|
|
|
Joseph and
Helen Husser Residence, Chicago (1899 - S.046) |
|
|
|
|
|
Reconstruction of the East Elevation |
|
|
|
|
With
the discovery of Purcell image three, viewed from the
Southeast, we undertook the task of reconstructing drawings
of the East side and elevation of the Husser Residence.
Information of the east side is very limited. The Floor Plan
for the Lower Level is incomplete. Records are available for
the First Level, but not the second. The North end of the
East side is also incomplete. Image three is out of focus
and lacks clarity, but offers an invaluable record of the
East side of the Husser residence.
Lower level: Wright designed
the Lower level as a basement, although it was at ground
level. This allowed the First floor (middle level) a better
view of Lake Michigan. The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely located below the Living or Dining Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to |
|
an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level.
First and Second Level: The Covered Porch on the far
left. The Living Room is just to the right. The Dining Room
Bay is on the right. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level.
The Northwest Architectural Archives at the
University of Minnesota houses the William Gray Purcell
collection. Included in the collection are five photographs
of the Husser Residence. The three exterior photographs
offer excellent details of the entrance, and possibly the
only photograph of the east side of the residence. The two
others may be the only surviving record of the interior in
existence. Photographs are courtesy of the
William Gray
Purcell Papers, Correspondence file: Frank Lloyd Wright,
Northwest Architectural Archives, University of Minnesota
Libraries, Minneapolis, MN. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Exterior Photograph #3 |
| |
 |
1) Viewed from the
Southeast. Circa 1908. Lower level: Wright designed
the Lower level as a basement, although it was at ground
level. This allowed the First floor (second level) a better
view of Lake Michigan. The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely
located below the Living Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level.
First and Second Level: The Covered Porch on the far
left. The Living Room is just to the right. The Dining Room
Bay is on the right. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Courtesy of the
William Gray
Purcell Papers, Correspondence file: Frank Lloyd Wright,
Northwest Architectural Archives, University of Minnesota
Libraries, Minneapolis, MN. |
| |
 |
1a) Lower level: Wright designed
the Lower level as a basement, although it was at ground
level. This allowed the First floor (second level) a better
view of Lake Michigan. The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely located below the Living Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level.
First and Second Level: The Covered Porch on the far
left. The Living Room is just to the right. The Dining Room
Bay is on the right. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Courtesy of the
William Gray
Purcell Papers, Northwest Architectural Archives. |
| |
 |
|
2) Floor plan for the First
level. Above the Stable to the left (North) is the
Hay Loft (West side) and the Man's Room or Servants
Room on the east side. Just to the right are two
Servants rooms and a Porch. Next is the Kitchen area
which includes the Kitchen, Pantry and an alcove which
served as a smaller informal Breakfast Dining Room. Just to
the right of the Kitchen area is the Dining Room that faced
East and a Study that faced West. Much like the windows in
Wright's Oak Park Dining Room, the windows allowed light,
but did not offer expansive views of the lake. Wright choose
rather to keep the it a more intimate setting. To the right
was the Stair Bay (West side). The Entrance to the home was
on the lower level of the Stair Bay, which lead into the
Lower Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level
and lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms. The Living Room offered expansive
views of Lake Michigan. The Covered Porch is on the far
right. Courtesy of
Henry-Russell Hitchcock, 1942. |
| |
 |
|
3) Floor plan for the Lower
level. Wright designed the Lower level as a basement,
although it was at ground level. This allowed the First
floor (second level) a better view of Lake Michigan. Wright
choose to give us only a glimpse of the rooms in the Lower
level. The Stable is on the far left. The area directly
beneath the "Breakfast Dining Room" was the Butlers Room. To the right
was the Stair Bay (West side). The Entrance to the home was
on the lower level of the Stair Bay, which lead into the
Lower Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level
and lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level. The Porte Cochere
(translated carriage porch) intersected the lower level of
the Stair Bay. |
| |
 |
|
3a) Floor plan for the Lower
level with overlay. An outline from the layout of the First
level was laid over the layout for the Lower level. What
this revealed was the Wright's layout of the Lower and First
levels were not compatible. The width of the Lower level was
compressed to match the width of the layout for the First
level. If Wright's layout for the First level was more
complete, it could be the more accurate of the two layouts. |
| |
|
 |
4) East
Elevation. Adaptation of Frank Lloyd Wright's illustration
by Douglas M. Steiner. Lower level: Wright designed
the Lower level as a basement, although it was at ground
level. This allowed the First floor (second level) a better
view of Lake Michigan. The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely located below the Living or Dining Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level. The Stables were
on the far right.
First (middle) and Second (top) Level: The Covered Porch
is on the far
left. The Living Room is just to the right. The Dining Room
Bay is in the center. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". The Kitchen is to
the right of the Dining Room Bay. The Servant's rooms are on
the far right. Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Copyright Douglas M. Steiner. |
| |
 |
4a) Detail
of the East Elevation. Adaptation of Frank Lloyd Wright's
illustration by Douglas M. Steiner. Lower level: The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely located below the Living or Dining Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level.
First (middle) and Second (top) Level: The Covered Porch
is on the far
left. The Living Room is just to the right. The Dining Room
Bay is in the center. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". The Kitchen is to
the right of the Dining Room Bay. Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Copyright Douglas M. Steiner. |
| |
 |
5) Viewed from the Southeast.
Adaptation of Frank Lloyd Wright's illustration by Douglas
M. Steiner. Lower level: Wright designed
the Lower level as a basement, although it was at ground
level. This allowed the First floor (second level) a better
view of Lake Michigan. The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely
located below the Living or Dining Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level. The Stables were
on the far right.
First (middle) and Second (top) Level: The Covered Porch
is on the far
left. The Living Room is just to the right. The Dining Room
Bay is in the center. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". The Kitchen is to
the right of the Dining Room Bay. The Servant's rooms are on
the far right. Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Copyright Douglas M. Steiner. |
|
|
 |
5a) Detail
of view from the Southeast. Adaptation of Frank Lloyd
Wright's illustration by Douglas M. Steiner. Lower level: The Lower Level housed the utilities,
heating, laundry, servant's and butler's rooms, children's
playroom and entry hall. The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely located below the Living or Dining Room.
First (middle) and Second (top) Level: The Covered Porch
is on the left. The Living Room is on the right. Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Copyright Douglas M. Steiner. |
| |
 |
5b) Detail of view from the
Southeast. Adaptation of Frank Lloyd Wright's illustration
by Douglas M. Steiner. Lower level: The Children's Playroom was mostly
likely located below the Living or Dining Room. To the left of the Dining
Room Bay is the entry to the back of the Entrance Hall. Double stairways gave access to the main level and
lead to an Entrance Hall or "foyer" situated between the
Dining and Living Rooms on the First level. The Stables were
on the far right.
First (middle) and Second (top) Level: The Living Room is
on the left. The Dining Room
Bay is in the center. Between the Living and Dining Rooms is
the Entrance Hall or "foyer". The Kitchen is to
the right of the Dining Room Bay. The Servant's rooms are on
the far right. Bedrooms are located on the
Second (top) level. Copyright Douglas M. Steiner. |
|
|
|
CLICK TO ORDER
