What is a Garrison Colonial?

Garrison Characteristics

1. Often symmetrical like other traditional Colonial Revivals
   
2. Cantilevered second floor over the first (the overhang is fairly narrow and not usually more than a couple feet)
   
3. Pendant ornaments may be seen at the corners or spaced along the second story overhang
   
4. Two-story
   
5. Rectangular, side-gabled mass
   
6. Narrow eaves
   
7. Medium pitched roof (usually composition) may be gabled or hipped
   
8. Colonial-style multi-light (six-over-six or six-over-one lights are common), double-hung windows.
9. Shutters and bay windows are favorite details
   
10. Colonial-style paneled entry door.
11. Decorative elements are generally restrained but may include a columned porch, pilasters, or pediment; fanlight or transom, or sidelights
    
12. Lapped wood siding is most common, but brick or shingle siding are also common cladding for the first story

Is your house a Garrison Colonial?

Like the Cape Cod, the Garrison Colonial is a variation of the Colonial Revival style, which enjoyed enormous popularity during the 20th century.
It shares with the Colonial Revival many of the same characteristics including symmetry, roof pitch, and decorative detailing the classical elements such as double-hung six-over-six windows, pilasters, and traditional entries with broken pediments, side lights or transoms.
Though Colonial Revival was hugely popular during the first quarter of the 20th century, Garrisons are almost never seen until the late 1920s. During the 1930s, it reaches the peak of its popularity, becoming much more common. It remains a popular style just after the War and into the 1950s when more modern styles begin to emerge.