Ranch home designs have been extremely popular in the United States
since the 1950's, and are as quintessentially American as jazz and
cheeseburgers. A ranch home design typically is asymmetrical and
low-slung, with a horizontal, spreading orientation in either a
rectangular, U-, or L-shaped configuration. Roofs are gable or hipped
with wide eaves. Ranch homes usually have attached garages and feature
minimal ornamentation but they contain modern design elements such as
large plate glass picture windows, sliding glass doors, and Formica
countertops.
Another common feature was the raised ranch, or split level home, which
emerged as a variant of the original ranch style during the late 20th
century (although some early examples predate the Second World War and
Sears' catalogue of Honor-Bilt Homes listed several split level designs
in the 1930's). Unlike traditional ranch style homes, these were
innovative in using interior space. Instead of arranging the rooms on
one floor, the style reorganized space in accordance with its use. For
example, in one popular split level variant the entryway, kitchen,
dining and living rooms occupied the main level; the bedrooms upstairs
were accessed by a half staircase leading up; and the laundry area,
guest bedroom, and family rumpus room were accessed by a half staircase
leading down. In some ranch house designs the garage was placed on the
lower level, with easy access via half staircase to the upper level.
Another possibility was a split entry home, characterized by a small
entry with half staircase leading up to the living areas and bedrooms
upstairs and another half staircase next to it leading down to the
garage, laundry, and family room. There were many other configurations
also.
The split level's popularity derived partly
from its modernity and its differentiation from traditional mid-20th
century styles of housing, such as Minimalist, Cape Cod, Colonial
Revival, and bungalow cottages. This architecture can be made to blend
into a hillside site in a natural manner. These houses maximize their
square footage and their curbside presence, and they minimized costs
without needing larger lots or basements by taking advantage of the
natural curvature of the land, so that earth-moving costs are minimized.
The split level ranch style provided an ideal balance between the
buyers' goal of getting as much house as could be for the money, with
the builders' goal of making a good profit.
The unique feature of ranch home designs is their openness and
flow, both between rooms within the home; and from inside to outside.
Ranch house design lets every room open up to nature, to benefit from
the warm breezes and sunshine. The continuing popularity of ranch house
designs attests to the ascendancy of the laid-back California lifestyle
in America.
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