A Guide to Architectural Styles Featuring Birmingham Homes

Quick. How many house styles can you name in the Birmingham area?

For the best clue - not to mention intricate pencil drawings of each type -- turn to A Guide to Architectural Styles featuring Birmingham Homes (paper $19.95, cloth $29.95). The guide contains descriptive narrative on each of the 45 important house types in the Magic City, written by Marjorie White, director of the Birmingham Historical Society. The drawings, skillfully created by Cheryl Morgan, professor of architecture at Auburn University, provide a concrete look at the nuances of such styles as Bungalow, Cottage, Ranch, Split-Level, Classical Revival, Shotgun, Tudor, Prairie and Craftsman.

"When Birmingham was founded in 1871, cottages and the Queen Anne style were most prevalent as people moved from rural areas to the emerging city," explains White, who oversaw a street-by-street survey of styles, conducted by college interns. A crew of architectural historians reviewed the field data, defined the major styles, and recommended the best local examples for the volume.