French Village: An Inspiration for Development

In the 1920's a developer by the name George Woodward was a busy man building and developing in the area of Chestnut Hill in Philadelphia.  Woodward began developing very modest homes years earlier, but after travels to England and France (and working with the famed architect Wilson Eyre) he developed Cotswold Village.  The houses were created from Woodward's love of the Cotswold country side.  They were all built around 1915-18 and were built with chiseled local cut stone and steep roofs.  

In the 1920's, Woodward decided to create a development that mimicked his love of the old stone farmhouses he had seen while traveling in the Normandy region of France.  These houses are beautiful examples of French Normandy architecture in the United States.  It is examples like this that inspired me to do what I do.  If it could have been built in the 1920's, it can certainly be done today in my city of Fort Worth or anywhere.  Woodward obviously had a very keen eye for details and a true understanding of scale.  The houses posted here are located on Gate Lane and the pictures come from the George Woodward Co. which is still in existence today as a real estate company in Philadelphia.  I will cover more of the Philadelphia area in other posts as there are great examples of period revival architecture from architects like Mellor, Meigs and Howe.  I hope you enjoy these photographs.