Cape Cod Cape Cod-style homes cropped up on the eastern seaboard between 1710 and 1850. Abundant timber resources in the New World encouraged the expansion of these traditional, one-room English cottages and marked them forever as the quintessential New England style. Cape Cod homes are simple and symmetrical, one-and-one-half stories, without a porch. A dominant roofline extends down to the first floor ceiling level, and often incorporate dormer windows for an even warmer touch.