Sunday, September 26, 2021
Solved an old puzzle
Since I'm in 1957 mode lately, I got to thinking about an architectural puzzle.
Most American houses before the '50s had some form of separate back entrance for tradesmen, or for the routine dirty aspects of living. A vestibule where you could take off your muddy shoes and work clothes, or leave the laundry and trash.
The better class of apartment buildings had a separate back entry hall for the iceman and groceryman and laundryman:
Bungalows had either a grade entry:
or a semi-open back porch:
But these 1957 suburban houses often didn't have a back door at all. They had a side door into the attached garage, and no direct way out of the kitchen.
Aha. The garage was meant to be a substitute for the back porch. When you came in from gardening or hanging the clothes, you'd come in through the garage, and you'd leave your shoes or dirty tools IN the garage, just as you would have left them IN the back porch or servant's hall.
But the garage wasn't a good substitute. You had to squeeze past the big 1957 car to reach the shelves or the kitchen door. Many owners later hired contractors to open a door to the back yard directly from the utility room, which was the correct substitute.
Graphics note: This is a realistic picture. My parents bought a house like this in 1957, and their '57 Chevy filled the garage. If you parked a few inches to the left, it would block the utility room door. In this position the utility door opened, so you could get into the car, but the side door was blocked.
¶ 10:28 PM 
Bungalows had either a grade entry:
or a semi-open back porch:
But these 1957 suburban houses often didn't have a back door at all. They had a side door into the attached garage, and no direct way out of the kitchen.
Aha. The garage was meant to be a substitute for the back porch. When you came in from gardening or hanging the clothes, you'd come in through the garage, and you'd leave your shoes or dirty tools IN the garage, just as you would have left them IN the back porch or servant's hall.
But the garage wasn't a good substitute. You had to squeeze past the big 1957 car to reach the shelves or the kitchen door. Many owners later hired contractors to open a door to the back yard directly from the utility room, which was the correct substitute.
Graphics note: This is a realistic picture. My parents bought a house like this in 1957, and their '57 Chevy filled the garage. If you parked a few inches to the left, it would block the utility room door. In this position the utility door opened, so you could get into the car, but the side door was blocked.
¶ 10:28 PM
