What You Should Want In Ranch House Floor Plans
The ranch style housing plans which was extremely popular between 1949 to 1965, still remains one of the most widely used housing styles ever used in America. In the late 1940s after the Second World War getting home loans became relatively easier than in the previous war ravaged years. American GI's returning home wanted to settle down and start building families, and to them the simplicity and lack of details of the ranch house floor plans appealed much more than a Tudor style home plan or any other American floor plans. Following the ranch home floor plans, formal foyers, spiral stairs etc were quickly replaced with the more popular single story plans.
The boom in popularity of the ranch style housing plans coincided with the new generation of Americans looking for freedom, mobility and to get away from the clutter of city life and live in the suburbs. Also the easy availability of automobiles helped shape the layout of the ranch house floor plans as each house were to now have a garage towards the front. Suburban living, and the relative distances between ranch houses there, unlike the city clutter meant that the square footage of ranch style house plans increased and houses became more wide and spacious.
The ranch houses and the Californian informal style of living got a shot in the arm as early as in the 1940s, by getting great coverage from newspapers and lifestyle magazines. American floor plans started playing around with courtyards, patios and Spanish architectural devices. Experimentation resulted in the discovery of 'backyards', when someone decided to relocate their front porch to the back of the house. Backyards soon became an icon for the American laid back style of living.
Most Americans in the late 1940s believed that it was their superior technological advances that had won them the War. People were also hopeful about space travel, inventions like completely electric homes, which would take luxury to new heights, and the common American wanted this technological edge, the modernity to be reflected in his housing style as well. Thus the newly fashioned ranch houses caught everyone's eyes, while in posh areas Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie style ranch house floor plan was often copied.
The casual living, envisioned by the ranch style floor plans, became the epitome of the American Dream from the late 1940s to the mid 60s. Typical elements of the ranch houses then included sliding doors, kidney shaped blue swimming pools and spacious backyards ideal for barbeque parties and informal dos.
By the beginning of the 70s the ranch housing style began to lose out to the more modern looking split level homes, which incorporated English and colonial detailing. The 80s saw a complete reversal of the original ranch housing floor plans, for now the backyards were being wiped out, as showy front entries, grand staircases and vaulted ceilings made a comeback. Hearth kitchens, great rooms and the modern day concept of outdoor rooms are all remains of the ranch houses of yore.
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