A combination stair is an

architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...

element found in traditional houses in North America where two sets of stairs merge into one at a landing.

Background

Large, traditional houses were frequently designed with two stairs: a formal front

stairway Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps which enable passage ...

for use by the family and guests and a utilitarian back stair for use by household staff. The combination stair is a

T-shaped Many shapes have metaphorical names, i.e., their names are metaphors: these shapes are named after a most common object that has it. For example, "U-shape" is a shape that resembles the letter U, a bell-shaped curve has the shape of the vertical ...

compromise design popular in the nineteenth century that was found in some moderate-sized houses. In this design, both the formal front stair and the utilitarian back stair ran to a common intermediate

landing Landing is the last part of a flight, where a flying animal, aircraft, or spacecraft returns to the ground. When the flying object returns to water, the process is called alighting, although it is commonly called "landing", "touchdown" or ...

."combination stair" def. 1. Harris, Cyril M.. ''Illustrated dictionary of historic architecture''. New York: Dover Publications, 1983. 128. Print. One common stair then extended from this intermediate landing to the second floor of the house.

Current usage

The combination stair became less common in the 20th century. As houses became less formal and household staff became less common, the need for both front and back stairs declined. Many houses were designed with a single stair for common use. However, since the 1980s, house sizes have increased significantly and designs have become more elaborate and more complex. Multiple stairs are becoming more common once again. Combination stairs are occasionally seen in new house designs.

References

Stairs Stairways Architectural elements {{architecturalelement-stub