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241:, in hopes that the city's mountainous climate would be better for his declining health. He briefly partnered with Minnesota-born architect Martin Parmalee, but the partnership proved unsatisfactory. In 1892, he established a firm with one of his clients, J.C. White, handling the firm's business aspects. Barber also became a partner in the Edgewood Land Improvement Company, which was developing a suburb east of Knoxville known as Park City (modern
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376:, "Write to us concerning any changes wanted in plans, and keep writing till you get what you want. Don't be afraid of writing too often. We are not easily offended." Though his firms' records no longer survive, it is believed that he sold as many as 20,000 plans in his career. Since he frequently modified his designs to fit his clients' needs and specifications, his houses are sometimes difficult to attribute with any certainty.
217:, crudely produced on punched card stock and tied together with a piece of yarn, which contained 14 house plans (a revised edition published shortly afterward contained 18). The earliest buildings constructed from Barber's designs include the Charles E. Bradt House (1887) and the Congregational Church (1888), both in DeKalb. The Bradt house was featured in the March 1888 issue of
488:, and office space. Barber houses have provided inspiration for Christmas cards, wall hangings, and at least one dollhouse model. While most of Barber's work was domestic, several notable non-domestic Barber-designed buildings survive. These include the Congregational Church (now DeKalb Foursquare Church) in DeKalb, Illinois; the
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A revived interest in Barber's work began in the 1970s, and since then, hundreds of houses built using his plans have been identified. Over four dozen of these have been individually listed on the
National Register of Historic Places for their architecture, and several dozen more have been listed as
205:, where he lived on the farm of his sister, Olive, and her husband, William Barrett. By the 1870s, he owned an adjacent farm, where he raised plants which he advertised as "ornamental nursery stock." During this period, he learned architecture through mail-order books, namely George Palliser's
252:, which contained 59 house plans, as well as plans for 2 barns, a chapel, a church, 2 storefronts, and several pavilions. This catalog and its subsequent revisions led to an explosion in orders for Barber's firm. Barber houses built during this period include the Jeremiah Nunan House in
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Some have suggested that Barber was the first to sell prefabricated houses in crates, but there is no evidence that he was actually engaged in manufacturing. While he occasionally supplied builders with manufactured windows, doors, staircases and other components, and
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In discussing his architectural philosophy, Barber argued that nature has "faithfully and accurately adhered to the Divine law of harmony," and that no place should adhere more closely to the fundamental principles of nature than one's house. Barber considered
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was moved to New York in 1902, though Barber remained a regular contributor for several years afterward. The catalog business was suspended in 1908. Barber died on
February 17, 1915, and is interred with his family in Knoxville's Greenwood Cemetery.
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in music, "without which all else is a failure." He described ornamentation as the next most important element, as it gives proportion expression. Lastly was "harmony of form," or the relationship of curved and straight lines to one another.
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By the mid-1880s, Barber was back in DeKalb, where he produced his first architectural designs working for his brother's construction firm, Barber and
Boardman, Contractors and Builders. In 1887 or early 1888, Barber published
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133:(July 31, 1854 – February 17, 1915) was an American architect known for the house designs he marketed worldwide through mail-order catalogs. Barber was one of the most successful residential architects of the late
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period in the United States, and his plans were used for houses in all 50 U.S. states, and in nations as far away as Japan and the
Philippines. Over four dozen Barber houses are individually listed on the
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In the early 1900s, Barber began to phase out his mail-order business and with the help of his brother, Manly, focused on
Knoxville-area building projects. He later worked with architects
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172:(1887–1962), who became a successful architect in his own right and designed several notable buildings in the Knoxville area during the first half of the 20th century.
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In the late 1890s and early 1900s, Barber designed several elaborate mansions for affluent businessmen, including the home of
Carroll Lathrop Post (brother of
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687:, North Carolina Architects and Builders, A Biographical Dictionary. Website maintained by North Carolina State University Libraries. Accessed May 3, 2011.
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Around 1895, Barber parted ways with White and formed a new firm with a new partner, Thomas Kluttz. That year, Barber began publishing a magazine,
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Modern
Dwellings and Their Proper Construction: A Book of Practical Designs and Information for Those Who Wish to Build and Beautify Their Homes
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New Model
Dwellings and How Best to Build Them: Containing a Great Variety of Designs, Plans and Interior Views of Modern Dwellings
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and technical books published by A.J. Bicknell and
Company. In 1884, Barber patented a nail-holding attachment for hammers.
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flanked by circular pavilions, and Syrian arches. In the latter half of the 1890s, Barber began to offer more plans in the
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companies advertised in Barber's magazine, it is unclear whether entire houses were sold as kits by anyone prior to 1900.
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The
Cottage Souvenir Revised and Enlarged: Containing Over Two Hundred Original Designs and Plans of Artistic Dwellings
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architect Charles Hite-Smith. In 1896, the growing firm moved into the Barber-designed French and Roberts Building on
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supported by large columns, symmetrical facades, and flat decks with balustrades. Later Barber catalogs contained
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The bulk of Barber's business followed the "catalog architecture" model popularized by earlier architects such as
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Ann Bennett, National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for Park City Historic District, 22 June 1990.
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Art in Architecture: With the Modern Architectural Designer for Those who Wish to Build or Beautify Their Homes
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Modern Artistic Cottages, or The Cottage Souvenir, Designed to Meet the Wants of Mechanics and Home Builders
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designs. By the time his catalog business ended in 1908, Barber had sold upwards of 20,000 plans.
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National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for Madison-Barbour Rural Historic District
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American Homes: A Book of Everything for Those who are Planning to Build or Beautify Their Homes
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Ann Bennett, National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for Stratford, 23 March 2009.
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elements. Barber houses constructed in this period are characterized by features such imposing
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The Cottage Souvenir No. 2: Containing 120 Original Designs in Cottage and Detail Architecture
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The Charles and Anna Drain House (Drain Castle), built in Drain, Oregon between 1893 and 1895.
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contributing properties in historic districts. At least four Barber houses—the
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on 4th Avenue, and a house built for his printer, S.B. Newman, which still stands in
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The National Heritage Area Program and Blount County, Tennessee: A Feasibility Study
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Many extant Barber houses are still used as residences, while others house museums,
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American Homes: A Journal Devoted to Planning, Building, and Beautifying the Home
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The George F. Barber Collection at the Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection
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National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for J. Hawkins Hart House
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Historic and Architectural Resources in Knoxville and Knox County, Tennessee
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William H. Baker House (The Gables) in Winchester, Virginia, built in 1899
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850:, Vol. 10 (March 1888), p. 50. Downloaded from Google Books, 3 May 2011.
661:(Knoxville, Tenn.: East Tennessee Historical Society, 1976), pp. 491-492.
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Victorian Cottage Architecture: An American Catalog of Designs, 1891
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Victorian Cottage Architecture: An American Catalog of Designs
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Historic American Buildings Survey - John Calvin Owings House
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Historic Uptown Lexington, North Carolina - A Heritage Tour
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Historic American Buildings Survey for Jeremiah Nunan House
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East Tennessee Historical Society, Lucile Deaderick (ed.),
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the most important element in architecture, likening it to
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Historic American Buildings Survey for Isaac Ziegler House
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The Charles E. Bradt House, one of Barber's first designs
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Heart of the Valley: A History of Knoxville, Tennessee
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Barber's early designs were modified versions of the
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style. These were often characterized by projecting
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537:Artistic Homes: How to Plan and How to Built Them
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153:, in 1888. His first widely circulated catalog,
946:Jeff O'Dell, John Salmon, and Randolph Turner,
361:The Queen Anne-style I.W.P. Buchanan House in
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804:BarberMcMurry - History
683:M. Ruth Little (2009).
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398:Hazlehurst, Mississippi
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215:The Cottage Souvenir
151:Knoxville, Tennessee
116:, George, Jr., Laura
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463:Isaac Ziegler House
448:Barber houses today
274:Old North Knoxville
270:Isaac Ziegler House
266:Henderson, Kentucky
262:Mount Dora, Florida
197:Barber was born in
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988:George F. Barber,
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881:2011-07-26 at the
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809:2011-07-25 at the
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