Model house, Chogoria, Kenya, ca.1924

“The model native house, built on piles with wicker & mud floors, kitchen separate.” Exterior view of a house on piles with a couple standing outside. Dr Irvine designed a model house that he thought would improve the health of the local population. Traditional huts had a cooking fire and no ventilation and doorways were sealed with piled logs that were difficult to get out of if there was a fire. Dr Irvine’s design removed the kitchen to a separate hut, raised the hut on piles, added windows and doors and strengthened the structure. The huts were made completely from local material and generated a lot of interest. ❧ This image is from the first years of the Chogoria mission in Kenya, which was run by the Rev. Dr Archibald Clive Irvine (1893-1974), from the collection entitled ‘Chogoria, 1922. The early days.”