“Modest” Middle Class Home

Posted on 1/17/25

This post we will study the photos of a middle-class home with a modest interior in the state of Oregon. Here we have a quaint Queen Anne home sitting on a dirt road. Not much information about the house or family but it is listed as the Bohlman family on the photo back.

Note: Victorians often referred to homes with simpler or ready-milled decorations as “modest,” regardless of the home’s actual size or detail. It’s important to recognize that the meaning of “modest” in their time differs from how we interpret it today. For example, the term “cottage” could describe anything from a small dwelling to a grand mansion by the ocean or on a hillside.

A closer view of the porch and details. A false balcony on the left and some attractive ornamentation on the larger balcony to the right.

The two windows on the right here most are stained glass which we’ll see in the only two photos of the inside.

You can see through the front door and almost straight through to the other side of the house where a window or a hallway mirror. You can see a nice stained glass transom window over a large single pane glass in the front parlor.

The window on the left appears to have two small flags sticking out. You need to look at it for a while to see it. On the right is a small eyebrow window which were popular with Shingle Style and Queen Anne homes.

A view into an open window. Looks like books stacked on a table perhaps?

Here we have one of two pictures of the interior taken at two different times of day. The woman sitting near the fireplace is busy sewing while the man on the left reading a book. In the front parlor, presumably the front of the house, an embroidered wall banner hangs and a simple wicker chair sits below it. The walls appear to be painted a light color. The front parlor and back parlor are divided by an arch with wood corner beads and finials. The piano is adorned with some casual photos. Above the picture rail you can see the wall color changes. To the right through the doorway is the hallway and staircase.

A close-up view of a jeweled stained glass window on the staircase landing.

You can see the detail of the sideboard in the dining room behind the woman through the doorway. On the mantel is a simple vase and a mantel clock.

Judging by the stained glass window on the stairs that is now dark, this is a photo taken after sunset. Look closely in the stair hall, you can see someone ran during the exposure across the hall leaving a silhouette.

A cat decided to sit on the lady’s lap by the fireplace. You can see the fireplace is well used judging by the soot and ash on the floor. The man continues to read this book on the same wicker chair as before.

The night sets on the small stained glass window.

Thank you for coming on a quick journey to a modest middle-class home with a lower middle class looking interior. Perhaps more information will surface on this quaint home and the family that lived here. Post your thoughts in the comments below.

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