Wingspread, also known as the Herbert F. Johnson House, is a historic house in

Wind Point, Wisconsin Wind Point is a village in Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,651 at the 2020 census. Geography Wind Point is located at (42.782452, -87.774173). According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total ...

. It was built in 1938–39 to a design by

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 ...

for Herbert Fisk Johnson Jr., then the president of S.C. Johnson, and was considered by Wright to be one of his most elaborate and expensive house designs to date. The property is now a conference center operated by The Johnson Foundation. and It was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1989.

Description and history

Wingspread stands near the center of the Wind Point peninsula, a triangular protrusion into

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

north of the city of

Racine Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditio ...

. The approximately of landscaped grounds form an integral part of the architectural experience, having a landscaping plan also developed by Wright in emulation of a prairie setting. The house is approached from the north by a long winding drive. It consists of a central hub, from which four long arms radiate. Each of the wings originally housed a different function: parents' wing, children's wing, service wing, and guest wing, with the public spaces in the center. The hub appears as a domed structure, with

clerestory window In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...

s on the sides, and a viewing platform at the top. The house was built in 1938–39. Its construction was overseen by a young

John Lautner John Edward Lautner (16 July 1911 – 24 October 1994) was an American architect. Following an apprenticeship in the mid-1930s with the Taliesin Fellowship led by Frank Lloyd Wright, Lautner opened his own practice in 1938, where he worked for th ...

. Wright's client, Herbert Fisk Johnson Jr. was also a corporate client, for whom Wright designed the

Johnson Wax Headquarters Johnson Wax Headquarters is the world headquarters and administration building of S. C. Johnson & Son in Racine, Wisconsin. Designed by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright for the company's president, Herbert F. "Hib" Johnson, the building was c ...

Building in Racine, which was built at about the same time. The house, at 14,000 sq feet, is one of the largest of Wright-designed homes. It is also considered to be the last of Wright's

Prairie School 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 in ...

inspired designs, and was one of his most expensive residential designs. The Johnson family donated the property to The Johnson Foundation in 1959 as an international educational conference facility. It is also open to the public for tours. The property was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1975, and was designated a

in 1989.

Gallery

Wingspread 1.jpg, Interior view of chimney seeper and ceiling in main living area Wingspread Entrance 1.jpg, Entrance in 2016

References

*Storrer, William Allin. ''The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion''. University Of Chicago Press, 2006, (S.239)

External links

Wingspread web sitePhotos on Arcaid
{{S. C. Johnson family Frank Lloyd Wright buildings Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Wisconsin Houses in Racine County, Wisconsin National Historic Landmarks in Wisconsin Houses completed in 1939 Historic house museums in Wisconsin Museums in Racine County, Wisconsin National Register of Historic Places in Racine County, Wisconsin 1939 establishments in Wisconsin

Description and history

Gallery

See also

References

External links