The Washington times., 1934-07-28
STRUCTURAL STEEL USED IN NEW GROUP OF MODERN EE
HOUSES
SOLD BEFORE
COMPLETION

Believing structural steel to be
the best material yet devised for
building, w. c. and A. N. Miller
have introduced its use into the
group of homes now under con-
struction in their new community
development, Westerleigh.
Foremen, Superintendents and
officials Of the company are en-
thusiastic over the ease with
which this production is handled
and the rapidity with which it is
assembled on the job. AS an evil
dence of appreciation of this for
ward step in modern construction,
the public has absorbed these
houses and the company is able to
announce that none Of the five
now under construction are avail.
able for sale.
The purchasers are people who
have visited the scene of the
operations at Forty-ninth and Up
ton Streets, which is a short dis
tance from the intersection of
Fordham Rd. with Massachusetts
Ave, N. W.; who have seen this
work in progress, and who have
desired to insure to themselves the
benefit of this advanced method.
II, Vandervoort Walsh, of the
research staff of Columbia Un1ver-
sity, recently said, "1f home own.
ers are waiting for the Wonder
house to come in, wrapped IN
packages, delivered to the front
door by a truck, they are going to
wait a long time. If they are ex-
pecting some magical, new type
of construction which will reduce
the cost of building homes by one
half, they will never have homes.
"It is important we drive home
these facts because the public
seems confused about the whole
affair, and glibly refers to the
modern house and the 'prefabrl'
Gated house as if it were some
thing just behind the factory door,
almost ready to be shipped out'
In this frame of mind many hesl'
tate to build"
The best thing in sight today
is the adaptation of steel to home
building, John C. Fistere, editor
of the Architectural Forum, gave
the following as the answer to a
QUESTIONABLE conducted by his
magazine as to the preferences OF
people of the upper middle class
actually in the market for homes,
for the kind of house they would
like.
Here is the house:
It would be fireproof construc-
ton, of English design, with brick
walls, slate roof, easement win
dows, thorough insulation and
Misunderstanding, copper leaders
and cutters, rustproof screens and
hardware. Walls in the living
room would be rough plaster
painted, in the dining room pan
eled, in the bedrooms papered, in
the kitchen and bath colored tile.
Living room, dining room and bed
room floors would be hardwood.
The bath room floors would be
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be covered with linoleum.
The heating plant would be OF
the oil-fired hot water type with
full thermostatic control and con.
cealed radiation. The kitchen
would be equipped with a gas
range, a porcelain sink, built-in
cabinet, and an electric refriger
ator.
Built-in garages were preferred
to detached garages.
His QUESTIONABLE seems to have
found its answer in the homes of
Westerleigh. Here all of the fea.
lures he describes are incorpor-
ated. These are the most modern
homes ever built on the Washing
ton market, and the construction
is now at a stage where the pub
lie may be able to see exactly how
the houses are put together and
protected.