Swiss Miss (1958 – 1960s)
“Swiss Miss” houses combine the charm of a Swiss chalet with the tropical flavor of a Polynesian hut.
History:
Swiss Miss is an informal name given to a variation of the A-Frame house style. Created by draftsman Charles Dubois, a Swiss Miss house resembles a Swiss chalet with tropical, Tiki details.
The Alexander Construction company built fifteen Swiss Miss houses in Palm Springs, California. Other firms built similar homes elsewhere in the United States, but Swiss Miss remained a rare, novelty style, mainly associated with Palm Springs.
Features:
An enormous central gable dominates the front facade
The gable eaves often (but not always) extend almost to the ground
Narrow rectangular posts may be used to support the gable
In some homes, an overlapping second gable may rise above the central gable
An open living area is placed beneath the central gable
Roofs over adjacent rooms may be flat
Post-and-beam construction
Wooden tongue-in-groove or board-and-batten exterior
Stone walls by the main entrance
Stone chimney
Enormous windows
Next: Neoeclectic
