High Style Houses
High style buildings are distinguished from vernacular types in two ways. High style houses tend to be constructed on a larger scale than their vernacular counterparts, and their interior floor plan and exterior design closely follow established architectural styles of the time. Some are designed by formally educated architects and designers. Others owe their architectural character to published pattern books, that outlined the basic elements of a particular style. In the 19th century, this ordinarily meant an architectural style that had its roots in Greece, Rome, the Middle Ages or the Renaissance. Generally, architectural styles of each period reached St. Louis ten to twenty years later than they appeared on the east coast. (St. Louis, 1995)