The diverse styles of Rock Island’s historic residential architecture span the time period from just after early settlement in the 1850s to the post-World War II subdivisions of the 1950s. Our architectural styles and types begin with the grand simplicity of Greek Revival, to neighborhoods full of Queen Anne and Colonial Revival at the turn of the century, to the tiny Minimal Traditional homes mass constructed to serve families of our returning GI’s.

Rock Island’s houses also reflected economic status of the citizens. While Rock Island had some share of lumber and brewery barons, the community was predominantly middle and working class. Many national architectural styles are represented by a mere handful of examples, and these frequently are religious or public buildings and not residences. The reality is that Rock Island’s high style architectural heritage is for the most part a conservative one, which is curious given the enduring economic vitality of our community. Residential architecture was primarily for these middle and working class families, so many homes portray strong hints of certain architectural styles or types, while others are purely vernacular.

Regardless, 100 years of architectural variety is represented in Rock Island’s homes. Try to match your favorite house to our illustrated examples showing the styles most commonly found in our community. Representative dates are for the periods the architectural style or type was constructed in Rock Island; national time frames may vary. Architecture styles are listed below. To jump to 20th century architecture, please click here.

Rock Island’s Architectural Styles and Types

Greek Revival (circa 1830-1860)

This style usually has a low-pitched gable or hip roof, with a wide band of trim under the main roof and porch roof. Porches are common, and are supported by prominent square or round columns. The columns are often in the Doric style. The front door is usually surrounded by sidelights and transom lights.

Gothic Revival (circa 1855-1870)

A Gothic Revival building is characterized by an overall picturesque cottage appearance, steeply pitched roof with cross gables, extensive use of ornamental bargeboards, hood molding over windows, and doors and windows incorporating the Gothic arch. Since the style was popular by the middle of the nineteenth century, there are just a few examples in Rock Island.

Italianate (circa 1855-1885)

This style is more common in Rock Island and is characterized by two or three stories, low pitched hip or center gable roof with widely overhanging eaves supported by large brackets, visually balanced facades, decorative bracketed hoods or lintels over windows and doors, and narrow single or double pane, double hung windows and double doors. Some examples of this style have a cupola or tower. Rock Island has a significant number of front center gable Italianate houses, as shown in our illustration.

Second Empire (circa 1865-1885)

Second Empire homes are most known by their double-pitched mansard roofs, which often have multi-colored slate shingles. They are also characterized by two or three stories, dormer windows, pedimented and bracketed slender windows, ornate moldings and brackets under the eaves, arched double doors and projecting porches. Apart from its distinctive roofline, Second Empire houses have similar details to Italianate designs.

Stick (circa 1870-1890)

The Stick style is so named because of the many decorative trusses and features that interrupt the surface of the building. This style has a gabled roof, usually steeply pitched with cross gables that commonly show decorative trusses at the apex. There are overhanging eaves with exposed rafter ends and wooden wall cladding interrupted by patterns of horizontal, vertical or diagonal boards (stickwork) raised from the wall surfaces for emphasis. The one-story porches commonly show diagonal or curved braces.

Queen Anne (circa 1885-1910)

This is a common architectural style characterized by irregularity of plan and massing, variety of color and texture, variety of window treatment, multiple steep roofs, porches with decorative gables, frequent use of bay windows, chimneys that incorporate molded brick or corbelling, and wall surfaces that vary in texture and material used. Many Rock Island Queen Anne homes are comparatively plain, with simpler decorations and massing.

Colonial Revival (circa 1890-1950)

Colonial Revival homes are distinguished by a balanced front facade, and the use of decorative door crowns and pediments; sidelights; fanlights and porticoes to emphasize the front entrance. There are also double hung windows with multiple panes in one or both sashes, and string courses and decorative cornices.

Prairie (circa 1900-1920)

Developed in the Midwest by Frank Lloyd Wright, the horizontal lines of this style evoke the open feeling of the prairie. It features a low-pitched roof, usually hipped with widely overhanging eaves. It often has two stories, with one story wings or porches; eaves, cornices and facade detailing emphasizing horizontal lines; and porches with massive, square posts.

Foursquare (circa 1900-1925)

This is a common architectural type characterized by two stories, square porch columns or posts, hip roof, full-width porch and dormers. Typically, a Foursquare house will have an open stair hall and four rooms on each floor, with a square, box-like shape. Foursquare houses are often influenced by Craftsman or Prairie styles.

Craftsman (circa 1910-1930)

Craftsman homes have a low-pitched hip or gable roof and a wide eave overhang, with the roof rafters usually exposed. It is also commonly distinguished by decorative beams or braces added under gables and porches supported by tapered square columns. These structures can be two stories; however, most are one to one and a half stories tall.

Bungalow (circa 1915-1940)

Small size, overall simplicity, broad gables, dormer windows, porches with large, square piers and exposed structural members characterize the Bungalow variety of Craftsman architecture. Bungalows are also influenced in decorative detailing and lay-out by other major styles besides Craftsman, such as Prairie and Tudor. These small, typically one-and-a-half story homes take a wide variety of style and design and are very common in Rock Island.

Tudor (circa 1920-1940)

This style of architecture is actually a medieval revival and is characterized by a steeply pitched, end or cross gable roof; gabled entryway; multi-paned, narrow windows; tall chimneys; masonry construction and decorative half-timbering on the upper walls or gables of the structure.

Art Moderne (1925-1940)

Though more commonly associated with commercial buildings, there are some examples of this style in residences in Rock Island. The Art Moderne style is characterized by a flat roof and a streamlined emphasis through the use of horizontal lines, courses and patterns. Occasionally, the style utilized rounded corners. There is also a greater emphasis on metals, such as aluminum, and the decorative use of concrete.

Minimal Traditional (circa 1931-1955)

This vernacular type derived from other styles of the period, but lacked their detailing. Roof pitches are low or intermediate, eaves are shallow, there are no dormers, and there is usually one front-facing gable. The homes are typically just one story tall and, for the first time, may feature attached garages via side wings or breezeways. Floor plans were compact and could flow in square, linear or L-plans. Porches are reduced to covered entryways.

Ranch (1938-present)

The Ranch house type is distinguished by a single story with a low, hipped roof that may be continuous or in segments, and broad overhanging eaves. It has a sprawling floor plan, spreading in nearly any direction from the entrance. The lack of a raised basement reinforces the horizontal lines of the house. One very common feature is the use of a half-high window in all or part of the house. The type coincided with the trend toward wider and shallower lots.