John Shellette Van Bergen (October 2, 1885 – December 20, 1969) was an American architect born in
Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, adjacent to Chicago. It is the 29th-most populous municipality in Illinois with a population of 54,583 as of the 2020 U.S. Census estimate. Oak Park was first settled in 1835 and later incorporated ...
. Van Bergen started his architectural career as an apprentice
draftsman
A drafter (also draughtsman / draughtswoman in British and Commonwealth English, draftsman / draftswoman or drafting technician in American and Canadian English) is an engineering technician who makes detailed technical drawings or plans for ...
in 1907. In 1909 he went to work for
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...
at his
studio in Oak Park. At Wright's studio he did working drawings for and supervised the Robie House and the Mrs. Thomas Gale House. Van Bergen designed
prairie style
Prairie School is a late 19th- and early 20th-century architectural style, most common in the Midwestern United States. The style is usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped i ...
homes in the Chicago area, mostly in the suburbs of Oak Park and
River Forest. His home designs are recognized as excellent examples of Prairie style architecture and several are listed as local landmarks. A few of his homes are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Early life
John S. Van Bergen was born October 2, 1885, to William and Ella Van Bergen, one of four children.
[California Death Records,]
John S Van Bergen entry
online at RootsWeb.com. Retrieved 31 May 2007.[Hackl, Martin.]
," pg. 4. Retrieved 26 May 2007.
At the time the Van Bergen family resided in a home on Euclid Avenue in Oak Park, a building that no longer exists. The Van Bergens then moved into the present day 500 block of Fair Oaks when a young John Van Bergen began to show an interest in architecture.
[Hackl, Martin.]
," pg. 5. Retrieved 9 June 2007.
In 1897, across the street from the Van Bergen family home, the
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...
designed
Rollin Furbeck House
Rollin Furbeck House is a Frank Lloyd Wright designed house in Oak Park, Illinois that was built in 1897. It is part of the Frank Lloyd Wright-Prairie School of Architecture Historic District.
Architecture
The house is considered a major tra ...
was constructed and four years later the
William G. Fricke House went up nearby as well. This further influenced the young Van Bergen. Van Bergen's mother was friends with Wright's mother, Anna, and Van Bergen's third grade teacher was Wright's sister, Maginel.
[Hackl, Martin.]
John Van Bergen Biography
," pg. 6. Retrieved 9 June 2007. In 1901 John Van Bergen began high school at the old
Oak Park and River Forest High School
, motto_translation = Those things that are best
, address = 201 N. Scoville Avenue
, location =
, region =
, town = Oak Park
, county =
, state ...
, which was then located on Lake Street. During high school Van Bergen produced his earliest known drawing, a map of the
high school district commissioned by the
district superintendent. The map was dated June 24, 1904.
[ After high school Van Bergen spent time in Hollywood, California. When he returned from California he soon found an architectural apprenticeship.
]
Career
John Van Bergen began his career as an apprentice draftsman working with Walter Burley Griffin
Walter Burley Griffin (November 24, 1876February 11, 1937) was an American architect and landscape architect. He is known for designing Canberra, Australia's capital city and the New South Wales towns of Griffith and Leeton. He has been cr ...
in 1907. Van Bergen's father had been friends with Griffin's father for many years and when the young architect needed a draftsman in his office, in January 1907, he took on Van Bergen as an apprentice.[ Late in his life Van Bergen recalled Griffin as "not only a skillfully trained architect but also a great teacher for me. He had no end of patience for a very poor draftsman."][Hackl, Martin.]
John Van Bergen Biography
," pg. 6, excerpt from letter to former draftsman and friend Charles (Chick) Masterson, dated 10 April 1968. Retrieved 9 June 2007. Van Bergen also found the training he received under Griffin useful, recounting in 1966:
heTraining I had with Walter couldn't have been better for me as I was the only one in his office and I had to do something of everything. Walter took great pains in explaining things to me - pains that no other architect ever took.[Hackl, Martin.]
John Van Bergen Biography
," pg. 6, excerpt from letter to historian, H. Allen Brooks, August 1966. Retrieved 9 June 2007.
Van Bergen remained with Griffin as his only apprentice until October 1908.[ After he left Griffin's office Van Bergen enrolled in Chicago Technical College to work toward his architectural license, at the same time he went to work for E.E. Roberts, an architect closely associated with the Prairie School.][ In 1909 he left Chicago Technical College and began working with architect Frank Lloyd Wright.][ He joined Wright before he was a licensed architect and went to work in his studio. Van Bergen was the last architect added to Wright's studio and while there he was put in charge of finishing many Frank Lloyd Wright projects.][ Working for Wright he did working drawings and was supervisor for the ]Robie House
The Frederick C. Robie House is a U.S. National Historic Landmark now on the campus of the University of Chicago in the South Side neighborhood of Hyde Park in Chicago, Illinois. Built between 1909 and 1910, the building was designed as a sing ...
and the Mrs. Thomas Gale House.[ Van Bergen designed many Prairie style residences in and around Chicago, especially in the suburbs of Oak Park and River Forest.][Ryerson & Burnham Archives: Collection Descriptions]
, John S. Van Bergen Collection description, Libraries and Archives, ''The Art Institute of Chicago''. Retrieved 25 May 2007. Of the architects closely associated with Wright, Van Bergen and Francis Conroy Sullivan
Francis Conroy Sullivan (July 2, 1882 – April 4, 1929) was a Canadian architect.
The only Canadian pupil of Frank Lloyd Wright aside from Roger d'Astous, Sullivan worked in the Oak Park studio in 1907 but returned to Ottawa in 1908. Sulliv ...
were the two least known.[ Van Bergen's work was very much cast in a similar manner to that of Wright's early Prairie work and some of Van Bergen's designs are among the most striking within the school.][Twombly, Robert. ]
Frank Lloyd Wright:His Life and His Architecture
'' (Google Books
Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...
), Wiley-IEEE, 1987, pg. 111, (). Retrieved 26 May 2007. When Wright left for Europe in late 1909 Van Bergen, along with Isabel Roberts, remained behind to close Wright's studio and help end the Oak Park, Illinois phase of Wright's career.[Richard Cluever House]
, ( PDF), National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, HAARGIS Database, ''Illinois Historic Preservation Agency''. Retrieved 10 June 2007. After Van Bergen left Wright's studio he briefly worked for another former Wright employee, William Eugene Drummond
William Eugene Drummond (March 28, 1876 – September 13, 1948) was a Chicago Prairie School architect.
Early years and education
He was born in Newark, New Jersey, the son of carpenter and cabinet maker Eugene Drummond and his wife Ida Marietta ...
.[
He received his architect's license in 1911, left Drummond's practice, and started his own practice.][ Van Bergen's first design commission was for the Elizabeth Manson House in Oak Park. The permit for the home was dated August 9, 1911, and the permit for the garage, which Van Bergen also designed was dated December 30, 1911. The original garage has since been replaced. While the interior design is still immature the home's massing and flow already have the unique subtlety characteristic of Van Bergen's work.][
Little research has been done on Van Bergen's career because a 1964 fire destroyed his ]Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Co ...
home along with many of his architectural drawings and records.[Hackl, Marty]
John S. Van Bergen
," ''The Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest'', May 2000. Retrieved 25 May 2007. For many years the assumption by those who studied the Prairie School was that there were few records of Van Bergen's work thus the search would be fruitless. Despite this fire, researchers are rediscovering Van Bergen's work, much of which still remains standing.[
]
Style and works
Van Bergen designed Prairie style homes, influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, as demonstrated in this quote from Van Bergen:
Since the American architect has a great opportunity as a leader of the people toward honesty, simplicity and directness, he can educate their tastes and control, to a great extent, their morals and happiness.[Clark, Clifford Edward. ]
The American Family Home, 1800-1960
', (Google Books
Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...
), University of North Carolina Press, 1986, pg. 146, (). Retrieved 26 May 2007.
Van Bergen's homes can be found throughout northern Illinois. Three of his Prairie style homes with nearly identical layouts can be found in the A.O. Anderson House in DeKalb, Illinois, the Max and Cecile Przyborski Residence in North Chicago, Illinois and the C. Percy Skillin Residence in Wilmette, Illinois
Wilmette is a village in New Trier Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. Bordering Lake Michigan and Evanston, Illinois, it is located north of Chicago's downtown district. Wilmette had a population of 27,087 at the 2010 census. The ...
. All three buildings are almost identical and were all probably built around 1913.[Hackl, Martin.]
Catalog: The Work of John Van Bergen, 1865-1969
," The Work of John S. Van Bergen, Architect, 2001. Retrieved 26 May 2007.
Another notable home designed by Van Bergen can be found in the Chicago suburb of Maywood, Illinois. The Richard Cluever House
The Richard Cluever House is a historic house at 601 1st Avenue in Maywood, Illinois. Built in 1913–14, the house was designed by noted Prairie School architect John S. Van Bergen. Van Bergen worked for Frank Lloyd Wright before starting his o ...
is a large estate which not only represents an exceptionally large Prairie style design but also notable for its landscape design
Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practiced by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice, landscape design bridges the space between landscape architecture and gard ...
which was created by Jens Jensen Jens Jensen may refer to:
* Jens Jensen (footballer) (1890–1957), Danish football (soccer) player who played one game for the Denmark national football team
* Jens Jensen (landscape architect) (1860–1951), Danish-born landscape architect in Chi ...
, famous landscape architect. The landscaping includes an artificial pond and stream complete with a limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
bridge. The stream's water is pumped from the nearby Des Plaines River
The Des Plaines River () is a river that flows southward for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 13, 2011 through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois''American Her ...
.[ In his hometown of Oak Park Van Bergen designed the Charles Flitcraft House in 1914 and then in 1923 he designed a unique, underground garage addition for the home. The driveway ]retaining wall
Retaining walls are relatively rigid walls used for supporting soil laterally so that it can be retained at different levels on the two sides.
Retaining walls are structures designed to restrain soil to a slope that it would not naturally keep to ...
is made of the original rough-cut and stratified limestone, a style Van Bergen used in many houses after the 1920s.[
The renowned Prairie style, “ Fireproof House for $5,000”, was a design developed by Frank Lloyd Wright and later adapted by Van Bergen in his practice. The design was intended to serve as an attractive model of space and cost efficiency. Van Bergen designed many as sixteen variations of this plan in Oak Park alone from 1911 through 1923. Built in 1913, “The Mary Greenlees Yerkes Residence” is a fine example of this. What also adds to the unique character of this home is a specifically designed upstairs art studio, for then noted local artist ]Mary Agnes Yerkes
Mary Agnes Yerkes, ( ; August 9, 1886 – November 8, 1989), was an American Impressionist painter, photographer and artisan. She was skilled in the media of oil, pastel and watercolor. Her professional career was cut short by the Great Depres ...
, over its main entrance. The "Mary Greenlees Yerkes Residence" is an Oak Park Preservation Trust 2001 award recipient.
Prairie style homes designed by Van Bergen are often considered "excellent" or "outstanding" examples of the style and some of them have been declared local landmarks.[1120 Michigan Avenue – The Alfred Bersbach House]
," Significant Structures, ''Village of Wilmette Historic Preservation Commission''. Retrieved 27 May 2007.
," Chicago Landmarks, ''CityofChicago.org''. Retrieved 27 May 2007. The city of Chicago declared the Miller House, a 1915 example of Van Bergen's Prairie style on South Paxton Avenue, a landmark on December 1, 1993.[ The Miller House was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1991.] In the suburb of Wilmette the Bresbach House, another example of Van Bergen's 1910s work, is a local landmark.[
File:Frank Wood Bungalow.jpg, Frank Wood Bungalow; Maywood, Illinois 1914
File:DeKalb Il Anderson House10.jpg, Anderson House; DeKalb, Illinois 1913-16
]
References
*Hackl, Martin.
John Van Bergen Biography
" ''The Work of John Van Bergen Architect''. Retrieved 26 May 2007.
*Bigolin, Steve.
The Landmarks of Barb City - Part 28
" ''Daily Chronicle'', 11 October 2004. Retrieved 27 May 2007.
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Bergen, John S.
20th-century American architects
Artists from Oak Park, Illinois
1885 births
1969 deaths