Harrison P. Young House

The Harrison P. Young House is a home in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Illinois, United States. The 1870s era building was remodeled extensively by famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, early in his career, in 1895. The home's remodeling incorporated elements that would later be found in Wright's pioneering, early modern Prairie style. Some of the remodel work included setting the home back an additional 16 ft (4.88 m) from the street and an overhanging porch over the driveway. The House is similar in some ways to Wright's other early work and was influenced by his first teacher, Joseph Silsbee. The house is considered a contributing property to both a local and federally Registered Historic District.

Harrison P. Young House
LocationOak Park, Cook County, Illinois, USA
Coordinates41°53′32″N 87°47′49″W
Built1895[1]
ArchitectFrank Lloyd Wright
Architectural styleTudor Revival, Gothic Revival (Medieval Revival)[2]
Part ofFrank Lloyd Wright-Prairie School of Architecture Historic District (ID73000699[3])
Added to NRHPDecember 4, 1973

Architecture

The Harrison P. Young House was first built during the 1870s for Harrison P. Young based upon a design by William E. Coman. In 1895 it was remodeled by famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright for the same client.[4] The Young House is atypical to the other design work by Wright found in the neighborhood, though, its steeply pitched roof is closely identified with some of his other early work.[4][5] The Young House was perhaps most influenced by Wright's design for the Nathan G. Moore House, which was designed during the same period in a Tudor Revival style.[2] Wright's 1895 remodel was significant and included structural modifications; before any other work began the house was pushed back an additional 16 ft (4.88 m) from the street.[4]

Following on, Wright affixed a large addition to the home, faced with narrow banded clapboarding (found in much of Wright's early work), the addition held a new living room, second-floor bedroom and a large porch. Wright's sweeping, utilitarian porch overhangs, meant to allow access to the carriage during the rain, were cantilevered over the entry drive. It is the sweep of Wright's eaves, throughout the remodel, that give the home a distinctly modern Wrightian character. The high-pitched gabled roof is reminiscent of the roof lines in the Irving Clark House in suburban LaGrange, Illinois. In the Clark house too, the main gable of the house is bisected by another perpendicular gable. Both homes also feature prominent chimneys constructed from Roman brick. Chimneys such as these became hallmarks of Wright's Prairie style work and of his work throughout his career. The large chimney is symbolic of the significance of the hearth in a warm, family-centered environment.[4]

In the Young House some of the elements that Wright would go to use in his signature early modern Prairie style are recognizable. The most obvious element which is immediately visible is the thin, narrow clapboarding, which provides some of the horizontal emphasis for which Prairie style is known. Other features are more representative of Wright's earliest work with architect Joseph Silsbee, such as the soaring roof lines.[4]

Significance

The house is most significant for the preview it gives of Wright's Prairie style, and the home utilizes many elements that would later become an important part of that school. The house is also recognized by the United States federal government as a contributing property to the Frank Lloyd Wright-Prairie School of Architecture Historic District. The village of Oak Park has its own, local version of the federal historic district and the Young House is part of that district as well.[6] The federal Frank Lloyd Wright Historic District was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on December 4, 1973.[3]

See also

References
  • McAlester, Virginia & Lee. A Field Guide to American Houses, Alfred A. Knopf, Inc, New York: 1984, pp. 439–451, (ISBN 0394739698)
  • Storrer, William Allin. The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion. University Of Chicago Press, 2006, ISBN 0-226-77621-2 (S.036)

Notes
  1. Frank Lloyd Wright Architectural Guide Map, Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust.
  2. "H.P. Young House," Oak Park Tourist, excerpted from: Sprague, Paul E. Guide to Frank Lloyd Wright & Prairie School Architecture in Oak Park Oak Park Bicentennial Commission of the American Revolution and Oak Park Landmarks Commission, Village of Oak Park: 1986, (ISBN 0961691506). Retrieved 26 June 2007.
  3. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  4. O'Gorman, Thomas J. Frank Lloyd Wright's Chicago, Thunder Bay Press, San Diego: 2004, pp.82-85, (ISBN 1592231276).
  5. Heinz, Thomas A. The Vision of Frank Lloyd Wright, Chartwell Books, Inc., Edison, New Jersey: 2006, p.65, (ISBN 0785821457).
  6. "Oak Park Historic Landmarks Archived 2011-07-24 at the Wayback Machine," (PDF), 8 November 2006, Village of Oak Park. Retrieved 26 June 2007.
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