Early Classical Revival 1770-1830

Early classical revival is easy to distinguish from earlier colonial styles by the presence of a full height entry portico supporting a central cross gable on a otherwise side gabled house.

Ok. What does that mean?

A portico is a porch. The fact that it is full height means that it is as tall as the house. If the house is two stories tall, it is two stories tall, not one story.
And as for the business about the gables...

Most roofs are in the shape of a triangular prism. The two triangles are called gables. Sometimes, the gable is in the front facing the street, and the entry is under the gable. That is called a front gabled house. Sometimes the gables are on the sides and the door is under the non gabled side. That is called side gabled.

In this case, the house has a third gable in the center. The porch supports the gable and the door is under the porch. The house is always symetrical, unless it has been remodeled.

Anyway, the porch of an early classical revival house has four columns, which are usually Doric (remember?)

Early Classical Revival houses always have a fanlight over the door (which, by the way, is in the center of the facade, under the porch/gable.) A fanlight is a semi-circular glass window that looks -you guessed it -like a fan. The preceding colonial style Adam has fanlights, but the later Greek revival style does not.

a fanlight

Another difference between Early Classical Revival and Greek Revival is that Greek Revival houses have, according to my trusty Field Guide to American Houses, "a wide band of trim at the cornice (where the walls meet the roof)" while ECR houses have a much smaller band.

ECR houses are not easy to find. Not only does their age mean that many examples have been distroyed or remodeled beyond recognition, but they were uncommon even when they were first built. However, if you are looking for some ECR architecture, your best bet is the South, especially Virginia. The most famous ECR house in the country is Monticello, designed by Thomas Jefferson, who was an advocate for the style.

Next up: Greek Revival

:-)

AV