When the All-American Garage Became Part of the American Dream

Q-Where did the word "garage" originate?
A-Garage comes from the french word "garer" which means "to shelter," usually a car or boat.

Q-How did garages become part of the American landscape?
A-It all started with the invention of the automobile. This terribly expensive, relatively unknown vehicle needed a home. The garage would provide that shelter.

Q-So the American garage was born?
A-Not so fast. First, new car owners converted their barns and sheds to accommodate this American wonder vehicle. Horses, stalls, hay and other equipment were set aside to make room for the first automobiles.

Q-Is that it? Garages originated as car covers?
A-There's more to the story. Cars began to symbolize the future for Americans everywhere. Cars became an important trapping of the American, modern home. As such, Americans began to covet the car, buying them first in installments and, later, outright.

Q-That makes sense. But where does the garage come into the picture?
A-In the early days, Old House Journal reports, cars were complex, expensive luxury items. Some people bought car kits and needed a place to assemble their new toy. Once assembled or brought home, you couldn't keep cars in a converted barn or shed for long. Cars needed cover or radiators, parts and other equipment would freeze or become inoperable due to the elements, particularly in the Northern cities. Cars required continuous work and upkeep. You needed ample space to work on your car and keep it shiny and brand new. At first, the converted shed, carriage house or barn fit the bill. Over time, architects and home builders realized the importance of the automobile as an extension of the American Dream. They began to include the garage in their designs and plans.

Q-When did this happen?
A-When cars became popular, symbols of modern life, in the 1920s.

Q-Weren't garages detached from the home originally?
A-Sure. Again, it goes back to the concept of the converted shed or barn. The car was essentially parked out back in a converted outbuilding. When the shed or barn became an unsightly mess, Sears and Roebuck, among others, came up with the idea for a "pergola garage" to incorporate traditional garden elements into these structures. Check out Sears Archives for wonderful descriptions of the early kit houses, garages and carriage houses.

Q-When did garages get attached to the home itself?
A-Eventually, architects and designers saw the car and the garage as an extension of the American psyche. The first garages looked like carriage houses attached to the home. The gabled roof of the garage, invoking the barns and carriage houses before it, became quite popular with designers and home buyers. Garages were usually built of masonry. Later, architects designed the garage as part of the house instead of an annex of sorts.

Q-When did the garage become popular for something other than housing the family automobile?
A-Post-War America began to visualize garages in different ways. They went from being places of important utility to entertainment areas, workshops and "man caves." Garages became places in which to play music. California living became known for its landscape, movie stars and, even, its garages. Garage Music found its roots in the All-American garage. Garages today have evolved over time, coming into their own in recent years, as great storage spaces and workshops for some, multi-purpose rooms for others, and places to work, sit and entertain for still others.

RESOURCES

Building a Garage
www.doityourself.com/scat/garagebuilding

Home and Garden Television
www.hgtv.com

This Old House
www.thisoldhouse.com

Do It Yourself Network
www.diynetwork.com

House for the Automobile
Old House Journal, July/August 1998.

History of Sears Modern Homes
SEARS Archives

Renovating Barns, Sheds and Outbuildings
By Nick Engler, 2001.