Darwin D. Martin House
Encyclopedia
The Darwin D. Martin House Complex, also known as the Darwin Martin House State Historic Site, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright
and built between 1903 and 1905. Located at 125 Jewett Parkway in Buffalo, New York
, it is considered to be one of the most important projects from Wright's Prairie School
era, and ranks along with The Guggenheim
in New York City
and Fallingwater
in Pennsylvania
among his greatest works.
Wright scholar Robert McCarter said of it:
, a businessman, and his wife Isabelle.
Martin and his brother, William E. Martin, were co-owners of the E-Z Stove Polish Company based in Chicago
. In 1902 William commissioned Wright to build him a home in Oak Park
, the resultant William E. Martin House built in 1903. Upon viewing his brother's home Martin was significantly impressed to visit Wright's Studio
, and persuaded Wright to view his property in Buffalo, where he planned to build two houses.
Martin was instrumental in selecting Wright as the architect for the Larkin Administration Building
, in downtown Buffalo
, Wright's first major commercial project, in 1904. Martin was the secretary of the Larkin Soap Company and consequently Wright designed houses for other Larkin employees William R. Heath
and Walter V. Davidson
. Wright also designed the E-Z Stove Polish Company's Factory
built in 1905.
Wright designed the complex as an integrated composition of connecting buildings, consisting of the primary building, the Martin House, a long pergola
connecting with a conservatory
, a carriage house-stable
and a smaller residence, the Barton House, which shares the site and was built for George F. Barton and his wife Delta, Darwin Martin's sister. The complex also includes a gardener’s cottage, the last building completed.
Martin, disappointed with the small size of the conservatory, had a 60ft (18m) long greenhouse
constructed between the gardener's cottage and the carriage house, to supply flowers and plants for the buildings and grounds. This greenhouse was not designed by Wright, and Martin ignored Wright's offer "To put a little architecture on it".
Over the next twenty years a great long-term friendship grew between Wright and Martin, to the extent that the Martins provided financial assistance and other support to Wright as his career unfolded.
Some twenty years later, in 1926, Wright designed the second major complex for the Martin family, Graycliff
, a summer estate overlooking Lake Erie
in nearby Derby, NY
. The Blue-Sky Mausoleum
Wright designed for the Martins in 1928, but never built, was finally installed at Buffalo's Forest Lawn Cemetery
in 2004.
The complex exemplifies Wright's Prairie School
ideal and is comparable with other notable works from this period in his career, such as the Robie House
in Chicago and the Dana-Thomas House
in Springfield, Illinois
. Wright was especially fond of the Martin House design, referring to it for some 50 years as his "opus", and calling the complex "A well-nigh perfect composition".
In 1900 Edward Bok
of the Curtis Publishing Company
, bent on improving American homes, invited architects to publish designs in the Ladies' Home Journal
, the plans of which readers could purchase for five dollars. Subsequently the Wright design "A Home in a Prairie Town" was published in February of 1901 and first introduced the term "Prairie Home". The Martin House, designed in 1903, bears a striking resemblance to that design. The facade
s are almost identical, except for the front entrance, and the Martin House repeats most of the Journal House ground floor. An awkward failure was no direct connection from the kitchen to the dining room. The Journal House had a serving pantry, however Wright was forced to give this up in order to accommodate the pergola.
Of particular significance are the fifteen distinctive patterns of nearly 400 art glass windows
that Wright designed for the entire complex, some of which contain over 750 individual pieces of jewel-like iridescent glass, that act as “light screens” to visually connect exterior views with the spaces within. More patterns of art glass were designed for the Martin House than for any other of Wright's Prairie Houses.
Walter Burley Griffin
landscaped the grounds, which were created as integral to the architectural design. A semi-circular garden which contained a wide variety of plant species, chosen for their blossoming cycles to ensure blooms throughout the growing season, surrounded the Martin House verandah
. The garden included two sculptures by Wright collaborator Richard Bock
.
The Complex is located within the Parkside East Historic District
of Buffalo, which was laid out by renowned American landscape architect
Frederick Law Olmsted
in 1876. Darwin Martin purchased the land in 1902. Construction began in 1903, and Wright signed off on the project in 1907. The original complete Martin House Complex was 29080ft2 (2700m2).
Built between 1904 & 1905 the Martin House is distinguished from Wright's other prairie style houses by its unusually large size and open plan, and is one of the largest built. Martin had imposed no budget and Wright is believed to have spent close to $300,000. By comparison Martin's brother's house was in the vicinity of $5000, and the Ladies' Home Journal design quoted at $7000. On the ground floor a library, dining room, and living room all open into each other, with the dining room continuing out to a large covered porch. The porch at the east end is balanced by the porte-cochere
at the opposite end. On the second floor there are eight bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a sewing room. The Martin House is located at the south end of the complex, at 125 Jewett Parkway, Buffalo.
Construction on the Barton House began first in 1903 and not only was it the first building of the complex to be completed but also the first of Wright's in Buffalo. The principal living spaces are concentrated in the center two story portion of the house where the reception, living and dining areas open into each other. The two main bedrooms are on the second story, at either end of a narrow hall. The kitchen is at the north end, while an open porch is at the south. The Barton House is on the east side of the complex, at 118 Summit Avenue, Buffalo.
Over the years the Carriage House
served a number of purposes. Originally as a stable
with horse stalls, a hay loft, and storage for a carriage
. In later years as a garage
with a service area for a car, and an upstairs apartment for a chauffeur
. It also contained the boilers for the complex's heating system. The Carriage House was built between 1903 & 1905. The original structure was demolished in 1962, and rebuilt during the restoration between 2004 & 2007. The Carriage House is at the north end of the complex, directly north of the Martin House porte-cochere, to the west of the Conservatory.
Built in 1909 of wood and stucco
the Gardener's Cottage is so modest in size that a boxy configuration appears to have been inevitable, contrary to Wright's ideal of opening up the confining "box" of traditional American houses. Nevertheless, Wright managed to create an illusion of the pier and cantilever
principle that characterized the Martin House by placing tall rectangular panels at each corner of the building. The gardener was Reuben Polder who had to provide fresh flowers daily for every room in the Martin House, a task which he completed until Darwin Martin died in 1935. The Gardener's Cottage is on the west side of the complex, at 285 Woodward Avenue, Buffalo.
Built for plant growing the Conservatory
features a glass and metal roof supported by brick piers. A plaster cast
of the Winged Victory of Samothrace
stands at the entrance. The original conservatory was demolished in 1962, and rebuilt between 2004 & 2007 as part of the restoration. The Conservatory is at the north end of the complex between the Carriage House and the Barton House.
The pergola
runs from the entrance hall of the Martin House to the entrance of the conservatory, and is about 100ft (30m) long.
The original pergola was demolished in 1962, and was rebuilt between 2004 & 2007. The Pergola is at the center of the complex, running north-south between the Martin House and the Conservatory.
, the Great Depression
, and subsequently Darwin Martin's death in 1935, the family abandoned the house in 1937. Martin's son, D.R. Martin, had attempted to donate the house to the city
or the university
to be used as a library
but his offer was rejected. By 1937 the complex had already begun to deteriorate, the walls at the front of the house were crumbling, and the conservatory hadn't be used for several years due to a leak in the heating system. Over the next two decades, it remained vacant, was considerably vandalized, and deteriorated further. In 1946 the city took control over the property in a tax foreclosure
sale. Purchased in 1951 by the Catholic
Diocese
of Buffalo, with plans to turn the complex into a summer retreat for their priests, it remained empty. Coincidentally 1951 was also the year Graycliff
was sold to the Piarists
, a Catholic teaching order. The complex was purchased privately in 1955 with the Martin House converted into three apartments, the grounds sub-divided
, with the carriage house, conservatory, and pergola demolished, and a pair of apartment buildings constructed in the 1960s. In 1967 the complex was purchased by the University at Buffalo
, for use as the University President's
residence. The University continued the sub-division with the Barton House sold in 1967 and the Gardener's Cottage soon after. The University attempted restoration of the Martin House, although this consisted mainly of slight modernizations, several pieces of original furniture were located. The complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1975, and then became a National Historic Landmark
in 1986.
with a mandate to restore the complex and to open it as a public house museum in its 1907 condition. The Barton House was purchased on behalf of the MHRC in 1994 and the title to the Martin House was transferred from the University at Buffalo to the MHRC in 2002. The restoration began with Buffalo architects Hamilton Houston Lownie Architects (HHL) hired to restore the roof of the Martin House. The Gardener's Cottage was purchased in 2006, and the demolished carriage house, conservatory, and pergola were reconstructed and completed in 2007. The entire restoration is planned to be completed in 2009 or 2010. HHL continue to lead the restoration effort, with the final stages to include the return of or recreation of the art glass windows and furniture that Wright originally designed for the complex.
This is the first time that a demolished Wright structure has been rebuilt in the United States.
One of Richard Bock's sculptures, Spring, now located in the Bock Museum at Greenville College
, was copied in 2008.
Currently the MHRC operate guided public tours and present educational programs for volunteers and the general public. In 2008, the Gardener's Cottage was finally included on the tours of the complex.
The Eleanor & Wilson Greatbatch Pavilion Visitor Center, designed by Toshiko Mori, opened March 12, 2009.
Other buildings by Frank Lloyd Wright in the Buffalo area:
And:
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
and built between 1903 and 1905. Located at 125 Jewett Parkway in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, it is considered to be one of the most important projects from Wright's Prairie School
Prairie School
Prairie School was a late 19th and early 20th century architectural style, most common to the Midwestern United States.The works of the Prairie School architects are usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands,...
era, and ranks along with The Guggenheim
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and Fallingwater
Fallingwater
Fallingwater or Kaufmann Residence is a house designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1935 in rural southwestern Pennsylvania, 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh...
in Pennsylvania
Bear Run (Youghiogheny River)
Bear Run is a tributary of the Youghiogheny River in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, in the United States.Bear Run is in the Appalachian Mountains and part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area...
among his greatest works.
Wright scholar Robert McCarter said of it:
"It can be argued that the Martin House Complex ... is the most important house design of the first half of Wright's career, matched only by FallingwaterFallingwaterFallingwater or Kaufmann Residence is a house designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1935 in rural southwestern Pennsylvania, 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh...
over 30 years later."
History
The Martin House Complex was the home of Darwin D. MartinDarwin D. Martin
Darwin D. Martin was an early 20th Century New York State businessman best known for the house he commissioned from Frank Lloyd Wright.-Early life:...
, a businessman, and his wife Isabelle.
Martin and his brother, William E. Martin, were co-owners of the E-Z Stove Polish Company based in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. In 1902 William commissioned Wright to build him a home in Oak Park
Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park, Illinois is a suburb bordering the west side of the city of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is the twenty-fifth largest municipality in Illinois. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago due to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' Blue and Green lines,...
, the resultant William E. Martin House built in 1903. Upon viewing his brother's home Martin was significantly impressed to visit Wright's Studio
Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio
The Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio at 951 Chicago Avenue in Oak Park, Illinois, has been restored by the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust to its appearance in 1909, the last year Frank Lloyd Wright lived there with his family. Frank Lloyd Wright purchased the property and built the home in...
, and persuaded Wright to view his property in Buffalo, where he planned to build two houses.
Martin was instrumental in selecting Wright as the architect for the Larkin Administration Building
Larkin Administration Building
The Larkin Building was designed in 1904 by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1906 for the Larkin Soap Company of Buffalo, New York. The five story dark red brick building used pink tinted mortar and utilized steel frame construction. It was noted for many innovations, including air conditioning,...
, in downtown Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, Wright's first major commercial project, in 1904. Martin was the secretary of the Larkin Soap Company and consequently Wright designed houses for other Larkin employees William R. Heath
William R. Heath House
The William R. Heath House, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, built between 1904 & 1905, and is located at 76 Soldiers Place in Buffalo, New York. It is built in the Prairie School architectural style....
and Walter V. Davidson
Walter V. Davidson House
The Walter V. Davidson House, located at 57 Tillinghast Place in Buffalo, New York, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1908. It is an example of Wright's Prairie School architectural style...
. Wright also designed the E-Z Stove Polish Company's Factory
E-Z Polish Factory
The E-Z Polish Factory is a building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Built in 1905, the E-Z Polish Company were manufacturers of shoe and stove polish....
built in 1905.
Wright designed the complex as an integrated composition of connecting buildings, consisting of the primary building, the Martin House, a long pergola
Pergola
A pergola, arbor or arbour is a garden feature forming a shaded walkway, passageway or sitting area of vertical posts or pillars that usually support cross-beams and a sturdy open lattice, often upon which woody vines are trained...
connecting with a conservatory
Conservatory (greenhouse)
A conservatory is a room having glass roof and walls, typically attached to a house on only one side, used as a greenhouse or a sunroom...
, a carriage house-stable
Carriage house
A carriage house, also called remise or coach house, is an outbuilding which was originally built to house horse-drawn carriages and the related tack.In Great Britain the farm building was called a Cart Shed...
and a smaller residence, the Barton House, which shares the site and was built for George F. Barton and his wife Delta, Darwin Martin's sister. The complex also includes a gardener’s cottage, the last building completed.
Martin, disappointed with the small size of the conservatory, had a 60ft (18m) long greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
constructed between the gardener's cottage and the carriage house, to supply flowers and plants for the buildings and grounds. This greenhouse was not designed by Wright, and Martin ignored Wright's offer "To put a little architecture on it".
Over the next twenty years a great long-term friendship grew between Wright and Martin, to the extent that the Martins provided financial assistance and other support to Wright as his career unfolded.
Some twenty years later, in 1926, Wright designed the second major complex for the Martin family, Graycliff
Graycliff
The Graycliff estate was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and was built between 1926 and 1931. It is located about 20 minutes south of downtown Buffalo, New York, at 6472 Old Lake Shore Road in Derby, New York...
, a summer estate overlooking Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
in nearby Derby, NY
Derby, New York
Derby, New York is a hamlet in Erie County, New York, USA. It is the Postal Address for much of the Town of Evans, within which Derby is fully contained. The Derby zip code is 14047. Derby is also home to the North Evans fire District which includes Highland Hose Volunteer Fire Company and the...
. The Blue-Sky Mausoleum
Blue Sky Mausoleum
Blue Sky Mausoleum, in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York, is the recent completion of a 1928 design by Frank Lloyd Wright as a commercial cemetery project...
Wright designed for the Martins in 1928, but never built, was finally installed at Buffalo's Forest Lawn Cemetery
Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo
Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York was founded in 1849 by Charles E. Clark. It covers over 250 acres and over 152,000 are buried there. Notable graves include U.S. President Millard Fillmore, singer Rick James, and inventor Lawrence Dale Bell...
in 2004.
Design
Prairie School
Prairie School was a late 19th and early 20th century architectural style, most common to the Midwestern United States.The works of the Prairie School architects are usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands,...
ideal and is comparable with other notable works from this period in his career, such as the Robie House
Robie House
The Frederick C. Robie House is a U.S. National Historic Landmark in the Chicago, Illinois neighborhood of Hyde Park at 5757 S. Woodlawn Avenue on the South Side. It was designed and built between 1908 and 1910 by architect Frank Lloyd Wright and is renowned as the greatest example of his Prairie...
in Chicago and the Dana-Thomas House
Dana-Thomas House State Historic Site
The Dana-Thomas House or Susan Lawrence Dana House or Dana House is an expression of architect Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie Style...
in Springfield, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
. Wright was especially fond of the Martin House design, referring to it for some 50 years as his "opus", and calling the complex "A well-nigh perfect composition".
The main motives and indications were:
First - To reduce the number of necessary parts of the house and the separate rooms to a minimum, and make all come together as an enclosed space--so divided that light, air and vista permeated the whole with a sense of unity.
- — Frank Lloyd Wright, on architecture.
In 1900 Edward Bok
Edward W. Bok
Edward William Bok was a Dutch born American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He was editor of the Ladies Home Journal for thirty years...
of the Curtis Publishing Company
Curtis Publishing Company
The Curtis Publishing Company, founded in 1891 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, became one of the largest and most influential publishers in the United States during the early 20th century. The company's publications included the Ladies' Home Journal and The Saturday Evening Post, The American Home,...
, bent on improving American homes, invited architects to publish designs in the Ladies' Home Journal
Ladies' Home Journal
Ladies' Home Journal is an American magazine which first appeared on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States...
, the plans of which readers could purchase for five dollars. Subsequently the Wright design "A Home in a Prairie Town" was published in February of 1901 and first introduced the term "Prairie Home". The Martin House, designed in 1903, bears a striking resemblance to that design. The facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
s are almost identical, except for the front entrance, and the Martin House repeats most of the Journal House ground floor. An awkward failure was no direct connection from the kitchen to the dining room. The Journal House had a serving pantry, however Wright was forced to give this up in order to accommodate the pergola.
Of particular significance are the fifteen distinctive patterns of nearly 400 art glass windows
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
that Wright designed for the entire complex, some of which contain over 750 individual pieces of jewel-like iridescent glass, that act as “light screens” to visually connect exterior views with the spaces within. More patterns of art glass were designed for the Martin House than for any other of Wright's Prairie Houses.
Walter Burley Griffin
Walter Burley Griffin
Walter Burley Griffin was an American architect and landscape architect, who is best known for his role in designing Canberra, Australia's capital city...
landscaped the grounds, which were created as integral to the architectural design. A semi-circular garden which contained a wide variety of plant species, chosen for their blossoming cycles to ensure blooms throughout the growing season, surrounded the Martin House verandah
Verandah
A veranda or verandah is a roofed opened gallery or porch. It is also described as an open pillared gallery, generally roofed, built around a central structure...
. The garden included two sculptures by Wright collaborator Richard Bock
Richard Bock
Richard W. Bock was an American sculptor and associate of Frank Lloyd Wright.He was particularly known for his sculptural decorations for architecture and military memorials, along with the work he conducted alongside Wright....
.
The Complex
- The Complex
The Complex is located within the Parkside East Historic District
Parkside East Historic District
Parkside East Historic District is a national historic district located at Buffalo in Erie County, New York. The district is architecturally and historically significant for its association with the 1876 Parks and Parkways Plan for the city of Buffalo developed by Frederick Law Olmsted...
of Buffalo, which was laid out by renowned American landscape architect
Landscape architecture
Landscape architecture is the design of outdoor and public spaces to achieve environmental, socio-behavioral, or aesthetic outcomes. It involves the systematic investigation of existing social, ecological, and geological conditions and processes in the landscape, and the design of interventions...
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...
in 1876. Darwin Martin purchased the land in 1902. Construction began in 1903, and Wright signed off on the project in 1907. The original complete Martin House Complex was 29080ft2 (2700m2).
- The Martin House
Built between 1904 & 1905 the Martin House is distinguished from Wright's other prairie style houses by its unusually large size and open plan, and is one of the largest built. Martin had imposed no budget and Wright is believed to have spent close to $300,000. By comparison Martin's brother's house was in the vicinity of $5000, and the Ladies' Home Journal design quoted at $7000. On the ground floor a library, dining room, and living room all open into each other, with the dining room continuing out to a large covered porch. The porch at the east end is balanced by the porte-cochere
Porte-cochere
A porte-cochère is the architectural term for a porch- or portico-like structure at a main or secondary entrance to a building through which a horse and carriage can pass in order for the occupants to alight under cover, protected from the weather.The porte-cochère was a feature of many late 18th...
at the opposite end. On the second floor there are eight bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a sewing room. The Martin House is located at the south end of the complex, at 125 Jewett Parkway, Buffalo.
- The Barton House
Construction on the Barton House began first in 1903 and not only was it the first building of the complex to be completed but also the first of Wright's in Buffalo. The principal living spaces are concentrated in the center two story portion of the house where the reception, living and dining areas open into each other. The two main bedrooms are on the second story, at either end of a narrow hall. The kitchen is at the north end, while an open porch is at the south. The Barton House is on the east side of the complex, at 118 Summit Avenue, Buffalo.
- The Carriage House
Over the years the Carriage House
Carriage house
A carriage house, also called remise or coach house, is an outbuilding which was originally built to house horse-drawn carriages and the related tack.In Great Britain the farm building was called a Cart Shed...
served a number of purposes. Originally as a stable
Stable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...
with horse stalls, a hay loft, and storage for a carriage
Carriage
A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...
. In later years as a garage
Garage (house)
A residential garage is part of a home, or an associated building, designed or used for storing a vehicle or vehicles. In some places the term is used synonymously with "carport", though that term normally describes a structure that is not completely enclosed.- British residential garages:Those...
with a service area for a car, and an upstairs apartment for a chauffeur
Chauffeur
A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.Originally such drivers were always personal servants of the vehicle owner, but now in many cases specialist chauffeur service companies, or individual drivers provide...
. It also contained the boilers for the complex's heating system. The Carriage House was built between 1903 & 1905. The original structure was demolished in 1962, and rebuilt during the restoration between 2004 & 2007. The Carriage House is at the north end of the complex, directly north of the Martin House porte-cochere, to the west of the Conservatory.
- The Gardener's Cottage
Built in 1909 of wood and stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
the Gardener's Cottage is so modest in size that a boxy configuration appears to have been inevitable, contrary to Wright's ideal of opening up the confining "box" of traditional American houses. Nevertheless, Wright managed to create an illusion of the pier and cantilever
Cantilever
A cantilever is a beam anchored at only one end. The beam carries the load to the support where it is resisted by moment and shear stress. Cantilever construction allows for overhanging structures without external bracing. Cantilevers can also be constructed with trusses or slabs.This is in...
principle that characterized the Martin House by placing tall rectangular panels at each corner of the building. The gardener was Reuben Polder who had to provide fresh flowers daily for every room in the Martin House, a task which he completed until Darwin Martin died in 1935. The Gardener's Cottage is on the west side of the complex, at 285 Woodward Avenue, Buffalo.
- The Conservatory
Built for plant growing the Conservatory
Conservatory (greenhouse)
A conservatory is a room having glass roof and walls, typically attached to a house on only one side, used as a greenhouse or a sunroom...
features a glass and metal roof supported by brick piers. A plaster cast
Plaster cast
A plaster cast is a copy made in plaster of another 3-dimensional form. The original from which the cast is taken may be a sculpture, building, a face, a fossil or other remains such as fresh or fossilised footprints – particularly in palaeontology .Sometimes a...
of the Winged Victory of Samothrace
Winged Victory of Samothrace
The Winged Victory of Samothrace, also called the Nike of Samothrace, is a 2nd century BC marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike . Since 1884, it has been prominently displayed at the Louvre and is one of the most celebrated sculptures in the world.-Description:The Nike of Samothrace,...
stands at the entrance. The original conservatory was demolished in 1962, and rebuilt between 2004 & 2007 as part of the restoration. The Conservatory is at the north end of the complex between the Carriage House and the Barton House.
- The Pergola
The pergola
Pergola
A pergola, arbor or arbour is a garden feature forming a shaded walkway, passageway or sitting area of vertical posts or pillars that usually support cross-beams and a sturdy open lattice, often upon which woody vines are trained...
runs from the entrance hall of the Martin House to the entrance of the conservatory, and is about 100ft (30m) long.
The original pergola was demolished in 1962, and was rebuilt between 2004 & 2007. The Pergola is at the center of the complex, running north-south between the Martin House and the Conservatory.
Decline
Following the loss of the family fortune, due to the Wall Street Crash of 1929Wall Street Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , also known as the Great Crash, and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its fallout...
, the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, and subsequently Darwin Martin's death in 1935, the family abandoned the house in 1937. Martin's son, D.R. Martin, had attempted to donate the house to the city
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
or the university
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, also commonly known as the University at Buffalo or UB, is a public research university and a "University Center" in the State University of New York system. The university was founded by Millard Fillmore in 1846. UB has multiple campuses...
to be used as a library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
but his offer was rejected. By 1937 the complex had already begun to deteriorate, the walls at the front of the house were crumbling, and the conservatory hadn't be used for several years due to a leak in the heating system. Over the next two decades, it remained vacant, was considerably vandalized, and deteriorated further. In 1946 the city took control over the property in a tax foreclosure
Foreclosure
Foreclosure is the legal process by which a mortgage lender , or other lien holder, obtains a termination of a mortgage borrower 's equitable right of redemption, either by court order or by operation of law...
sale. Purchased in 1951 by the Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
Diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
of Buffalo, with plans to turn the complex into a summer retreat for their priests, it remained empty. Coincidentally 1951 was also the year Graycliff
Graycliff
The Graycliff estate was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and was built between 1926 and 1931. It is located about 20 minutes south of downtown Buffalo, New York, at 6472 Old Lake Shore Road in Derby, New York...
was sold to the Piarists
Piarists
The Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools or, in short, Piarists , is the name of the oldest Catholic educational order also known as the Scolopi, Escolapios or Poor Clerics of the Mother of God...
, a Catholic teaching order. The complex was purchased privately in 1955 with the Martin House converted into three apartments, the grounds sub-divided
Subdivision (land)
Subdivision is the act of dividing land into pieces that are easier to sell or otherwise develop, usually via a plat. The former single piece as a whole is then known in the United States as a subdivision...
, with the carriage house, conservatory, and pergola demolished, and a pair of apartment buildings constructed in the 1960s. In 1967 the complex was purchased by the University at Buffalo
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, also commonly known as the University at Buffalo or UB, is a public research university and a "University Center" in the State University of New York system. The university was founded by Millard Fillmore in 1846. UB has multiple campuses...
, for use as the University President's
Martin Meyerson
Martin Meyerson was a United States city planner and academic leader best known as the President of the University of Pennsylvania between 1970 and 1981....
residence. The University continued the sub-division with the Barton House sold in 1967 and the Gardener's Cottage soon after. The University attempted restoration of the Martin House, although this consisted mainly of slight modernizations, several pieces of original furniture were located. The complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1975, and then became a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1986.
Restoration
The Martin House Restoration Corporation (MHRC), founded in 1992, is a non-profit organizationNon-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
with a mandate to restore the complex and to open it as a public house museum in its 1907 condition. The Barton House was purchased on behalf of the MHRC in 1994 and the title to the Martin House was transferred from the University at Buffalo to the MHRC in 2002. The restoration began with Buffalo architects Hamilton Houston Lownie Architects (HHL) hired to restore the roof of the Martin House. The Gardener's Cottage was purchased in 2006, and the demolished carriage house, conservatory, and pergola were reconstructed and completed in 2007. The entire restoration is planned to be completed in 2009 or 2010. HHL continue to lead the restoration effort, with the final stages to include the return of or recreation of the art glass windows and furniture that Wright originally designed for the complex.
This is the first time that a demolished Wright structure has been rebuilt in the United States.
One of Richard Bock's sculptures, Spring, now located in the Bock Museum at Greenville College
Greenville College
Greenville College is located in Greenville, Illinois, a small Illinois city, located 45 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri on Interstate 70...
, was copied in 2008.
Currently the MHRC operate guided public tours and present educational programs for volunteers and the general public. In 2008, the Gardener's Cottage was finally included on the tours of the complex.
The Eleanor & Wilson Greatbatch Pavilion Visitor Center, designed by Toshiko Mori, opened March 12, 2009.
External links
- Martin Complex Official Site
- Darwin D. Martin House at the Historic American Building Survey
- The Buffalo News Articles regarding: Darwin D. Martin House Complex and the works of Frank Lloyd Wright
- D. D. Martin House
- Darwin D. Martin House Complex
- Eleanor and Wilson Greatbatch Pavilion, Darwin Martin House Complex
- Graycliff Official Site, member of the Great Lakes Seaway TrailSeaway TrailThe Great Lakes Seaway Trail, formerly named and commonly known as the Seaway Trail, is a National Scenic Byway in the northeastern United States, mostly contained in New York but with a small segment in Pennsylvania...
Other buildings by Frank Lloyd Wright in the Buffalo area:
- George F. Barton House
- GraycliffGraycliffThe Graycliff estate was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and was built between 1926 and 1931. It is located about 20 minutes south of downtown Buffalo, New York, at 6472 Old Lake Shore Road in Derby, New York...
- William R. Heath HouseWilliam R. Heath HouseThe William R. Heath House, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, built between 1904 & 1905, and is located at 76 Soldiers Place in Buffalo, New York. It is built in the Prairie School architectural style....
- Walter V. Davidson HouseWalter V. Davidson HouseThe Walter V. Davidson House, located at 57 Tillinghast Place in Buffalo, New York, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1908. It is an example of Wright's Prairie School architectural style...
- Blue Sky MausoleumBlue Sky MausoleumBlue Sky Mausoleum, in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York, is the recent completion of a 1928 design by Frank Lloyd Wright as a commercial cemetery project...
- Rowing BoathouseRowing BoathouseFrank Lloyd Wright's Rowing Boathouse is located at 1 Rotary Row, Buffalo, New York, along the city's Black Rock Channel.-History:In 1910, at the age of 43, Frank Lloyd Wright traveled to Europe to present what would become his most beloved collection of structure illustrations: the Wasmuth Portfolio...
- Filling Station
And:
- Darwin D. Martin Photograph Collection from UBdigit - Digital Collections - University at Buffalo Libraries
- Darwin D. Martin Photograph Collection from Western New York Legacy
- Information about Buffalo's architecture: Wright Now in Buffalo
- Podcast of remarks about Buffalo architecture by Dr. Neil Levine, author of The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, and Emmet Blakeney Gleason, Professor of History of Art and Architecture at Harvard University