In 1848, in New York State, Orson Fowler loudly proclaimed that the octagonal shaped house had numerous benefits over 'square' shaped houses. He must have been an excellent salesman because 100's of people built Octagons. It is correct that the inner space is larger and that the rooms are brighter due to the many windows. What he didn't say is that the rooms are terrible to furnish due to the short walls and lack of corners.
What to look for (clues)
- An eight-sided house.
- Most of the octagons sit a little distance above the ground.
- There is usually a verandah that encompasses the entire house.
- The 3rd floor is often just a cupola or single room.
- Tall narrow windows are often paired. There may be shutters.
Where to find it
Octagons aren't common, but I wouldn't rate them as 'rare'. This one is in Hawksbury near the Ottawa River.
The Octagon is found more frequently in New York State.
Great House. Where exactly is it> I research Octagon houses and have never seen this one.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting.
E
See octagon.bobanna.com
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Its Hawkesbury. I located it.
ReplyDeleteFYI I work with of the Bobanna website. We had nothing on this house but a hawkesbury library helped us out.
Wonderful house. One of my favorites and Ive studied them all the last 30 years. I just put a book together on over 900 octagons from the 19th century.
ReplyDeleteCheck out my book's website and see sample pages.
http://berniepuer.ipower/octagonbook/index.html
ELP