California bungalow

The bungalow actually traces its origins to the Indian province of Bengal, the word itself derived from the Hindi bangla or house in Bengali style.

[1] The native thatched roof huts were adapted by the British, who built bungalows as houses for administrators and as summer retreats.

[7] The bungalow became popular because it met the needs of changing times in which the lower middle class were moving from apartments to private houses in great numbers.

The majority of bungalows did include some elements of mass production; typically doors, windows, and built-in furnishings such as bookcases, desks, or folding beds were sourced from lumber yards or from catalogs.

Examples of neighborhoods in Southern California with a high concentration of California bungalows include: Belmont Heights in Long Beach, the Wood Streets in Riverside, Bungalow Heaven, Highland Park in Los Angeles, and North Park (site of the "Dryden District") in San Diego.

[9] This period coincided with the rise of the Hollywood film industry, which popularised American clothes, furniture, cars and houses, and also with the increased importation of U.S. architectural magazines into Australia, a society which previously had been heavily influenced by British domestic styles.

"...the concept of the bungalow as a cheap and attractive form of permanent suburban housing for the masses was stimulated by a variety of economic and social factors.

"[10] Timber versions of the bungalow were a low cost solution to shortages in housing and the California designs suited the growing suburbs of the larger cities in southern Australia.

Having a similar climate to that of California the designs also reflected the requirements of Australians who needed to cater for relatively warm summers and mild winters.

Key practitioners of the California bungalow style were Peddle and Thorp, Kenneth B. Milne, Alexander Stewart Jolly and Cedric Ballantyne.