The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-08-26
SPECIAL interest is given the

"a SPECIAL interest IS given Inc
~ reception ha!l because ?s tS of its
house. It combines all the functions OF
passageway, a living room, and an
informal receiving room for the social
caller. In place of being an entirely
separate part of the home, it is now a
room from which the formal parlor or
drawingroom, the living room proper,
and the diningroom, are all entered by
means of archways which are hung with
simple portieres. The various openings
from the reception hall are so large and
wide that the whole lower floor of the
house may be easily made into single
large apartment.
The reception hall gives opportunity
for fireplace, and often the bend of
the stairs is taken advantage of in con-
structing a cosy and attractive ingle
nook for the occupants. This is made
possible by the increased space that can
be devoted to an apartment which is
useful for living room purposes, as COM
pared to the use of the old-style hall
which was little more than mere pas
sageway thru the house.
Opportunities for Stairs.
Another result of the increased floor
space devoted to the reception hall IS
the greater freedom which may be Civ
en- to the stairway treatment: Where,
formerly, the utmost that could be dono
with the stairway was to construct
mezzanine landing, and bring the re-
mainder of the staircase straight down
alongside the sidewall, there are now
illimitable opportunities for introducing
landings foot or two above the surface
of the floor level. These landings with
their ratings and newell post treatments
are one of the attractive features of
the hall as now built in the newer types
of houses.
In some of the modern houses there
is an interesting treatment given the
reception hall and living room by
merely building the separating wall to
occasionally placing the living room at
q lower level than that Of the hall. The
top of this low wall becomes advanta-
geous for the disposal of pots of such
growing plants as are adapted to
shaded places, especially ferns. The liv-
ing room side Of the wall is devoted to
modern bookcases on the unit plan,
coming to level with the top of the
dividing wall. In the summer time the
in winter there is opportunity to add
simple hangings of some material which
will exclude drafts.
The reception hall, in the usual form
of construction. does not deviate to
such an extent from the ordinary type
of sidewall, altho as a rule the walls
of hall are of the wainscoted type
The furniture and other pieces used in
the hall are not necessarily confined
period style, which is more appropri-
ate for the formal use of the house. AS
a result, we find that it is a convenient
apartment for the reception of the
many odd pieces which accumulate in
every home.
Must Be Heated.
An important feature of the modern
hall, especially in the northern states,
is that it should be well heated. The
tendency of construction is to allow a
free and unobstructed ventilation Of all
parts of the house by means of the
lower and upper Railways, and, by heat
ing the hall thoroly in the winter time,
the other rooms are also warmed ap-
preeiably, with a saving in the amount
of coal used in the furnace. The de.
feet of the hall as a living room is that
it is not always possible to light it
thoroly from the windows of the stair,
way landing, and the light must nee
essarily come from the doorway, or ar
rive, at second hand, from the adjoining
living room windows. The majority
of these new halls make the most OF
such light as there is by having the
portion Of the wall above the vain
scoting done in plaster, which is left
in it's natural color.
The hallway is finding increased use
fulness in the newest types Of house
as halfway and informal apartment
where all members of the family may
receive visitors, whether of a mere So