Frank Lloyd Wright house

Wednesday
After working out at the gym, Roger and I headed up to Springfield, about an hour and twenty minutes drive, to visit the Frank Lloyd Wright Westcott House, the only Prairie style house designed by Wright in the state. The Prairie style is usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands, integration with the landscape, craftsmanship, and discipline in the use of ornament. Horizontal lines were thought to evoke and relate to the wide, flat, treeless expanses of America's native prairie landscape. The house was built in 1908 for Mr. Burton J. Westcott, his wife Orpha, and their family. In 1903, as part of a merger, Burton J. Westcott came to Springfield, Ohio as Treasurer of The American Seeding Machine Company. In 1916, Burton brought the Westcott Motor Car Company to Springfield, Ohio from Richmond, Indiana. He was president of the company until 1925. Unfortunately, the Westcotts both died relatively young, in the 1920s, while still in their fifties, and the House was sold. In the 1940s the house was partitioned into apartments, and because of this drastic change to its interior, became almost forgotten, and over time deteriorated into an extremely dilapidated condition. The house was finally acquired by the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy in 2000, and underwent a four year, 5 million dollar restoration, restoring it to its original state and layout, and opening to the public in 2005. As well as being open for tours, the house is also used for special events, and can be rented for special occasions. You visit the house by a docent-led tour, beginning with a short video. Frank Lloyd Wright didn’t just design the buildings themselves, but also light fittings, furniture, carpets, fabrics etc., contributing to the sense of artistic unity. The furniture in the house has been rebuilt according to Frank Lloyd Wright specifications, and bed and table linens created according to Wright designs. I was pleasantly surprised to discover they allowed photography in the house, so I have added a collage, including interior shots, as an extra. This was the second Frank Lloyd Wright house we have seen this year, having seen Hollyhocks, while were in Los Angeles back in the summer. However, we have yet to visit his iconic Fallingwater in Pennsylvania! Our tour had been at 1 pm, so by the time we left, it was almost 3 pm and we were feeling rather hungry, so we went off in search of something to eat, and managed to find a Mexican restaurant that was open. We had gone up to Springfield on the interstate for the sake of speed, but coming back we took a more leisurely route by regular roads, enjoying the blue skies and sunshine, and some of the leaves just beginning to turn. A good day out!