Attached Garages with Overhead Doors

During the 1930s, the hinged double-doors were replaced with overhead doors. The garage became even further integrated into the house with the addition of enclosed connectors. People could pass from house to garage without going out-of-doors. The connectors were typically narrow and often featured a secondary entrance. Single car garages were still dominant; it was quite rare for a family to have more than one car. The cupola was also becoming a common feature on newly constructed garages, as it reflected their carriage barn predecessors.

Note the narrow connector in the image below. It is like an enclosed porch, or breezeway, rather than a room of the house.

Enclosed Connector and Overhead Door: Image courtesy of Elizabeth André

The style of the connector below was also popular. It is more fully encompassed into the structure of the garage, but it is still narrow and has a secondary entrance. The arched door was a popular garage feature of the Colonial Revival period from the 1930s to the 1950s.

Arched Overhead Door and Connector: Image courtesy of Elizabeth André

The cupola, as seen in the image below, became popular around the 1920s and 1930s and was common through the Colonial Revival period into the 1950s.

Cupola: Image courtesy of Elizabeth André

Many of the early attached garages were directly attached to the main house, with only a secondary entrance between the garage and house.

Attached Garage: Image courtesy of Elizabeth André

Notice in the image below the transom lights over the doors. This was common during the Colonial Revival era, from the 1930s through the 1950s. (The garage was probably originally a one car garage.)

Attached Garage with Transom Lights: Image courtesy of Elizabeth André

The image below demonstrates the desire for garages to be extended when families acquired more vehicles. The garage in the image below originally held only one car but was later expanded. Not until after the 1950s did families typically have more than one automobile.

Extended Garage: Stepped Back Garages: Image courtesy of Elizabeth André