federalstyle

Federal style, also called Federalist style, is an American neoclassical architectural and decorative arts movement that flourished from roughly 1780 to 1830. It emerged in the early republic and drew on English Georgian precedents as well as Roman classicism and contemporary European taste. The style expressed the ideals of a new nation through refined simplicity, balance, and modest ornament.

Architectural features include symmetrical façades, two to three stories, brick or wood construction, low-pitched or hipped roofs, and restrained detailing. Entrances are often emphasized with semicircular or elliptical fanlights, sidelights, and sometimes a small classical porch with slender columns. Windows are typically double-hung with multiple small panes, and decorative cornices, dentils, and friezes provide a crisp but unobtrusive finish. Interiors favor orderly, well-lit spaces with plasterwork, delicate moldings, and mantelpieces in neoclassical styles.

Ornamental motifs favor eagles, garlands, urns, and lyre forms, as well as medallions and geometric ornament derived from Roman orders. The style is especially associated with urban town houses and country houses along the Atlantic seaboard, and with early federal public buildings and banks in cities such as Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. Leading practitioners included architects such as Charles Bulfinch and Samuel McIntire, who adapted European neoclassicism to American materials and scales; Benjamin Latrobe also contributed monumental design in the capital region.

Federal style gave way to Greek Revival after about 1830, as architects adopted larger columns and temple front idioms. In decorative arts, Federal furniture and metalwork emphasized veneer contrasts, veneer patterns, and inlays that echoed classical devices. The style remains a defining phase of early American neoclassicism and a bridge between colonial Georgian forms and later 19th century American architecture.