’t let the petite proportions of the exterior fool you; this demure blue shotgun house in Louisville has surprising depths. The energy-efficient abode boasts 2,712 square feet in total, including a recently added 1600-square-foot second floor.
In addition, there are transom windows above each of the doors that can open for increased airflow. Newer layouts find both the kitchen and the bathroom more centrally located between the living spaces. The original layout enters through the living room, followed by a dining room, bedroom(s), and a kitchen. Once indoor bathrooms came into use, they were typically between the kitchen and bedroom.
Developed with affordability in mind, shotgun houses kept a deliberately small and narrow footprint in an attempt to fit as many homes as possible onto a single block. The communities of shotgun houses in New Orleans are attributed to the Haitian and West African refugees, immigrants, and slaves who called the city home in the 1800s. This style of linear construction was common in West Africa and later in Haiti. Among these local design quirks is an adorably petite home style called the Shotgun house. Originally popularized in New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana during the 1800s, shotgun homes are diminutive dwellings that often span only about 12 feet wide—making them the original tiny home. Learn more about this small but mighty southern home style below—plus how to evoke a similar look on your own property.
What distinguishes the camelback is a second story over the last room in the layout. Since the second level only covered part of the back, it still qualifies as a single-story dwelling. The double shotgun consists of two side-by-side single shotgun layouts separated by a wall or a doorway. The double can be two separate single residences or one combined, depending on the interior division. Nestled in Mobile’s historic downtown, the Denny-Warren House exemplifies classic characteristics of shotgun houses while offering guests the singular experience of being immersed in the natural wonders of Alabama.
Built in the 1890s, the spacious shotgun is home to two bedrooms, two full baths, and an open floor plan that fits a kitchen, living and dining area. Nicknamed “Beurre Blanc,” that’s French for white butter, this inviting townhouse in the heart of New Orleans’ Garden District likely derives its moniker from its ivory visage and decadent details and landscaping. Elegance on the outside in the form of bay windows and delicate trim, mirrors the luxury indoors—from the milk-white walls to the hardwood floors, and eclectic artwork. This shotgun in the New Orleans neighborhood of Marigny stands out from the crowd with its sunny, yellow facade, ornamental flourishes, and bold red front doors. That same warmth permeates the interior, where a combination of vintage and modern furnishings are set against color-drenched walls to evoke a sense of history without feeling stuffy. Some believe it was a nod to the idea that you could fire a shotgun at the front of the house and the bullet would pass straight through to the back of the house.
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