Spanish+Colonial

= __Spanish Colonial__ - style homes that originated from New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, and California. =

Gonzalez-Alvarez House, St. Augustine, Florida, built 1723
__Spanish Colonial Features__
 * Usually one or two stories
 * Flat roof or roof with low pitch
 * Eath, thatch, or clay roof covering
 * Thick walls made with rocks, coquina, or adobe brick coated with stucco

History of Spanish Colonial Homes
Developed with the earlier Spanish settlements in the Caribbean and Mexico, the Spanish Colonial style in the United States can be traced back to St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest established city in the country, founded in 1565. The style would also develop in the Southwest and in California with the founding of the missions by the Spanish between 1769 and 1823. The early type of dwelling in Spanish Florida was the "board house", a small one-room cottage construced of pit-sawn softwood boards, typically with a thached roof. During the 1700s, the "common houses" were covered whitewashed lime mortar with an oyster shell aggregate. Typically two stories, the houses included cooling porches to accommodate the Florida climate.

Work Cited
By Katie Schopp - 2/23/10