The Carriage House: Charming Architectural Classic

19th Century "Garages" Find New Life as Dwellings – And Inspire Small Homes

 

Think of the carriage house as the detached garage in 19th century America – or a cart shed as the British call it. 

But, really, what is a carriage house? The original carriage houses, which were very popular in the Northeast, bring to mind romantic images of a genteel society when families – dressed up in their finery – traveled in elegant horse-drawn carriages. Often tucked away behind large estates and manor homes, carriage houses were designed for more utilitarian purposes. Carriage house designs were drawn and built to provide a shelter for the coaches, maintenance equipment, and livery accessories. Let’s look at how carriage houses are being transformed and reinvented today.

 

The Carriage House in the Modern Era

The term “carriage house” in the 21st century has taken on more than the traditional and established concept of an outbuilding home to coaches and their accessories.

In the strict sense, carriage houses refer to the original carriage houses restored and transformed into guest quarters, apartments, in-law suites, garages, art studios, workshops, retail shops, bars, restaurants, or storage buildings. Quite often, carriage houses that are part of historic mansions are converted into offices, gallery space, tea rooms, and museums.

The carriage houses that exist today may be

• Refurbished versions of the old structures with the living spaces on the second level. A number of original carriage houses have been renovated as barn-style garages with apartments above.
• New-builds designed to look like the original carriage houses.

And in some areas of the country, restored and refurbished carriage houses are a big attraction for renters who like to live in a free-standing home but cannot afford to buy one.

 

Detached Dwelling

A more modern classification is an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) or a detached dwelling unit that, similar to the carriage house, is located on the same grounds as the main house or attached to the single-family home (as in a basement apartment). Whether it’s an apartment above the garage, a she-shed, or a backyard cottage designed to look like a carriage house, these contemporary adaptations offer the property owners more than just nostalgia for a bygone era.

Here are some benefits of having an ADU on the main property:

• A separate living space for adult children as they join the workforce
• A way to help parents or in-laws stay near the rest of the family – within the same property but under a separate roof
• The potential for rental income
• Private office space, workshop, or artist’s studio

 

“Carriage Home”

A carriage house or a carriage home? Be aware of the distinction between an authentic carriage house and one that is called a carriage home as a marketing strategy. What’s the difference?

Let’s start with the size and style. Remember that a carriage house is big enough to accommodate one or more horse-drawn carriages. It is also a free-standing structure that is part of the main house.

A carriage or patio home (or zero-lot-line home) is a single-family residence built on a lot that’s just large enough for the house and “often sharing in common land with other homes in the same planned unit development.” In terms of architectural style, the carriage home is more like a condo or a townhouse in that it shares walls. Realtor.com describes carriage homes as having “small or no setback regulations – rules that keep houses from being built too close together.”

The only outdoor living space in a carriage home is a small private patio – hence the name “patio homes.”

 

A Short History

In huge, sprawling properties, carriage houses were often elaborate and usually mimicked the main residences architectural style. In New England, for example, most of the carriage houses had low-pitched roofs and clapboard siding like the main house. Victorian style homes featured carriage houses with bay windows, stained glass, and even some of the intricate scrollwork on the eaves.

 

Most carriage houses were built with high ceilings and a center doorway tall and wide enough to allow the carriages in and out of the structure. Carriage houses for large country properties were spacious enough to include more than one coach, several stables, and an upper level that served as living quarters for household staff, caretakers, and workers in charge of the horses and the coaches.

On the flip side, smaller city homes had carriage houses with simple structures with room for just one carriage. Picture a house today with a one-car garage.

 

As industrialization took over and cars replaced horse-drawn carriages, the carriage houses original purpose as a shelter for coaches and storage for hay and livery equipment became obsolete. However, the way of life that established the carriage houses in the 19th century continues to capture the imagination of architects, builders, designers, historians, and homebuyers who are fascinated by the rear house behind the big house.

There are original carriage houses still scattered around the country – reimagined in different styles, shapes, and forms. And even as they are refurbished, revamped, and adapted to modern living, their charm, history, and heritage have been thoughtfully preserved by building planners, designers, and architects.

 

Carriage Houses Today

Architectural buffs curious about original carriage houses and their historic backgrounds can find them in small and large cities across the country – converted into apartments or modern homes.

But if you’re a potential home buyer interested in acquiring and renovating a piece of the past, the best places to look for actual carriage houses are in the historic districts of Savannah, Georgia; Charleston, South Carolina; New Orleans; and parts of Atlanta. In the Midwest, Chicago and Minneapolis have elaborate and simple carriage houses in their older residential areas. The same holds true in Philadelphia.

 

And if you look tirelessly, you will find restored carriage houses for sale in New York City, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. In San Francisco, the carriage houses look like smaller versions of the Victorian row houses – the so-called “painted ladies.”

In Montana, Wyoming, and Arizona, a few rustic carriage houses still exist in some former mining towns and stagecoach lines.

But even if you can’t find – or don’t want – an original carriage house, you can have your own “carriage house plan” by building a garage with an apartment over it if you have enough space on your lot.

 

While the days of the horse and buggy are long gone, carriage houses – with their charm, style, and historic significance – will remain intriguing and fascinating symbols of a genteel era and society.

 

Footnote: The top illustration in the lead image of this article is an attractive barn style "carriage house" with more than 830 sq. ft. of living space. The 2 story floor plan includes 1 bedroom, 1 bath, and a 3-car garage. For more details, go to Plan #109-1023.