Iowa City Homes For Sale Diverse Architectural Styles

Early builders of Iowa City homes for sale experimented with a number of different techniques. Stone masons competed with loggers and brick layers. Over time, many of the earliest wood construction Iowa City homes were ruined by fire. Stone stood up to the test of time but was incredibly heavy to move around. Bricks were the fire-proof medium of choice for a number of years. Stylistically, the Greek Revival movement spread rapidly throughout downtown in the earliest years, leaving the city's central core with a very ornate and stately appearance. Later, the Italianate, Beaux Arts, Classical Revival and Renaissance Revival styles flourished. Even a little bit of Frank Gehry's contemporary architecture can be spotted at the University of Iowa's Advanced Technologies building.

The Old Capitol is one of the most magnificent examples of early Iowa City architecture. The stately Devonian era limestone was quarried in 1840 from Johnson County's Coralville Lake, which remains a testament to how resourceful the local people were. The abundance of natural stone used in building Iowa City homes was a large deciding factor in making the region the state capitol. In the downtown historic district, residents of Iowa City homes can see the Blackstone Building (118 S. Dubuque St), a two-story carriage and harness manufacturing shop with a Mansard roof or the Franklin Printing House (115 S. Dubuque St), a three-story pre-Civil war brick Greek Revival building, which houses our local newspapers.

Classical Revival Iowa City homes are characterized by tall Georgian pillars and impressive Romanesque ornamentation. On Washington Street, Classical Revival style architecture can be seen at the Jefferson Hotel (129 E. Washington), the Englert Theater (221 E. Washington), or the First National Building (202 E. Washington), which was one of the earliest Iowa City banks, and on South Linn Street at the Old Iowa City Post Office.

The Italianate style is known for its Old World style - constructed of natural materials but highly detailed. Typically, Iowa City homes for sale in this style will have behemoth boxy structures, rounded archways, tall pillars, dramatic eaves with ornate corbels, campanile towers and flat-pitched roofs. Residents of Iowa City homes can see some of the best examples in the 218-220 block of East Washington Street, at 32 South Clinton Street (Whetstone's Drug Store), at 9 South Linn Street (G.H. Van Patten House) or 127 East College Street (College Block Building).

Many Iowa City homes for sale are in the Craftsman Bungalow style, with low-pitched gabled roofs, wide eave overhangs, decorative brackets and square columns supporting large porches. Some were single-story, while others boasted a few. The O'Leary Velie Garage (104-116 S. Linn St), the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks Hall (325 E. Washington St), the Unitarian Universalist Church (10 S. Gilbert St) and the Iowa City Masonic Temple (312 East College St) all feature this quaint but influential architectural style.

In addition to the aforementioned styles, the Beaux Arts movement, Late Victorian styles and Modern Art styles also made it to Iowa City. A walking tour of East Washington Street, South Linn Street, Gilbert Street, North Clinton, South Clinton and Iowa Avenue should give visitors an impressive view of all the diverse architecture that Iowa City homes have to offer.

Ada Morien is the real estate specialist in Iowa City. He recommends you to buy Iowa City homes in Iowa City please visit http://www.michaelmceleney.com