The development of the English semi-detached house: 1750-1950

The semi-detached house (semi) is the most common dwelling type in England, yet becasue it is typically suburban and ordinary, very little research into its origins and development has been carried out. This study considers the medieval roots of attached housing, then using sources such as early architectural pattern books, traces the use of semis as rural cottages for the working classes and urban villas for the middle classes. The role of architects in this development is examined, and the way in which the garden city movement later facilitated the transition of the semi into a classless dwelling type. Based on this eveidence, the study challenges the view that semis have no heritage or cultural value.