"Hansel and Gretel" style homes

laboubet · PostFeb 18, 2006#12006-02-18T05:12+00:00

The Hansel and Gretel style home is a prevalent style in the City of St. Louis. Some are fairly simple, while others like the ones pictured below are more detailed. They are as much a part of St. Louis' residential architectural heritage as any other style, and worth taking a look at. The pictures below are of homes on Delor near Kingshighway.

I love the house above!!!

Expat · PostFeb 18, 2006#22006-02-18T05:26+00:00

I love the Hansel & Gretel houses. They are so St. Louis, especially with the zoyzia grass. Especially like the house with the telescope tower in front. Nice pics!

stlmike · PostFeb 18, 2006#32006-02-18T05:37+00:00

By Hansel and Gretel do you mean "German" ?

Does anyone know the actual name of the style? Just curious.

Expat · PostFeb 18, 2006#42006-02-18T05:45+00:00

We had a discussion a while back about the names or origin of these houses. I bumped it up so you could find it easily. Under Urban Living and titled <A HREF="http://www.urbanstl.com/viewtopic.php?t=1083">Housing Styles</A>.

laboubet · PostFeb 18, 2006#52006-02-18T08:05+00:00

I learned the name of this style from Esley Hamilton, the preservation historian for St. Louis County. He called them Hansel and Gretel style.

marmar · PostFeb 18, 2006#62006-02-18T09:12+00:00

Love the great pics, laboubet. The styling and craftsmanship of these houses are amazing...they really do look like gingerbread houses with lots of frosting..."Hansel & Gretel" style...what else?

laboubet · PostFeb 18, 2006#72006-02-18T09:21+00:00

well, Hansel and Gretel ate gingerbread houses..just kidding. I have been looking around online and it seems the two terms are used interchangeably. Not sure if there is an actual distinction between the two terms.

PostFeb 18, 2006#82006-02-18T09:29+00:00

Gingerbread seems to also refer to highly ornamented Victorians. The ornament is called gingerbread, and so people seem to call them gingerbread houses.

jeff vanderlou · PostFeb 19, 2006#92006-02-19T12:54+00:00

I have always heard this style called "Cottage." I think there's also several different names for the style variations that fall under Cottage style, but I could be wrong.

We've been pretty ignorant here of all the fanstastic housing styles we're blessed with in St. Louis, but I think I see a growing interest in learning more. This town is a treasure trove of housing styles!

debaliviere · PostFeb 20, 2006#102006-02-20T22:59+00:00

Great pics! My house looks like the ones in the first photo.

ntbpo · PostFeb 21, 2006#112006-02-21T00:53+00:00

My house is also similar in style. But I am also very familiar with that stretch of houses and admire them everytime I go by. They seem to more elaborate in ornamentation than most. They are located on Oleatha near the sublette bend, correct? I very much like the one with the "telescope" tower on it. It's the only one in the city that I've seen with such a feature. Has anyone noticed others with such a tower?

Rich by lindenwood park.