Colonial Homes Were Different by Sarah G. '99

When you drive through the streets of New England today, you still can see the influence of the colonial period. Many New Englanders still build colonial style homes. However, most modern colonial style homes just copy the outside features of the house. The inside of today's colonial homes is completely different than traditional colonial homes, which centered around fireplaces used just for the family's cooking and heating.

The exterior of a colonial style home is very distinct. You can distinguish a colonial home by the light colored paint, dark shutters and two story height. The chimney was a crucial feature of true colonial homes. Families declared their support for the Whigs or Tory side of the Revolutionary War through the color of their chimney. If the chimney had white on the bottom and black on the top, it was the house of a loyalist who believed in what the king had to say. Patriots kept their chimneys plain brick colored.

The interior of the colonial home was also constructed to suit the needs of the time. In colonial homes, the ceilings were kept low so that they could conserve heat. They were also built low so that colonial women could hang dried flowers, herbs and corn from the beam above the fireplace in the kitchen.

The most important interior feature of the colonial house was the fireplace. The house was built around the main fireplace in the kitchen. The kitchen fireplace was used for cooking and heating the first floor. The fireplace was used for cooking food like stews and meat, along with boiling water. The main cooking was done directly over an open fire. To the left of the open fire there was a spot to bake bread and an ash fire to help keep food warm after it was cooked. A small fireplace was usually added to the master bedroom on the second floor of the house. That fireplace was used for keeping the second floor warm and adding light to the master bedroom.

Paul Revere's house is an example of a colonial home that was preserved to stay true to its time period. Paul Revere's house is two stories high. The top part of the house juts out a little over the bottom. Pendant drops are used to decorate the front of the house and help distinguish the two stories. In the basement of the house is the original kitchen, which Paul Revere's first wife used. The basement kitchen was inconvenient, so a first floor kitchen was made for his second wife. Also on the first floor, there is a dining room where Paul and his family would eat. Stairs curve up from the first floor to the second story.

On the second floor there is a master bedroom where the parents slept and also entertained their guests. Next to the main bedroom are the children's rooms. One is right across from the parents' room. The other room comes off the left wall of the children's room. The third floor attic was once used as a bedroom for Paul Revere's mother.

In conclusion, the colonial home was well suited for the people of the Revolutionary period because of its low building cost, its good size, and its large kitchen and fireplace. Modern colonial homes may look the same on the outside, but they are completely different on the inside.