Bungalow

Bungalow is an architectural adaptation from an Indian style of building. These thatched-roof houses were traditionally one story tall, with a wide porch and one large dormer on the roof. This type of residential architecture has a space-efficient floor plan and all of the rooms branch off of a central living area.

Features

 * One and a half stories
 * Most of the living spaces on the ground floor
 * Low-pitched roof and horizontal shape
 * Living room at the center
 * Connecting rooms without hallways
 * Efficient floor plan
 * Built-in cabinets, shelves, and seats

History
In India, a bungalow is any single-family unit that is a house, as opposed to an apartment building. In Indian culture, the word bungalow is applied to any single-family building, regardless of size. In Britain, the term "bungalow" was used in reference to the one-story thatch-roofed huts that were used as their summer homes. When the first American bungalow was designed in 1879 by William Gibbons Preston, it was a two story house and was significantly larger from what is considered a bungalow today. This house was built at Monument Beach on Cape Cod, in Massachusetts.

These houses grew in popularity over the years. Though the roof is no longer thatched, the same basic shapes and style are applied in the current structure of a bungalow house. The use of well placed trees or shrubs offer privacy and the bungalow style of house is ideal for small neighborhoods. One negative aspect of having neighborhoods of bungalows is that the area can fit several closely spaced bungalows on one lot. With no upward expansion, the risk of greater urban sprawl must be acknowledged.

Architects
Notable architects associated with this style include:
 * Charles Sumner Greene
 * Henry Mather Greene