The J. J. Walser Jr. residence in the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, United States, neighborhood of Austin was designed 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 real estate developer Joseph Jacob Walser Jr. The cruciform two-story house is typical of Wright's Prairie School period.

History

Joseph J. and Grace Walser purchased the lot at 417 South Central Avenue (re-designated 42 North Central Avenue in 1909) in

Austin, Chicago Austin is one of 77 community areas in Chicago Located on the city's West Side, it is the third largest community area by population (behind the Near North Side and Lake View) and the second-largest geographically (behind South Deering). Aus ...

on February 20, 1903. Walser worked for his father, Jacob Walser, a real estate developer who focused on the Austin market. At the time, Central Avenue was undeveloped, despite its location near a

Lake Street Elevated Railroad The Lake Street Elevated Railroad was the second permanent elevated rapid transit line to be constructed in Chicago, Illinois. The first section of the line opened in November 1893. Its route is still used today as part of the Green Line route of ...

station. The Walser family grew up in a house one block to the north and Jacob still lived there. It is not known how the Walsers came in contact with

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

. As developers, the Walsers were more knowledgeable about local architectural trends and probably were aware of Wright's rising status. A permit for Walser's house was approved on May 22, 1903. The house cost $4,000 and was completed by the end of the year. It is not certain who was tasked with building the structure, as C. Iverson is listed on the permit but later sources attribute it to Elmer E. Andrews. After completion, the house appeared in "Plaster Houses and their Construction", an article in ''

House Beautiful ''House Beautiful'' is an interior decorating magazine that focuses on decorating and the domestic arts. First published in 1896, it is currently published by the Hearst Corporation, who began publishing it in 1934. It is the oldest still-publi ...

'' in September 1905. The house was also part of Wright's

Wasmuth Portfolio The ''Wasmuth Portfolio'' (1910) is a two-volume folio of 100 lithographs of the work of the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959). Titled ', it was published in Germany in 1911 by the Berlin publisher Ernst Wasmuth, with an accom ...

. The Walsers lived in the house for seven years. In 1910, when the Walsers moved six blocks east, the house was sold to George Donnersberger. Since then, the house has had a dozen owners, although it has remained in the hands of the Teague family since 1970. The house was recognized by the City of Chicago as a Chicago Landmark on March 30, 1984, and recognized by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

with a listing 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 ...

on April 23, 2013.

Architecture

The east (main) facade of the Walser House faces Central Avenue. Today, it is one of the few single-family homes in the neighborhood, as most of Central Avenue is now walk-ups and apartment buildings. The exterior of the house is mostly white stucco. A two-story living room and bedroom block dominated the main facade. Typical of the Prairie School, it has a low-pitched hipped roof with deep overhanging eaves. Along the second story, immediately under the roof-line, is a horizontal band of five square casement windows with dark wood frames. The first floor has a centered, large window assembly with a picture window flanked with narrow casement windows. Flanking the main section are one-story porches, recessed from the front of the house. These porches were enclosed some time after 1903. The main entrance is to the west of the southern porch; like many of Wright's designs, it is hidden from street view. An addition, one room deep, was constructed on the west some time after 1903. The garage in the rear of the property was built at or near the time of the house construction. The design of the house served as the basis for Wright's Barton House in Buffalo, New York.

References

*William Allin Storrer, ''The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion''. University of Chicago Press, 2006, , (S.091)

External links

A site about Walser House
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walser, J. J., Residence Frank Lloyd Wright buildings Houses completed in 1903 Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Chicago Chicago Landmarks

History

Architecture

See also

References

External links