French Provincial architecture

The design came to the United States after American servicemen returned from fighting in France during World War I.

[3] French nobles built chateaus or manor houses with steep hipped roofs and an overall formal appearance.

[3] American soldiers admired the architecture of rural France and when they returned from the war they built homes in the style.

[1] By 1932 nearly one in three homes which appeared in the annual country house issue of the American magazine Architectural Record had French Provincial design elements.

[6] Elements of French Provincial architecture include narrow tall windows with shutters, slate roof, copper gutters and symmetrically placed chimneys.