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| An Old House in Greenville, Virginia A Study of Human Intention in Vernacular Architecture by Michael S. Shutty, Jr. 1997, 6x9", 204 pages 36 b&w figures, references, index Softcover $15.95 (0-939923-66-1) |
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An Old House in Greenville, Virginia is an examination of the cultural, economic, and psychological influences which shaped the evolution of domestic architecture in Greenville, Virginia. Greenville is located along what was the old Shenandoah Valley Turnpike in Augusta County. The book is organized around a brick house built on Main Street in 1829. When constructed, this house exemplified the vernacular architecture of the Valley during the early 19th Century. Later changes to the house reflected some of the influences that shaped the town and surrounding region during subsequent years.
The region's changing architectural landscape is interpreted so as to provide a better understanding of everyday life in Greenville and similar towns throughout the Shenandoah Valley during an era when the valley was a major conduit for settlers moving west. This was an exciting time in American history as Old World traditions were giving way to the emergence of a new American ethic. An Old House . . . shows how some of those changes were incorporated into the architecture of the period and later times.
This book is relevant not only to an under-standing of the historical landscape of Greenville and environs, but also to an understanding of the dynamics of cultural landscapes and the records of change embodied in architectural features everywhere.
ABOUT THE AUTHORMichael S. Shutty, Jr. is a clinical psychologist who completed his doctorate in 1986 at the University of Virginia. He maintains an active research program at a state psychiatric hospital, holds faculty-teaching appointments at the University of Virginia and James Madison University, and has published over forth research articles on the treatment schizophrenia and chronic pain. Dr. Shutty was drawn the live in the Valley of Virginia by his passion for early American history, vernacular architecture, and country antiques. He restored, and now lives in, the Federal-style house that became the object of several years of research, culminating in this, his first book.
REVIEWS
"Recent books on regional themes demonstrate the wide range of approaches to understanding the American landscape and historical events that have occurred within it. Notable among these are studies of the history of a single house [the Robert Steele House in Greenville, Virginia]...." (AB Bookman's Weekly, July 27, 1998)