Billiard room
**History of Billiard Rooms:**
– Billiards likely evolved from late-14th or early-15th century lawn games.
– The first mention of pool as an indoor table game dates back to a 1470 inventory list of King Louis XI of France.
– Billiard rooms were added to famous 18th-century cafés in Paris post the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars.
– In 19th century Great Britain, a trend emerged with male suites incorporating billiard rooms, smoking rooms, and libraries.
– By the turn of the century, billiard rooms became a standard feature in great British houses.
**Design Trends in Billiard Rooms:**
– Many 19th-century billiard rooms were designed in an Oriental or Moorish style.
– Mark Twain’s billiard room in Hartford, CT featured quasi-Moorish stencils.
– The late 19th and early 20th centuries marked the heyday of billiard rooms.
– Edwardian billiard rooms at Olveston Historic Home showcased overhead electric lights and skylights.
– The Club in Bedford Park from 1880 is an example of billiard room design from that era.
**References on Billiard Rooms:**
– Home Buyer Publications featured articles on billiard rooms.
– Phyllis Harbinger’s book “The Interior Design Productivity Toolbox” offers insights into managing workflows.
– Charlotte Moss’s book “Charlotte Moss Decorates” discusses creating elegant rooms.
– “Encyclopedia of World Sport” by David Levinson and Karen Christensen covers billiards’ history.
– “Encyclopedia of Interior Design” by Joanna Banham is a resource on interior design.
**Billiard Room Features:**
– A billiard room is a recreation space with a billiards, pool, or snooker table.
– It can be in the public center or private areas of a house.
– Proper lighting and clearances are essential for game playing.
– Around 1.5m (5ft) of clearance around the pool table is ideal.
– Interior designer Charlotte Moss sees billiard rooms as spaces for group dynamics and friendly competition.
**Standardization and Recognition:**
– Billiard rooms are standardized by international sanctioning bodies.
– The U.S. Open is a notable event in the billiards world.
– Billiard rooms may also be found in commercial establishments like billiard halls.
– The term “billiard room” or “pool room” can refer to businesses providing public billiards tables.
– House Beautiful magazine noted that billiard rooms were a standard feature in English estates by the early 20th century.
A billiard room (also billiards room, or more specifically pool room, snooker room) is a recreation room, such as in a house or recreation center, with a billiards, pool or snooker table (The term "billiard room" or "pool room" may also be used for a business providing public billiards tables; see billiard hall.).
The billiard room may be in the public center of the house or the private areas of the house.
Billiard rooms require proper lighting and clearances for game playing. Although there are adjustable cue sticks on the market, 1.5 m (5 ft) of clearance around the pool table is ideal.
Interior designer Charlotte Moss believed that "a billiard room is synonymous with group dynamics. It's where you mix drinks and embark on a little friendly competition..."