Old Houses of the American South

A region of widely divergent landscapes and peoples, the South is bound by traditions and styles that make it quite unlike any other part of America. Nowhere is the quintessence of the South`s lifestyle as intensely expressed as in its magnificent historic houses, so beautifully photographed and lovingly described in this book. Though sometimes troubled by the violent events of history, the South has succeeded in nurturing and protecting a unique heritage of domestic architecture, whether in white clapboard or brick, whether in Greek Revival or Victorian, or in plain old-fashioned Plantation and Federal styles.

Here are coastal houses, their living areas raised to receive the cool breezes from the sea, their expansive porches extending a magnanimous welcome. In the Piedmont, cotton-rich building in Greek Revival and Victorian styles lives cheek-by-jowl with graceful eighteenth-century structures. Near the Kentucky river the Shakers erected their charmingly plain edifices. And between the Appalachian Mountains lie the towns described by Bonnie Ramsey as `architectural teenagers`, with neighborhoods mil of delightful sturdy Victorian dwellings.

The towns and villages of the South themselves are fiercely proud of this wonderful heritage. Special tours and visits are arranged throughout the year, and so this picture of a very special country ends with a travellers guide to local events and places to stay. Special sections on Southern gardens, the equestrian culture and churches and cemeteries complete this sumptuous guide to the finest houses of the American South.

With 253 colour illustrations and a map