Find Photos
There are several ways of retrieving or viewing photos in the gallery.
Using this Archive
I House: Williamsport, Ohio
The I house pictured here, is a typical example of the type of photo included in this archive.
To find this photo, you can search through the archives by key terms associated with this photo. Each photo is cataloged by architectural characteristics (I-House), regional identification (Midwest); absolute location (Williamsport, Ohio); and by one or more general categories (folk housing, agriculture). See discussion below for additional information.
Absolute Location
Each photo in this archive hs been assigned at least one indicator of the location of the photo. If precise coordinates are available, the photo is geotagged with latitude and longitude coordinates. City or county and state information is also included in the archive when such data is available.
Occasionally, a regional indicator, such as "Midwest" or "Upland South" is applied as a photo tag when appropriate.
When the actual location is unknown, an estimated location may be assigned to the photo, with a tag indicating "location uncertain", or "location approximate".
Topic
The photos in the archive have also been categorized by at least one and often more topics. The topic tags roughly correspond to common chapter divisions in an introductory geography textbook.
Key Term and Title
Each photo has a title in the file name, which also frequently includes one or more key terms, or "tags". You may search for photos by tags.
Examples:
Click any of the links below to see sample photos, along with the applied identifers.
- Example: One Room School House
- Example: Pennsylvania Roadsign
- Example: Googie Gas Station
Contact
Dr. Steven M. Graves
Geography Department
130-B Sierra Hall
CSU Northridge
18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge, CA 91330-8249
Phone: (818) 677-3517
Fax: (818) 677-2723
steve.graves@csun.edu
Use these web pages to help you learn folk architecture types in the United States
Building Type
Can you identify the building type, or name of this type of structure or house? .
Geographic Region
Most folk housing is associated with one of several folk regions, and sometimes with a subregion.These regions are marked by the remnant folk housing in the area, but also by a set of cultural practices. Housing is a visible reminder of other practices, and is often partially a by-product of other cultural practices and beliefs; as well as local environmental conditions.
Features
What makes this structure identifiable? Some of the common elements to look for are the building materials, chimney placement, porch design, roof pitch, orientation to the ground and roadway, etc.
Test yourself
When you think you can identify the structure name, region and list some of the defining characteristics, click on the "flip" icon below to see how you did.
1) This is a(n): _______________ house
2) It is most common in the __________ region of the United States.
3) Some of the characteristic features of this building include, __________________.
Move on to the next folk housing flash card.
