Four squares can make a triangle

Photo by Courtney Luke The foursquare style home in which the Cook family has for many year's made their home stands in the same location for nearly 100 years.

Courtney Luke

In 1917, the 37 year old City of Malden, Mo. boasted a population of 3,400, five lumber mills, three cotton gins, eight churches, two banks and an electric plant. It is believed at least one of the several American Foursquare homes on Douglass Street was at that time constructed.

Presently, that home belongs to Steve and Debby Cook who raised their three children, Kevin, Whitney and Colton in the home.

The home was built by a Dr. Beall and the VanCleve family lived in it. According to Debby, one of the VanCleve children later became her optometrist. "After we bought the house I happened to have an appointment with him [Dr. VanCleve]. While I was changing my address for their records, he happened to overhear and asked me about the house. Imagine my surprise when he told me he had been born and grew up in this house. We had quite a lovely chat about it every time I went to see him after that. I wish I had written some of it down because he had stories about patients his dad had seen and incidents that happened here. It was very nice to know the history like that, kind of made me feel like part of the house's 'family'."

Several visible characteristics are typical of the traditional foursquare style. A simple box shape, four room floor plan, two stories, a full basement and a partial attic forming what appears to be a squatty triangle are all distinguishing characteristics. Another common name for this type of architecture is "Prairie Box". Most of these homes were built between 1895 and 1930 and were built as a contrasting response to the lavish styles of the Victorian architectural movement and the popular Greek Revival styles. The American Foursquare was plain, often incorporating handcrafted woodwork. Some however could be purchased as a kit. Elements of the Prairie School and the Craftsman Style were incorporated in the structures. Typically, the first floor consisted of the living room with a dining room behind while on the other side, the entry room, stairway and kitchen were built. Bathrooms could also be included. On the second floor, the line up would be bedroom, bathroom and bedroom with the other side having a bedroom, stairway and bedroom. This formed an efficient layout with a bedroom in each corner and a centralized bathroom and stairway. The attic area was generally just a big open space with dormers. The basement generally contained a large furnace. The style was popular all over America, but especially the Midwest.

The Cooks bought their home from the Riddle family in 1989. They began a moderate renovation of the home. Pocket doors as well as a piano window with the original glass are visible. Parts of the fireplace are authentic and the original plank flooring has been revealed.

Debby enjoys the large windows which the home boasts and says that although the windows are so large, the house is relatively quiet. She credits this to its sturdy construction.