ABSTRACT
Midwestern precedents were mainly developed after 1800, as so little of the region was settled before that time. The unassuming I-house type is spread widely throughout the eastern half of the US and well into the Great Plains, but it achieved it greatest level of popularity in the Midwest during the early and mid-nineteenth century. Large tracts of prairie land were developed into subdivisions of bungalows, resulting in what one refers to as "bungalow belts." The Chicago version of the bungalow differs from those found in other parts of the country. The methods of low-rise, multifamily home construction are consistent with across the country, with light wood frame structures predominating. The agriculture and forest production may benefit from a prolonged growing season, but the composition of crops and trees in the northern forests is likely to change and new, potentially devastating pests and diseases will become an inevitable associated problem.
