New Ideas.

During the 1910s homeowners were somewhat more open to new design ideas than the heads of big businesses. Women's magazines and housekeeping manuals called for the abandonment of outdated ideas in favor of scientific standards for middle-class home life. The architectural manifestations of late-nineteenthcentury life, particularly the rambling, eclectic Queen Anne and Eastlake houses, were attacked as benighted, backward settings for growing families. At the same time, the city was judged to be an unsuitable place to rear children, and families were told to take advantage of trolley lines — and, increasingly, automobiles — to settle away from urban areas. Americans who wanted to become homeowners often also took on the role of home builders — and could choose from a range of designs, some published in national magazines or available readyto- assemble from catalogues.

Prairie Style.

One particularly influential school...