Page 52 - North Haven Magazine Issue 25 Autumn 2022

The American

The American By Roger Dietz
Front Porch
Front Porch

Chances are you spend more time on your deck or in your backyard than you do on
a front porch. It’s very likely the house you live in doesn’t even have a front porch.
There was a time, however, when the front porch offered the leisure living for the
American family.
he glory days of the front porch began in the early 1800’s
Tand lasted until the mid-1920’s. Porches were added to
existing homes and new homes were being built with elab-
orate, decorative porches. Families would relax and social-
ize after dinner. There would be casual conversation with
neighbors passing by or they might even be invited up to
‘sit for a spell.’ The porch provided a living area between
the public space of the street and the private space in your
home. Author Michael Dolan called it, “a space that is both
personal to its owner and hospitable to guests and strang-
ers.”

It was the modernization of the 1900’s that brought the
growth of the front porch. Transportation in the form of
trains and cable cars allowed folks to commute outside the
city and building materials were able to be shipped to re-
mote areas. This was the beginning of suburban towns, and
new, larger homes were being built with front porches large
and small. Often the front porch would be the grandest part around the neighborhood, often on the front porch. Before
of the home. Our 19th president, Rutherford B. Hayes, re- radio and TV, conversation or reading on the front porch
corded in his journal in 1873: “The best part of the present was the pastime of the day. Before telephones, neighbors
house is the veranda. But I would enlarge it. I want a veran- had to meet personally to chat. So, while modernization in
da with a house attached.” the form of transportation brought about the front porch,
further modernization began its decline. By the 1930’s the
front porch all but disappeared from new construction.
New homes were being built with a new phenomenon, the
back porch; and with time that has become the back deck
we all enjoy today.

Personally, I love the back deck. I love the outdoor living
space that provides all the creature comforts of today. Nev-
ertheless, the front porch holds a romantic charm. Possibly
because it heralds from an earlier, slower era; or, maybe we
just think of time past as more romantic. While the back
deck offers privacy, the front porch does lend itself to more
interaction with your neighbors.

There has recently been resurgence, however, and many
new homes are being built with lovely front porches. Al-
though there’re often more decorative than functional, there
are those who are embracing this quaint part of their home.

Believe it or not, modern plumbing brought about the be- If you drive through North Haven with the front porch in
ginning of the decline of the front porch. You see, before mind, you may be pleasantly surprised. A good number of
modern plumbing, the backyard was home to the outhouse. homes, new and old, offer this lovely living space. Although
It was not a living space. Of course, before air condition- I did not find anything resembling the veranda Rutherford
ing, the front porch offered a cool refuge on a hot summer B. Hayes referred to, there are many beautiful, quaint porch-
night. Before automobiles, entertainment was at home or es in North Haven.

52 North Haven Magazine - Autumn Issue 2022