Types

private libraries (institutions)

Libraries formed by the collections of individuals rather than as a public institution and often devoted to a particular subject or interest.

private schools (buildings)

Buildings that house schools that are established, conducted, and primarily supported by a nongovernmental agency and available to a limited set of students.

private schools (institutions)

Educational institutions that are established, conducted, and primarily supported by a nongovernmental agency and available to a limited set of students.

privies

Rooms or spaces that are within buildings and have one or more seats and a pit used as toilets which lack plumbing facilities, distinguished from "outhouses" which are separate structures in domestic contexts containing similar arrangements of toilet facilities. For rooms or spaces with toilets having plumbing, use "bathrooms" or "lavatories (rooms)."

processing plants

Facilities established or used to transform, alter, or treat a product or other thing by using a special process or technique, including operating upon the thing mechanically or chemically.

projection booths

Rooms at the rear of auditoriums or classrooms for the operation of, usually, motion-picture projectors, slide projectors, or spotlights.

promenades (walkways)

Places for strolling; public walks.

promontories

Bluffs or prominent hills overlooking or projecting into a lowland. For high features projecting into a sea, use "headlands."

psychiatric hospitals

Hospital facilities where those with mental disorders are confined for observation and treatment.

public art

Art and architectural elements having the purpose of beautifying and enriching public places rather than private spaces, whether or not the works are also functional. For art undertaken in conjunction with particular communities, usually to produce an effect or inspire response specifically within those communities, use "community art." For art associated with urban design, planning, and preservation, use "municipal art."

public baths

Buildings equipped with swimming pools and other facilities for bathing and swimming, traditionally the primary hygienic facility in a city or town.

public buildings (governmental buildings)

Buildings or groups of buildings owned and operated by a governing body, carrying out official duties, and often occupied by a governmental agency.

public gardens

Planned spaces that are open to the public, usually located outdoors, and focused on plants and other natural or landscaped features.

public housing

Low cost housing, owned, sponsored, or administered by a municipal or other governmental agency.

public land

Land owned by the government.

public libraries (buildings)

Buildings or spaces housing collections of books that are available to the public and typically maintained by public funds, as distinguished from libraries available only to a certain group or individual.

public libraries (institutions)

Libraries that are available to the public and typically maintained by public funds, as distinguished from libraries available only to a certain group or individual.

public parks

No description is available for this term.

public safety buildings

Buildings housing offices concerned with health matters, disaster management, and other issues surrounding the public safety of a community.

public schools (buildings)

Buildings that house schools maintained at public expense for the education of children of a community or district as part of a free education system; generally includes elementary and high schools.

public schools (institutions)

Educational institutions maintained at public expense for the education of children of a community or district as part of a free education system; generally includes elementary and high schools.

public sculpture

Sculptural works installed in public places and thus accessible and visible to all members of the community.

public spaces

Open spaces designed for public use or are accesible to the public, often designed to foster a sense of community.

public transit (infrastructure)

Transit systems, buses, trains, etc., that run on fixed routes at set times and may be used by any person, either free or subject to a fare.

publishing houses

Businesses that make books and other works of writers and songwriters available to the public, traditionally through books or other printed materials.

pubs

Public refreshment facilities with more emphasis on drinking, normally alcoholic beverages, than on eating or entertainment, which if provided usually occurs in separate, often back rooms, and offering no accommodations; use "saloons" for similar places but with staged entertainment provided in the main room; use "taverns" for establishments offering public accommodations as well as general refreshments, but no entertainment other than social gatherings.

pueblos (housing complexes)

Multistory, multiroom complex dwellings, often built on mesas or in cliffs, common among certain Indian cultures of the southwestern United States; distinguished from "Great Houses (complexes)" by their location and agglutinated construction.

pueblos (settlements)

Spanish civilian colonial settlements in the southwestern United States founded primarily for farming and trading.

pulp mills

Mills or factories where wood is reduced to paper pulp.

pulpits

Elevated stands enclosed by a guardrail and a platform on which to rest a book, intended for clergy to preach to the congregation; usually situated within a church and may be fixed or movable (movable pulpit). It often has a staircase, a backboard, and a sounding-board.

pump rooms

Rooms at a spa designed for drinking mineral waters, as at Bath, England.

pumping stations

Installations with equipment for raising water in water distribution systems to a higher elevation; may be used for similar structures in sewage systems.

pylons

Monumental gateways to Egyptian temples, consisting of a pair of towerlike structures with slanting walls flanking the entrance portal; may also be used more loosely for any large isolated structures used to mark a boundary, as at approaches to bridges or avenues.

pyramids (tombs or platforms)

Monumental structures with a square or triangular base and inclined triangular sides, usually meeting at a point. The most famous pyramids are those used as mausolea in ancient Egypt; they were focal points of much larger funerary complexes. However, pyramids, usually with flat tops, are also found in Central America, where they were used as platforms for altars or temples, occasionally also covering the burial chamber of a ruler.

quadrangles (open spaces)

Rectangular grassy or paved areas surrounded by buildings, generally of an academic or civic nature. Distinguished from "courtyards" which generally fall within the bounds of a single building.

Quaker meeting houses

Houses or other buildings where meetings for worship are held by the the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers).

quarries (extracting complexes)

Open-air excavations from which stone for building or other purposes is or has been obtained by cutting or blasting.

quarters (districts)

Regions, districts, localities, or other divisions of a town or city. Whereas the term technically refers to areas resulting from division of a larger area into four parts, quarters are instead typically defined by habitation by a certain group or community, or by having a particular character or use, regardless of the total number of such parts.

quartzite

A metamorphic rock composed largely of granular quartz which is cemented by silica forming a homogeneous mass of very high tensile and crushing strengths; especially used as a building stone, as gravel in road construction, and as aggregate in concrete.

quoins

Stones used to form the corner of a wall of masonry, especially when accentuated by a difference in the surface treatment from that of the rest of the wall mass.

quonset huts

Prefabricated buildings with a semicircular cross section, generally built of corrugated metal and provided with thermal insulation.

racetracks (complexes)

Typically oval courses or tracks on which races of any kind are held, including foot races, bicycle races, horse or dog races, and automobile races. Typically oval courses or tracks on which races of any kind are held, including foot races, bicycle races, horse or dog races, and automobile races.

radio stations

Broadcasting stations for sending and receiving radio programming transmissions; for rooms and spaces designed for the origination or recording of radio programs, use "radio studios."

radio telescopes

An instrument used in radio astronomy for detecting and recording radio emissions from space between wavelengths of about 30 megahertz and 300 gigahertz. Radio telescopes essentially consist of a large, concave metal bowl that serves as a directional aerial, capturing and focusing radio waves; along with a receiver and recording equipment.

radio towers

Tall, usually metal, freestanding or guyed towers used as or carrying radio transmitting antennas.

rail fences

Fences of posts and usually two or three split rails.

rail transportation buildings

Buildings specifcally used for purposes related to railroad transportation.

railroad bridges

Bridges that support a railroad track.

railroad signal towers

Structures, often tower-like, from which signals are sent to control the movements of railway trains. They typically house the control equipment for signal apparatuses and switches.

railroad stations

Stations along a rail line where trains load or unload passengers or goods, usually comprising a platform next to the tracks and a building providing related services such as ticket sales and waiting areas. For the stations at the beginning or end of the line, use "railroad terminals."

railroad terminals

Facilities at the beginning or end of rail lines where trains load or unload passengers and freight, generally including a platform next to the tracks and various buildings to provide related services. For facilities for loading or unloading passengers or goods along the course of the rail line rather than at the beginning or end of the line, use "railroad stations."

railroad tracks

No description is available for this term.

railroad tunnels

Tunnels excavated to allow the passage of trains underground, usually through a hill or mountain.

railroad yards

Areas consisting of a network of railway tracks, sidings, and sheds for storing, maintaining, and joining engines and railcars.

railroads (infrastructure)

Transit systems consisting of roads laid with rails forming tracks on which locomotives and cars are run for the transportation of passengers, freight, and mail.

railway buildings

Structures specifically designed for the business of a railroad or railway.

railway hotels

Hotels that are on, or adjoining, a railway station.

ranch houses

Designates asymmetrically massed, one-story houses with low-pitched roofs and rambling shapes; may also be used for the main dwelling on ranches. During the late 1940s and 1950s, the ranch house became associated with the work of architect Cliff May (1908-1989), who often used open plan buildings with large areas of glass. The designs became popular and were assimilated by other architects after the publication of two architectural pattern books by "Sunset" magazine, "'Sunset' Western Ranch Houses (San Francisco, 1946) and "Western Ranch Houses by Cliff May" (Menlo Park, 1958).

ranches (agricultural complexes)

Denotes establishments with extensive landholdings usually for the grazing of cattle; larger than farms.

ranger stations

Structures or complexes serving as a base of operations for rangers or other wardens of a forest, and typically also accessible to the public.

rapids

Irregular, partially obstructed, fast-flowing areas in rivers or streams.

raths

Ancient Irish or Welsh earthen enclosures of relatively small size, usually circular and possibly serving as fortifications or chiefs' residences.

rathskellers

Restaurants, usually located below street level, patterned after basements or cellars in German city halls where wine and beer are sold.

ravines

Narrow, steep-sided land depressions, larger than gullies and smaller than gorges and canyons, usually created by the flow of water.

reactor containment buildings

Structures, often made of steel or reinforced concrete, enclosing a nuclear reactor and designed to contain the escape of radiation to the environment.

reading rooms

Rooms in clubs, libraries, hotels, or public institutions especially adapted and appropriate to reading and study.

reception rooms

Rooms whose purpose is the formal reception of guests, tradesmen, and other visitors.

recessed balconies

Balconies that are flush with or in a recess back from the surface of the exterior wall. They often have walls, sets of columns, or other supports on three sides; distinct from the general design of balconies, which are more typically set out from the surface of the wall.

reconstruction (process )

The process of constructing of new objects or structures that are built to replace or resemble old ones, based on historic, archaeological, or other similar evidence.

recording studios

Studios designed or used for creating audio recordings, such as tape and electronic recordings.

recreation areas

Land and water spaces and associated structures set aside for recreation.

recreation buildings

Distinguished from "entertainment buildings" by more broadly designating buildings designed for or containing equipment for amusement, exercise, sports, or some pastime.

recreation centers

Buildings having facilities for various recreational activities, often provided by or associated with specific groups or organizations.

recreation rooms

Rooms in homes or public buildings furnished and reserved for recreation and informal entertaining.

recreation structures

Built works used for purpose of recreation.

recreational

No description is available for this term.

rectories

The residences provided for clergymen, usually rectors.

red-light districts

Urban areas in which brothels are located, whether operating legally or illegally.

redoubts

Small, usually isolated, fortification works of any form, commonly square or polygonal in plan, used to defend a prominent point.

refectories

Dining halls of monasteries or other religious institutions.

reference libraries (institutions)

Libraries, either general or specialized, that are organized for consultation and research; generally non-circulating.

refineries

Buildings or other industrial installations where a material, such as sugar, oil, metal, etc., is refined, meaning it is purified, clarified, distilled, or otherwise treated, typically by a series of industrial processes, to make the material purer or of a finer quality.

reflecting pools

Designates artificial areas of water, usually of geometric shape, specifically designed and located so as to mirror buildings or other structures.

reformatories (buildings)

Buildings housing penal institutions that provide educational and vocational training among other methods for reforming behavior of youthful offenders or first offenders of minor crimes.

regional parks

Generally refers to parks that are smaller than national parks and providing a wide range of recreation facilities with less emphasis on the landscape value of the area.

rehabilitation centers

Facilities specializing in the treatment of alcoholism and drug addiction.

relay stations

Microwave communications stations set up to send and receive transmissions between other installations.

relieving arches

Arches which deflect the weight off of another arch, opening, or other structural member located beneath.

religious buildings

Buildings built or used for religious ceremonies or other functions having to do with a particular religion.

religious camps

Seating, tents, buildings, or other facilities intended to accommodate religious camp meetings, particularly the type of outdoor revival meetings that were held on the American frontier during the 19th century by various Protestant denominations. Seating, tents, buildings, or other facilities intended to accommodate religious camp meetings, particularly the type of outdoor revival meetings that were held on the American frontier during the 19th century by various Protestant denominations.

religious communities (built complexes)

Facilities for groups of people living together or near each other, and subscribing to the tenets of a particular religion, including those who have taken vows and belong to the structure of a particular order, as well as more loosely organized groups of people. For the religious officials or functionaries of a religion, use "clergy." For the formal, organized groups themselves, use "religious orders."

religious schools (institutions)

Educational institutions that focus entirely or partially on religious instruction and theology.

religious structures

Ceremonial structures that are related to or concerned with religion.

rental housing

Apartment complexes, single family dwellings, or other housing owned by one individual or corporation and rented or leased to another.

repair shops

Establishments specializing in repairs, for example, of automobiles, railway cars, shoes, etc.

replicas

Precise reproductions of valued objects, usually in the same dimensions as the original. For reproductions of an image alone, use "reproductions" or "facsimiles." Use also when more than one similar object is produced by the same artist, craftsman, or studio, with little or no variation between them; if variation is apparent, use "versions." Distinct from "forgeries" and "counterfeits," which are produced with the intent to deceive.

repositories (physical storage facilities)

Refers to chambers, rooms, buildings, vessels, receptacles, or other physical places in which works of art, specimens, curiosities, archives, documents, books, or other things are placed, deposited, or stored. In the context of art museums, the usage of the term often overlaps with "repositories (institutions)." For data storage and management destinations or mechanisms, use "data repositories" or "digital repositories."

reredoses (screens)

Refers to relatively large ornamented walls, screens, or other structures located above and behind the high altar of a Christian church, often holding the sacred tabernacle. A reredos may be placed against the apse wall, directly behind the altar, or may form part an altar screen. Its form evolved from the dossal, a tapestry or painting on the wall behind the altar. In church design, It may serve as a screen between celebrant and the congregation or between the choir and the retrochoir. In Spanish churches the reredos grew to be as wide as the nave and reaching to the vaulting of the roof. The reredos may be made of precious materials and heavily decorated, often with carvings, niches, sculptures, paintings and tapestries. It is distinct from a 'retable'; while the reredos typically rises from ground level behind the altar, the retable is smaller, standing either on the back of the altar itself or on a pedestal behind it. Many altars have both a reredos and a retable.

research buildings

Buildings built or used primarily to house space and facilities for scientific or other research.

research centers (buildings)

Buildings or spaces housing organizations or corporate, industrial, or educational facilities for research. For independent places where research is conducted, see "research institutes."