The modern garage has become a feature to the home that most of us couldn’t live without. Whether you use it for your car or for storage of all those things without a place in your house, the garage has become a vital part of our home lives.
Because of how important garages have become to all of us, we thought it would be a good idea to take a brief look at the history of the modern garage.
Did you know ‘garage’ comes from the French word, ‘garer’ which means ‘to shelter’ – isn’t that nice?
Fetch the Carriage!
The garage dates back to over 100 years ago, and if you think what garages are most commonly used for today, it’s not hard to work out that that has always been the case. However, cars, while certainly invented, weren’t the everyday tool they are today, which meant garages were built to store the more common transports of the time – wagons, carriages and horses.
Of course, when the ‘horseless carriage’ took Europe by storm, manufacturers began producing ‘portable garages’ which were designed to store cars on properties which didn’t already have a garage attached to them.
Cars Galore!
After the Locomotives on Highways Act of 1896, it was a fact that cars were here to stay, which meant garages became as popular as the motor vehicles. When people began constructing more garages to house their cars, they modelled them on the carriage house of the past. That was until the necessity of innovation forced their hands to create something new.
This led to the overhead garage door, which was created in 1921 and then, a mere 5 years later, the automatic garage door opener became available – a result of the demands by the public for a more functional garage door.
Does it come with a Garage?
This led to prospective homeowners all over the country asking real estate agents if the home included a garage, and if it didn’t, that would often cost the deal. By the early 1940’s, architects were designing homes specifically so they could accommodate more garage space for people’s vehicles.
We move swiftly through to today where garages continue to be in the majority when we look at homes, with over 80% of homes in the UK including a garage. Of course, the garage has evolved from a simple storage space for people’s cars into a space for people to get really creative.
Whether it’s an art studio, a spare bedroom, or even a recording studio, the garage is still proving just how essential it is to our home life.
Here at Lockup Garages, we can find you the perfect storage space, whatever you need it for. We specialise in large garage hire so whatever your storage needs are, we can fill them! For more information, contact us on 020 8882 8575 and speak to one of our team members today.
