Tudor Revival houses come in various sizes from one-and-a-half story cottages to two-and-a-half story mansions. The style is easily identified by its characteristic half-timbering, a decorative treatment that appears to expose structural elements. The spaces between the timbers are nogged (filled in) with stone or brick, and usually stuccoed, but sometimes left exposed. Houses may be a combination of brick, rubble stone, and half-timbering. Steeply pitched roofs have intersecting gables and dormer windows. Casement windows (hinged at the sides to open outward) or double hung windows are multi-paned, often with diamond shaped panes. Also characteristic are irregular plans, slate or terra cotta tile roofs, and massive, decorative brick chimneys.

Tudor Revival was based on 17th-century Elizabethan architecture in England, revived by English architect Richard Norman Shaw in the 1880s. Elements of the style first appeared in this country on houses of Queen Anne form. When Tudor Revival finally emerged as a style of its own, its houses resembled a type of English country cottage. Popularized in builders’ guides, it can be seen in abundance throughout the country.

The style was one of the most popular of early 20th-century styles in Cincinnati. Often, entire streets are lined with Tudor Revival houses. Clifton, Mount Lookout, and Hyde Park are among neighborhoods that have a large number of Tudor Revival houses.