Awnings are remarkable building features that have changed little over the course of history. Records dating back to ancient Egypt and Syria make note of woven mats that shaded market stalls and homes. In the Roman Empire, large retractable fabric awnings sheltered the seating areas of amphitheatres and stadiums, including the Coliseum. The Roman poet Lucretius, in 50 B.C., likened thunder to the sound that "linen-awning, stretched, o'er mighty theatres, gives forth at times, a cracking roar, when much 'tis beaten about, betwixt the poles and cross-beams." Over the next two millennia awnings appeared throughout the world, while the technology used in their construction changed little.

Awnings in the 19th Century

Early 19th century awnings featured canvas coverings stretched between the building facade and post-supported front bars. Projecting frameworks of extension bars were not common until later in the century. Photo: Second Street, Philadelphia, c. 1841, Print and Photo Collection, The Free Library of Philadelphia.

When awnings began to commonly appear on American storefronts-during the first half of the 19th century-they were simple, often improvised and strictly utilitarian assemblies. The basic hardware consisted of timber or cast iron posts set along the sidewalk edge and linked by a front cross bar. To lend support to larger installations, angled rafters linked the front cross bar to the building facade. The upper end of the canvas was connected to the facade with nails, with grommets and hooks, or by lacing the canvas to a headrod bolted to the facade. The other (projecting) end of the canvas was draped over, or laced to, a front bar with the edge often hanging down to form a valance. On ornate examples, metal posts were adorned with filigree and the tops decorated with spear ends, balls or other embellishments. On overcast days or when rain did not threaten, the covering was often rolled up against the building facade; during the winter months proper maintenance called for the removal and storage of awnings. Photographs from the mid-1800s often show the bare framework, suggesting that the covering was extended only when necessary. Canvas duck was the predominant awning fabric. A strong, closely woven cotton cloth used for centuries to make tents and sails, canvas is a versatile material with a relatively short lifespan compensated for by its low cost.

During the second half of the 19th century, iron plumbing pipe became a popular material for fixed awning frames. Here, a pipe frame without its canvas cover extends around the corner of a building in Washington, D.C. Photo: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographic Division, LC-USZ62-121160.

Awnings became a common feature in the years after the Civil War. Iron plumbing pipe, which was quickly adapted for awning frames, became widely available and affordable as a result of mid-century industrialization. It was a natural material for awning frames, easily bent and threaded together to make a range of different shapes and sizes. At the same time the advent of the steamship forced canvas mills and sail makers to search for new markets. An awning industry developed offering an array of frame and fabric options adaptable to both storefronts and windows.

Operable Awnings.In the second half of the 19th century, manufactured operable awnings grew in popularity. Previously, most awnings had fixed frames-the primary way to retract the covering was to roll it up the rafters by hand. Operable systems for both storefront and window awnings had extension arms that were hinged where they joined the facade. The arms were lowered to project the awning or raised to retract the awning using simple rope and pulley arrangements. Because the canvas remained attached to the framework, retractable awnings allowed a more flexible approach to shading-shopkeepers and owners could incrementally adjust the amount of awning coverage depending upon the weather conditions. When the sun came out from behind clouds, the awning could be deployed with ease. In case of sudden storms, owners could quickly retract the awning against the building wall where it was protected from wind gusts.

A 19th century shoe store in Richmond, Virginia had an operable awning retracted against the building facade. Hinged extension arms were raised and lowered allowing for an awning configuration easily changed in response to weather conditions. This photo shows how the fabric gathered and was exposed to the elements when retracted - part of the reason roller awnings later became prevalent. Photo: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographic Division, LC-USZ62-99053.

But the early operable awnings had their own drawbacks. When retracted, the coverings on early operable awnings bunched up against the building facade where it was still partially exposed to inclement weather. (In fact, deterioration was often accelerated as moisture pooled in the fabric folds.) Also, the retracted fabric often obscured a portion of the window or door opening and unless it was folded carefully, presented an unkempt appearance.

Roller Awnings.Addressing the drawbacks of the original hinged awning, new roller awnings featured a wood or metal cylinder around which the canvas was stored when the awning was retracted. When fully retracted, only the valance was visible. The roller was usually bolted to a backboard set against the building and protected beneath a wood or galvanized metal hood. In some cases it was installed in a recessed box built into the facade. A long detachable handle (called a "winding brace"), or a gearbox and crankshaft attached to the building, was used to turn the roller. Some later models were operated by electric motor. Rollers, especially those on window awnings, often contained a spring that helped retract the awning and kept the canvas from sagging excessively.

The roller bar at the top of a fixed-arm awning is cranked to release the fabric. As the canvas unfurls the vertical arms swing downward from their lower point. Because the pictured awning had a large projection, extending far from the building wall, the lower hinges were mounted on vertical slide rods affixed to the facade. When the awning is lowered, the bottom hinges of the arms travels up the slide rod to increase headroom beneath the fully extended awning. Photo: NPS files.

Most 19th century roller awnings had fixed arms that were similar to those found on the earlier operable awnings. The arms hinged flush to the building when the awning was retracted and, with the help of gravity, straightened out over the sidewalk when extended. When a storefront awning's projection exceeded its drop by more than a foot, its long arms were connected to an adjustable slide rod rather than hinged directly to the building facade-increasing head room along the sidewalk.

Shapes and Stripes.An expanded variety of available canvas colors, patterns, and valance shapes also appeared during this period. Some coverings were dyed a solid color; shades of slate, tan, and green were especially popular. Others had painted stripes on the upper surface of the canvas. Awning companies developed a colorful vocabulary of awning stripes that enhanced the decorative schemes of buildings, and in some cases, served as a building's primary decorative feature.

A wide selection of striped patterns took the awning beyond its original, utilitarian function to serve as a decorative and appealing building feature. Photo: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographic Division, LC-D4-62072.

The broader choice of frame and canvas options encouraged the reassessment of awnings simply as a means to provide shelter from rain and sun. Homeowners found that the new generation of awnings could enhance exterior paint schemes and increase the visual appeal of their homes.

Manufacturers developed new awning shapes, colors, patterns and hardware to fit different house, door, window and porch styles. They were an affordable, quick and simple improvement. They also proved to be an easy means of capturing outside space. Homeowners could use awning-covered balconies, porches and patios at any time of day; grocery stores were able to convert sidewalks to outdoor display areas protected from sunlight and quick changes in the weather. On Main Street, businesses used the expanded repertoire of awnings to draw attention to their buildings with bright colors, whimsical stripe patterns and exotic scallops. Awnings increasingly functioned as signs identifying the proprietor's name, goods on offer, or year of establishment. It was a trend that would culminate over a century later with awning installations in which shelter was secondary to advertisement.

Awnings in the 20th Century

Scissor arm awnings have a pair of vertical, hinged arms on either side of the assembly supporting the front bar. To unfurl the awning, the roller is cranked and the arms extend outward pulling the cover away from the roller. Photo: NPS files.

Awning development during the early twentieth century focused on improving operability. Variations in roller awnings addressed the need to provide an increasingly customized product that accomodated a wide range of storefront configurations and styles.

New folding-arm awnings appeared that operated either vertically or horizontally supplementing the fixed-arm awnings developed in the latter 19th century. Vertical folding arms were made up of smaller hinged arms that crossed like scissors. Operated by gravity the arms extended outward pulling the covering off the roller. Like a fixed-arm awning, the pitch of a scissors-type awning varied depending on whether it was fully or only partially extended.

Lateral-arm awnings were preferred on long elevations, especially those with sheet glass (where vertical arms could not be fastened to the building fa�ade). When lateral arm awnings were installed across a broad storefront or porch, manufacturers recommended spacing the arms at approximately eight foot intervals. Photo: NPS files.

Somewhat different was the "lateral arm awning" a horizontally operating awning that worked like a human elbow with the spring action in the arms pushing outward toward the street, unfurling the cover from the roller and maintaining tension. Lateral arm awnings featured a shallow drop that remained relatively constant regardless of how far the arms were extended Scissor arm awnings have a pair of vertical, hinged arms on either side of the assembly supporting the front bar. To unfurl the awning, the roller is cranked and the arms extend outward pulling the cover away from the roller. Operable awnings, whether fixed arm, scissors arm, or lateral arm, rapidly gained popularity as customers came to appreciate the flexibility, concealed appearance, and longer lifespan made possible by roller units.

New Coverings.Slower to change was the fabric used to cover awnings. Canvas duck remained the common awning fabric during the first half of the twentieth century. However, its tendency to stretch and fade, and its susceptability to mildew, and flammable materials like cigarettes and matches motivated the awning industry to search for alternatives. Shortly after World War II, a vinyl plastic coating that increased fade and water resistance was first applied to the canvas. By the 1960s, vinyl resins, acrylic fibers and polyester materials were all being used to provide a longer-lasting awning cover. Ironically, just when these innovations promised more durable awnings, the fabric awning industry felt the debilitating impact of changing architectural fashion, the widespread adoption of air conditioning, and the increasing availability of aluminum awnings.

Modernism dominated commercial architecture during the postwar era. The style's signature form-austere steel, glass, and concrete boxes-had little use for fabric awnings. Colorful awnings seemed old-fashioned, an unwanted distraction from the smooth lines of the machine aesthetic. The preference, instead, was for perforated structural screens or brises-soleil (French: "breaks the sun") that integrated shading functions with new building forms. It was assumed that new buildings had no need for awnings. Widely available for the first time, mechanical air conditioning threatened to make the awning an unnecessary vestige of an earlier era. Awning companies fought back with arguments that traditional shading systems could reduce the required size and investment in air conditioning systems. Though canvas awnings continued to be used on contemporary buildings, new types were often selected to do the job, aluminum and fiberglass awnings.

Widely available by the 1950s, aluminum awnings were touted as longer-lasting and lower-maintenance than traditional awnings. Though used on small-scale commercial structures, they were especially popular with homeowners. Aluminum awnings were made with slats called "pans" arranged horizontally or vertically. For variety and to match the building to which they were applied, different colored slats could be arranged to create stripes or other decorative patterns. While aluminum awnings were usually fixed, in the 1960s several operable roller awnings were developed, including one with the trade name Flexalum Roll-Up.

The years after World War II saw the widespread adoption of aluminum awnings on both storefronts and residences. Operable aluminum awnings incorporated a spring-loaded roller into the frontbar. Photo: NPS files.

Also during this period, manufactured flat-metal canopies were an increasingly popular feature, used in new commercial construction and when remodeling existing storefronts. They were particularly common in the South where shading was critical to the comfort of both window shoppers and store interiors. Often made of aluminum, the canopies could stretch across a single facade, or be connected to extend along an entire block.

New Shapes.An increasing reliance upon fixed aluminum frames and plastic coverings, spurred the development of new awning shapes during the 1970s and 1980s. Often, the awning served as a business's primary sign. Mansard awnings, concave awnings, quarter-round awnings, and quarter-rounds with rounded dome ends appeared with increasing frequency. Most had vinyl or other plastic coverings that were touted as being more resilient than traditional materials. Featuring bold lettering and colors that were often emphasized by illuminating the awnings from within, these awnings were common on new commercial strips and were even popular inside enclosed shopping centers and food courts. They were also applied, less successfully, to older or historic buildings where their shape, size, and material bore little resemblance to traditional awnings.

Although the 1950s and 1960s saw the end of the canvas awning's ubiquity on Main Street, it remained a moderately popular feature of residential architecture. New materials and technologies such as lateral arm operators, acrylic fabric, and aluminum kept the awning relevant to the postwar ranch house and afforded an economical way to update older structures. Colorful awnings helped suburban dwellers distinguish their homes from other, similar, models in the neighborhood.

Awnings Today

Today, awnings come in a variety of shapes, sizes, frames and fabrics. Fixed, quarter-round, back-lit awnings with broad faces featuring company names, logos, phone numbers, and street addresses function more as signs than sunshades. Restaurants and other commercial chains use illuminated awnings with nationally recognized brand graphics and stripe and color patterns to attract customers along suburban strips. The triangular shed frame shape has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in recent years, in many cases playing off nostalgia for the traditional awning. Relatively new "staple-in" awnings with a shed shape are commonly used on new commercial construction. This system has a welded frame of extruded aluminum with a slot on the outer edge. The fabric covering is pulled taut, and the ends are secured in the groove with galvanized steel staples. A vinyl trim bead covers the groove, protecting the fabric edges and providing a flush appearance.

Apart from the strip mall, awnings are also reappearing in historic business districts and residential neighborhoods. In these locations, new awnings typically feature fixed frames or operating lateral arms-both differing little from the awnings of one hundred years before. Fixed frame awnings have frames made of either aluminum or light-gauge galvanized or zinc-coated steel pipes welded together. Frames are secured to building facades with clamps, z-shaped clips, and other hardware. Until recently, operable awnings found in historic commercial districts were primarily those with historic frames and hardware that had survived to the present. But new lateral arm awnings with powder-coated aluminum frames are an increasingly common choice for building owners who want the convenience of an operable system.

Solution-dyed acrylics and acrylic-coated polyester-cotton blended fabrics are often used to replicate historic awning coverings. These relatively new materials resemble canvas in appearance and texture, yet offer greater strength and durability. Because acrylics are woven (with the stripes and colors woven directly into the fabric rather than painted on the surface), they are durable and allow light to filter through while keeping heat out. They dry quickly, thereby reducing damage caused by mildew, and contain a UV inhibitor that further reduces sunlight damage. Poly-cotton fabrics coated with a thin acrylic layer that repels dirt and resists abrasion are also used. Both acrylic and poly-cotton fabrics do not stretch or shrink like traditional canvas so they are generally easier to measure, cut, and install.Preserving Existing Historic Awnings »