Section 106 Guidelines: City of St Louis

Porches

This is an example of porches A porch can be the focal point of a building and often was the most decorative feature of the front facade. Time and effort should go into its restoration or rehabilitation.

Front and side wood porches on historic buildings should have all wood elements painted, and should be skirted with lattice panels (installed diagonally or horizontally) or with vertical tongue and groove boards.

Details such as moldings, dentils, brackets, and ornamental friezes must not be removed from historic buildings. On front porches, if a decorative element is deteriorated beyond repair, it should be replicated. Details must never be wrapped or covered with artificial materials. When repairing a wood porch, as many of the original pieces as possible should be reused. This will save money as well as help preserve the original character of the building.

Replacement columns should be of wood, in the same dimensions and style as the originals. Aluminum columns are not appropriate, since their design and dimension rarely replicate the appearance of a wood column.

Handrails should be retained and repaired if at all possible. If existing pieces cannot be reused, replacements should match the dimensions and style of the originals.

This is an example of new wrought iron railings with simple balusters without additional ornamentation; wood handrails comprised of miled top and bottom rails, with balusters of 1 X 2's on four inch centers Most often, masonry porches had masonry or wrought-iron handrails; wood porches, wood handrails. Where no evidence of the original handrail design exists, new wrought iron railings should have simple balusters without additional ornamentation; wood handrails should be comprised of milled top and bottom rails, with balusters of 1 X 2's on four inch centers, as shown in the detail below:

This is an example of raising masonry handrail appropriately Historic railings are often lower in height than today's building code allows. On single family residences, where the height of the porch above grade is not excessive, a lower height (30" - 32") may be granted by variance. Where this is not possible, a handrail height of a maximum of 36 inches is acceptable. For masonry railings, a simple tube railing painted a dark color may be installed to raise the handrail to the necessary height.

Rear porches on historic properties should have approximately the same dimensions as the original and should have a historic (milled) handrail as described above. They need not be painted; however, it is recommended that a stain be applied to protect the wood.

Historic stairs usually do not comply with today's building code. New stairs on rear porches should be designed to minimize their size and number of landings, and should generally be constructed parallel to the building's facade.

This is an example of appropriate rear stairs(left) and inappropriate rear stairs(right).

Replacement porches: Although the original porch of a historic house may have been removed, evidence of its original appearance can sometimes be found through:

  • paint or flashing lines on the facade showing the profile of posts, location of brackets, the height and profile of handrail

  • remnants of the porch foundation, indicating its original size

  • facade detailing, which was often reflected in the porch design

  • similar buildings in the neighborhood with intact porches

    A replacement porch should match the original as closely as possible. Where no evidence exists as to the original detailing, care must be taken in the design of the new structure to relate it as closely as possible to the historic building. It should duplicate the old porch in size and scale, but should be clearly contemporary in its detailing.

    • Home
    CIN   Official Web Site of the City of St. Louis