Foundation Project

My foundation project will focus on landscape and the changes of landscape over time. Landscape is defined in the Human Mosaic as all of the building forms that cultural groups create inhabiting the Earth. A cultural landscape is fashioned from a natural landscape and uniquely reflects the culture that created it.

I have identified nine A. Hays Town homes in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and one in Jackson, Mississippi. A. Hays Town was known for incorporating traditional Creole architecture into these homes. I am comparing his modern day work from the 20th century to historical homes and businesses still standing in New Orleans from the 18th century. I will be comparing how the landscape has changed over time and why certain architectural features have evolved while some remain.

A. Hays Town was heavily influenced by Spanish and French architecture. Spanish features include his signature courtyards and fountains. His French influence is shown through raised stairs outside of homes and large French doors.

He included more Creole features for air circulation such as large roof overhangs, breezeways, and cross ventilation. This is a prime example of cultural landscape. Town used artistic features to create these homes that reflects the environment's most basic needs in that area. In southern Louisiana, humidity and heat have a large impact on people's daily lives. This is why it is included in original Creole architecture and Town's modern day works. In Creole architecture, large porches are a feature of Caribbean homes, while a gabled roof is of French/Canadian origin.

In the map included above, A. Hays Town homes are identified by a red house icon and New Orleans 18th century homes are identified by a blue house icon. Within these icons are images of each residential building as well as a description of the year it was built and, if available, the price estimate.

Included in these A. Hays Town homes are features that come from historical Creole homes such as large gallery porches with deep overhangs, high ceilings with old warehouse wood beams, exterior french doors with full-length shutters, walls of large windows, arched doorways, antique pinewood and brick floors, Bevolo French Quarter gas lanterns, landscape interior courtyards, and fountains. All of these features can be seen represented in the historical Creole buildings included in the map. This is an example of the axiom of landscape as a clue to culture. People's homes in Louisiana today reflect the shared evidence of southern Louisiana culture, who they are, and who they are in the process of becoming.

Some differences in the architecture are historical homes usually were built on large plots of land and designed with more cross ventilation. A. Hays Town homes were usually built on smaller plots of land, had less of a need for cross ventilation due to modern air conditioning, and were designed for a more informal family life and plan instead of the historical formal lives of past plantation owners. While this shows changes over time, it is important to note that one of the key reasons for A. Hays Town's popularity in building homes came from a loss of traditional architecture in the 1960s. There was a surge of ranch style suburban homes being built and many felt like vernacular homes were being lost in Southern Louisiana.

Mobility is relocation diffusion with the Gulf of Mexico acting as a permeable barrier. These Spanish, French, and Creole architectural features migrated through relocation diffusion during colonization. These features carried over to homes in New Orleans, and later Baton Rouge through A. Hays Town's work.

The type of nature/society interaction is possiblism. The environment, with heat and rains, provided features with many possible ways for the culture to develop. The local environment helped shape the culture through things such as air ventilation and more. People made choices among these possible opportunities to satisfy their needs. They added additional creative features such as the courtyards and fountains.

1855 Old Carriage Ln, Baton Rouge, LA 70806. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/1855-Old-Carriage-Ln_Baton-Rouge_LA_70806_M81935-60002

Campanella, R. (2016, September 08). What makes architecture 'Creole'? Retrieved from https://www.nola.com/homegarden/index.ssf/2016/04/the_roots_of_creole_architectu.html

Wheeler, S. (2016, September 11). An A. Hays Town in Hundred Oaks Park. Retrieved from https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/entertainment_life/real_estate/article_825ff58c-769c-11e6-a94d-f33355cd8a14.html

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 6257 Highland Rd, Baton Rouge, LA 70808 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6257-Highland-Rd-Baton-Rouge-LA-70808/66333095_zpid/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 2933 Reymond Ave, Baton Rouge, LA 70808 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/66274692_zpid/30.47982,-91.096659,30.377836,-91.220255_rect/12_zm/1_fr/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 3520 Hawthorn Dr, Jackson, MS 39216 | MLS #313258 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/3033121_zpid/32.389746,-90.107889,32.289817,-90.231485_rect/12_zm/1_fr/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 7225 Richards Dr, Baton Rouge, LA 70809 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7225-Richards-Dr-Baton-Rouge-LA-70809/66291362_zpid/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 895 Dubois Dr, Baton Rouge, LA 70808 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/895-Dubois-Dr-Baton-Rouge-LA-70808/66281909_zpid/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 7425 Bocage Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70809 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7425-Bocage-Blvd-Baton-Rouge-LA-70809/66299441_zpid/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 19146 W Muirfield Dr, Baton Rouge, LA 70810 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/19146-W-Muirfield-Dr-Baton-Rouge-LA-70810/2112779301_zpid/

Zillow, Inc. (n.d.). 11468 Rue Concord, Baton Rouge, LA 70810 | Zillow. Retrieved from https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/11468-Rue-Concord-Baton-Rouge-LA-70810/66358702_zpid/