As the architecture of Philadelphia is almost exclusively in brick and stone, there were none of the architrave casings and ornamental heads consisting of a cornice above the architrave and often of a complete entablature which characterized much contemporary New England work in wood. Brick and stone construction require solid rather than cased wood frames let into the reveals of the brick wall and have no projections other than a molded sill, as on the Morris house, while a stone lintel or brick arch must replace the ornamental head, often such a pleasing feature of wood construction. The frames were of heavy construction held together at the corners by large dowel pins and were ornamented by suitable moldings broken around the reveals of the masonry and by molded sash guides in the frame. In the earlier brick houses the square-headed window openings had either gauged arches, as at Hope Lodge, or relieving arches of alternate headers and stretchers with a brick core, as at Stenton. Later, as in the case of hewn stonework,[142] prominent stone lintels and window sills were adopted. Marble was much favored for this purpose because it harmonizes with the white-painted woodwork, brightens the façade and emphasizes the fenestration. Most of the lintels take the shape of a flat, gauged arch with flutings simulating mortar joints that radiate from an imaginary center below and mark off voussoirs and a keystone. Usually there is no surface ornamentation, the shape of the parts being depended upon to form a decorative pattern, the shallow vertical and horizontal scorings on the lintels of the Morris house being exceptional. These, the lintels of Cliveden and of the Free Quakers' Meeting House, exemplify the three most common types.
Unquestionably the most distinctive feature of the window treatment of this neighborhood was the outside shutters. Colonial times were troublous, and glass was expensive. In the city, protection was wanted against lawlessness at night, and in the country there was for many years the ever-present possibility of an Indian attack, despite the generally friendly relations of the Quakers with the tribes of the vicinity. There were also some British soldiers not above making improper use of unshuttered windows at night. Except for a relatively few country houses which had neither outside shutters nor blinds—notably Stenton, Solitude, Mount Pleasant, Bartram House and The[143] Woodlands—the use of shutters on the first story was the rule. Above that the custom varied greatly. Where outside shutters were totally absent, inside hinged, folding and sometimes boxed shutters were almost invariably present. Only a few important instances of old Colonial houses having blinds on the lower story now remain. Port Royal House, for example, two and a half stories high, has blinds on the first story and none above. The Highlands has blinds on both the first and second stories, while Chalkley Hall in Frankford has blinds on all three of its stories.
