The wife and I visited Mount Vernon while we were on the East Coast a few weeks ago, and at first the house looked remarkably familiar. There's the entry way, there's the staircase, there's a bedroom, there's the back porch.... But then I noticed that Mount Vernon's floor plan was missing some nooks and crannies that we take for granted. None of these are surprising to a student of history, but their combined effect on the design of the house was striking.
First, there were no bathrooms, as you might expect. There was no indoor plumbing of any sort.
Second, no closets. None.
Third, no kitchen! Apparently the servants and slaves prepared food in a nearby building and then brought it over to the main house.
I wonder what kind of rooms houses will one day have that will cause future people to look back on our floor plans with curiosity?
