It's hard to maintain a historic preservation ethic without constant promotion, in the face of forces that promote open concepts, stainless steel appliances, etc.

A May is Historic Preservation Month article. Also see:

-- "May is National Preservation Month"

Caption: Married physicians Ana Barac and Federico Asch bought a 99-year-old Sears kit house in Cleveland Park in Northwest Washington in 2021.

 They renovated it into a stunning and modern home, while keeping the exterior in line with demands from historic boards. (Mike Morgan/ for The Washington Post)

Reading this article in the Washington Post about the state of the housing market, I was struck by the caption of this photo, which is dismissive of historic preservation.

I don't know why, maybe because the rowhouse I had owned had been poorly renovated, but I hadn't been super interested in the preservation of house interiors.  Sure there were plenty of stunning rowhouses, but I mostly only visited them.

Then when we got our bungalow, which is nothing fancy, definitely not Craftsman full of gorgeous wood built ins etc., I became a lot more interested in house interiors and maintaining some fealty to original design and flow (no open concept for us).

It's definitely unassuming.  But it's about 1,000 square feet on the first floor with a walk out basement, and semi-finished attic and a huge (for a city) backyard.

Our house is simple, wood floors, some old fixtures and appliances, radiators, a fireplace.  No air conditioning.  Mostly intact wood windows.  Some hutches, etc.  But its simplicity and comfort made me appreciate those design values and want to preserve them.

Anyway, interior preservation isn't part of the regulatory regime of historic preservation when it comes to "average houses," only those that may rise to the significance level of individual landmarks.

Certainly in the competition with HGTV, fancy shelter magazines, and large incomes, interiors of simple houses don't fare well when it comes to big renovation projects like those of Ana Barac and Federico Asch ("An original Sears ‘kit house’ is reassembled into a modern knockout").

I mean, they have a Sears Kit House, the production of which has an amazing pedigree and history, and they destroyed the inside! ("DC’s hidden secret: Million-dollar homes built from DIY kits," WTOP-radio).

There were actually a number of kit house producers, back in the day.

-- "How to Research the History of Your House: Kit Houses," Ball State University