Hispanic Colonial architecture

Spanish Colonial architecture

Architecture, particularly in those areas of the American continents that have been subject to Spanish influence; greatly affected by local culture, customs, traditions, and availability of materials. Spanish Colonial architecture in the American southwest usually is typified by thick, solid adobe walls, often covered with a protective layer of stucco or plaster; a one-story building around an enclosed courtyard; a long, narrow, covered porch either facing the street or facing a patio; often, a balcony, commonly supported by columns at ground-floor level, each column usually topped with a bolster; commonly, flat roofs supported by round logs drained by waterspouts that penetrated the parapet surrounding the roof; low-pitched or medium-pitched roofs covered with red clay tiles, often with a substantial overhang, were also common; windows facing the street usually protected by ornamental grillwork; doors to the various rooms opened directly onto a covered porch or onto a patio. Also see azotea, board house, canale, Churrigueresque style, common house, conch house, coquina, galeria, Monterey style, palma hut, plank house, Plateresque architecture, Saint Augustine house, tabby, tabla house, viga, zaguán, zambullo door.