A 3/2 with all the other things most people expect in a house today all in 1500 sq ft will be a tight fit.

2 story, 1 story, basement?

Have you considered the rooms you really need and the space each will consume?

If you were to drive around the country looking at actual old farmhouses, you would find different styles divided mostly by region.

You have two chances in finding a well designed "historic" house in the plan factories: slim and none.

To get what you want you are going to need a custom design by an experienced architect.

Good luck!

Contact a local architect that designs in traditional styles. Keep expanding the definition of "local" until you find one that fits.

I’m in Connecticut and like the look of Folk Victorian and vernacular Greek Revival. I currently live in an 800sq foot 1930s craftsman and know that 1500sq foot is more than enough. Though I know what I’m looking for, I have very simple tastes. 1 or 2 stories doesn’t make a difference but we would like a basement. I’m thinking I’ll have to use the design I like most and get some custom modifications! Thank you all for your input!

"I’m thinking I’ll have to use the design I like most and get some custom modifications!"

Don't buy a Chevy to get a Mercedes. You will be inhibiting your architect's creativity by starting with a preconceived design and trying to fix it. Take a list of your needs and wants and a site survey to your architect and start the conversation. You will get a home that meets your needs and fits your site.

Good idea! Would it be helpful to have pictures of the exterior style I’m looking for?

After sifting through hundreds (probably thousands) of internet plans and finally getting what we wanted actually designed for us by a professional, I hope you take the architects' advice. It's worth it.

"Modern farmhouse" search results included this. The steep roof and siding appeal to me as does the "barn" looking garage. -- would likely want two large garage doors rather than one large and one small.

https://markstewart.com/house-plans/country-house-plans/lucy/#jp-carousel-71726

but I'd likely keep one ridge line on the main part of the house (rather than the three different roof lines on the right side) and would also likely prefer the front exterior wall straight with a deeper porch all the way across the front of the house ... and keep the door to the garage at the end of that front porch.

It will help the architect you hire to see image that communicate the architectural style you have in mind.

Researching my own house, I found it hard to find real old-house plans on-line. You might want to try print info like: https://www.ebay.com/itm/132665120152
Dover publishing and others have reprinted some of the old plan books.

Get an architect every time you modify anything on a stock plan it costs money and beleive by the time you get what you want you could have had it with an architect . Bring some pics of what you like to them for the first visit. BTW old farm houses did not have attached garages.

I definitely do not want an attached garage. My husband is a firefighter and has seen many homes lost to fires started in a garage. If anything, we would do a detached barn style garage down the road! My Dad is a historic preservationist so I at least I have a great resource for the historical attributes! Another reason I would have loved to find an authentic antique home!

I too wanted an antique home. We looked for 2 years but couldn't find something that would work for us. We wound up building a home that is not 100% authentic but some of the biggest compliments I've gotten for our craftsman style home was, "what a great job you did renovating the house!"

It can be done but start by finding an architect who loves old homes.

The mantra of "Hire an architect" gets a little tiresome. The great majority of old houses were built not with an architect, but with common sense, and knowledge of precedent and materials.

The mantra of "Hire an architect" gets a little tiresome. The great majority of old houses were built not with an architect, but with common sense, and knowledge of precedent and materials.

And nowadays with new materials it takes more knowledge to create a house that looks and feels old than in the past. For example, how does one make vinyl hurricane windows look like they belong on a craftsman style home?

How does one nowadays incorporate HVAC when 200 years ago, the only HVAC was opening the windows in summer and lighting the fireplaces in winter.

How does one create a kitchen space that will work in an older feeling house since back then cooking was done in the fireplace?

And back then, people seemed to have innate knowledge of orienting houses to best get the breezes in summer or the heat in winter. Things like that we nowadays have little knowledge of.

I hate cookie cutter answers.

You say you already know exactly what you want. What is it that you cannot find?

My sister bought her land from one of the top custom builders in our area. Like you, she knew what she wanted, but couldn't find the Tudor style exterior and the interior layout that she wanted. She did, however, find a plan for a Mediterranean home that had a floor plan that met all of her wishes. She took the plans to her builder and explained her dilemma. Her builder wasn't worried at all. He told her to buy the plans and he and his team would alter the plans to create the Tudor exterior with the room layout and dimensions of the plan she purchased.

Her home is absolutely stunning. It actually won an award for best new build in our county the year it was built.

She obviously didn't need an architect.

On the other hand, some people really don't have the ability to analyze their needs, are not good at visualizing spaces or may have special needs that require the expertise of a qualified architect.

Like any other major expenditure you have to balance budget vs cost vs needs. Not everyone drives a Mercedes - some can't afford a Mercedes and some who could afford a Mercedes prioritize their spending and find that a Mercedes isn't how they want to spend their money, and some who really can't afford a Mercedes buy one anyway and struggle to pay their rent or get a second job so they can make the payments.

Your best path is to first find or create the floor plan you want and then wrap the outside you want around that. Do pay attention to which side of your home will get a lot of or no sunlight coming in through the windows.

Know local building codessuch as can you put a garage in front or must it be in back before making a final decision on either lot or house plan.

if you have an Instagram account look up the user name, floorplans_of_the_past

Their whole account is postings of floor plans, might give you some ideas or info.

Jennifer, it sounds like I want a story like your sister’s! I guess what I can’t find is the exact plan that looks the way I want inside and out. Of course, actual antique plans don’t have the modern open layouts of “farmhouses” today and modern farmhouses don’t have the antique looking exterior. I definitely do not want Joanna Gaines interpretation of a farmhouse. I also wasn’t sure if I would be able to find what I wanted with available plans online or if it would to be a custom job. Everyone’s input has been helpful! Thanks to all!

Hannah, I'm a little late but wanted to add the following:

Check out Classical Colonial Homes (website). When we were looking for inspirations for our project, I frequented this site often. At one point, we entertained working with them instead of doing a fully custom build. In the end, we chose the fully custom route for a historical replica.

Also, check out John Milnes Baker's American House Styles and Micheal and Linda Connor's The Winterthur Collection: from Connor Mill-Built Homes. I own the John MIlnes Baker book and think that it's a great resource whereby the author demonstrates his ability to take a basic, modern floor plan and applies numerous architectural (classical / historical) styles to this simple floorplan. Though most of the examples are much larger than what you are wanting, I think that it may be good starting point if you are interested in having a historically-inspired elevation designed around a preselected floorplan.