Gutters became popular on buildings in 1710-1750 in the American colonies. Built in - box gutters began appearing on new buildings in the U.S. around 1751-1800. Built in gutters are meant to be a part of the architecture. There are also yankee gutters. A yankee gutter is built on the plane of the roof and the downspout goes through the soffit. The most common kind of gutter is the aluminum k style gutter, it is not part of the architecture and usually matches the trim color of the building. Sometimes built in gutters have conductor boxes. The top of the conductor box is vented, the downspout can handle a large amount of water that quickly drains, preventing gutter overflow. 
All gutters have to be maintained, and a big problem is neglect. The gutters need to be kept clean and if metal, it should be kept painted. When neglected they start to deteriorate until you notice a leak or start seeing stains from water. When properly maintained yankee - built in or box gutters can last a very long time. Copper has been a popular metal for roofing and gutters for many years.