7. Kensington has a large concentration of American Foursquare houses
Though much of Kensington today is apartments – many of which replaced single-family homes along main thoroughfares like Ocean Parkway and Coney Island Avenue – there are still quite a few homes throughout the neighborhood. In addition to brick rowhouses, the neighborhood hosts many one-family Victorian homes, as well as American Foursquare houses. The American Foursquare style was popular between the 1890s and 1930s as a reaction to the more elaborate Victorian style. American Foursquare houses were much simpler and featured handcrafted woodwork, opposing the mass-produced mail catalog feel of many homes from that era. The style drew from Frank Lloyd Wright‘s Prairie style of dramatic horizontal lines.
Many of the American Foursquare and Victorian homes are scattered throughout the neighborhood and stand right next to tall apartment buildings and rowhouses. In Parkville, some blocks seem to alternate between apartment buildings and houses, while other blocks only have detached homes in a mix of colors. A significant number of American Foursquare homes are located on the numbered streets off Beverley Road and Ditmas Avenue, some dating back over a century. Though many look to Ditmas Park for its Victorian architecture, Kensington’s historic homes are often overlooked.