California Bungalow
& Craftsman Homes

Bungalows are a form of residential architecture that was widely popular across America and, to some extent, the world between 1890 and 1940. Bungalows became so popular that companies like Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Montgomery Ward offered mail-order houses that were pre-cut in factories then shipped out for fabrication on site by local carpenters. One could buy a mail-order bungalow for as little as $900.

The bungalow actually traces its origins to the Indian province of Bengal. The native thatched roof huts were adapted by the British, who built bungalows as houses for administrators and as summer retreats. Refined and popularized in California, the first California house dubbed a bungalow was designed by the San Francisco architect A. Page Brown in the early 1890s.

Characteristics of a Bungalow

Influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement, bungalow architecture emphasizes a horizontal link between the house and the land around it. The use of natural, local materials and colors also reinforce this home-earth relationship. California Bungalows are commonly seen with Craftsman lines or in a Spanish Colonial motif.

Bungalow features:

• Low, sloping roof either gabled (front or side) or hipped, often with wide overhangs
• Exposed roof structure (beams, rafters)
• Exterior proportions balanced rather than symmetrical in arrangement
• Modest front porch
• Front stoop
• Focus on a garden, even if small
• Open, informal floor plan
• Prominent hearth
• Interior wood details

Interior and Exterior Features

Bungalows have a simple living room with the focal point being the fireplace, and a smaller kitchen. The living room often has a broad opening into the dining room. Built-in furniture such as sideboards, bookshelves, and window seats were common throughout the house. Wood was commonly used for flooring, wainscoting, chair rails, and geometric ceiling patterns. Stained and leaded glass was often used for windows and cabinet doors. Artisan light fixtures were also common.

Bungalow exteriors tend to be wood shingle, horizontal siding or stucco exteriors, as well as brick or stone exterior chimneys and a partial-width front porch. Larger bungalows might have asymmetrical "L" shaped porches.

Bungalow Styles

1. California
2. Craftsman
3. Mission
4. Tudor
5. Prairie
6. Foursquare
7. Spanish Colonial
8. Pueblo
9. Log Cabin
10. Colonial
11. Chicago
12. Cape Cod
13. Moderne

Bungalow Neighborhoods

Bungalows can be found in the older neighborhoods of most American cities. Many cities have what is called a "Bungalow Belt" of homes built in the 1920s, often clustered along streetcar lines as they extended into the suburbs. Examples of Southern California neighborhoods with a high concentration of bungalows include Belmont Heights and Bluff Heights in Long Beach, Old Towne Orange, and Bungalow Heaven in Pasadena.