Heller House
Encyclopedia
The Isidore H. Heller House is a house located at 5132 South Woodlawn Avenue in the Hyde Park
community area
of Chicago
in Cook County
, Illinois
, USA. The house was designed by American architect
Frank Lloyd Wright
. The design is credited as one of the turning points in Wright's shift to geometric
, Prairie School
architecture, which is defined by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs
with broad overhang
ing eaves
, windows grouped in horizontal bands, and an integration with the landscape, which is meant to evoke native Prairie
surroundings.
The work demonstrates Wright's shift away from emulating the style of his mentor, Louis Sullivan
. Richard Bock
, a Wright collaborator and sculptor, provided some of the ornamentation, including a plaster
frieze
. The ownership history of this building demonstrates the property's evolution and development in the framework of surrounding Hyde Park buildings, and the building's location in the current community—near other Prairie School architecture—includes this building into the overall body of Lloyd Wright's work. The Heller House was designated a Chicago Landmark
on September 15, 1971, and added to the National Register of Historic Places
on March 16, 1972. On 18 August 2004, the U.S. Department of the Interior designated the house a National Historic Landmark
.
in 1847, and his wife, Ida, was born in Wisconsin
in 1857. In America, Heller worked at Wolf, Sayer, and Heller: Packers and Butcher’s Supplies, which was located on Fulton Street, Chicago, on the northwest side of the city. Heller and Ida were later married and had three children, including Walter Heller, a Chicago investment banker.
Heller purchased land in the Hyde Park area of Chicago from Jonas Hamburger on 2 January 1895 and commissioned Lloyd Wright to design the house in 1896. A building permit was issued on 13 July 1897, at a cost of $7.70, and named William Adams as the builder. The building was constructed on the 50 by lot in 1897. The total cost of the work is estimated at $12,500. In 1906, the lot was enlarged when Heller purchased an additional 25 feet (7.6 m) to the north of his original plot.
The Hellers lived in the house for about 16 years, until the death of Ida Heller on October 11, 1909. The house was sold to Francis Bickett on 18 June 1913, as records indicate that by 1915, Heller had been living in Silver Lake for some years. Bickett sold the house within a year to Charles McFarlane, and from 1924–39 the Heller House was owned and occupied by Joseph Mayer and his wife; the house became known as the "Joseph Mayer House" to local residents. The Mayers sold the home to Mr. and Mrs. Wilfred Fox in 1939, who reportedly made alterations to the home's third floor.
In 1948, George Watson purchased the home from Fox and owned it for the next 25 years, becoming the owner with the longest tenure. Lewis Bradford then bought the house in 1972, and had the exterior sandblasted. In 1977, Victor and Danielle Barcilon bought the house. They occupied it until 1987, when it was sold to David and Catherine Epstein, who sold the home to Serafino Garella and Judith Bromley, in 1995. They restored a bathroom and restored the master bedroom's fireplace
. The building was designated a National Historic Landmark in the same year. The house was then sold in 2004 again to the current inhabitants the Goldstein family, who in 2006 restored the roof of the house.
When Lloyd Wright designed the Heller House in 1896, it marked his move away from styles that were popular into an era of geometric and highly modern designs. Wright's design exhibits the influence of Wright's mentor, Louis Sullivan
, and demonstrates Wright's move towards Prairie School homes which would epitomize much of his early work. Sullivan's influence can also be seen in the floral pattern of the Richard Bock
plaster frieze on the home's third floor, although during the 1970s, restoration
work—which utilized sandblasting—destroyed much of the detail on the frieze.
The 26 by rectangular house stands 41 feet (12.5 m) high and was built with Indiana Limestone
, and yellow Roman brick
, which emphasizes the geometric and horizontal nature of the home's exterior. The house was constructed on a narrow lot, so the main entryway is located on the side of the building, similar to Wright's Warren McArthur House of 1892. The south side entrance was adorned with Classical detailing and the cantilever
ed entry lintel
, which sits on two ornately detailed stone column
s, was decorated with quatrefoil
s which were set on a stone panel. The front room is not split by a corridor or side hall, making it more spacious.
neighborhood of Chicago, an area that was influenced by the Gothic Revival work of Henry Ives Cobb
. The house blends together key elements of Wright's Prairie style and is located within a half mile of other early works. Wright's Robie House
is six blocks from the Heller House, and the Blossom House and McArthur House are nearby, in Kenwood
.
Many of the Hyde Park houses of Chicago are surrounded by elaborate gardens, and have been the subject of an ongoing neighborhood revitalization
since the late 1950s. Hyde Park experienced an explosion of growth after the Township's incorporation into the city of Chicago in 1889, the establishment of the University of Chicago
in 1892, and the Columbian Exposition in 1893. The design of the Heller House was unlike any other home in Chicago at the time it was built and was called Wright's most "outrageous" design.
Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
community area
Community areas of Chicago
Community areas in Chicago refers to the work of the Social Science Research Committee at University of Chicago which has unofficially divided the City of Chicago into 77 community areas. These areas are well-defined and static...
of 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 Cook County
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, USA. The house was designed by American architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
Frank Lloyd Wright
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...
. The design is credited as one of the turning points in Wright's shift to geometric
Geometry
Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers ....
, 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,...
architecture, which is defined by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
with broad overhang
Overhang (architecture)
An overhang in architecture is a protruding structure which may provide protection for lower levels. Overhangs on two sides of Pennsylvania Dutch barns protect doors, windows, and other lower level structure. Overhangs on all four sides of barns is common in Swiss architecture...
ing eaves
Eaves
The eaves of a roof are its lower edges. They usually project beyond the walls of the building to carry rain water away.-Etymology:"Eaves" is derived from Old English and is both the singular and plural form of the word.- Function :...
, windows grouped in horizontal bands, and an integration with the landscape, which is meant to evoke native Prairie
Prairie
Prairies are considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type...
surroundings.
The work demonstrates Wright's shift away from emulating the style of his mentor, Louis Sullivan
Louis Sullivan
Louis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...
. 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....
, a Wright collaborator and sculptor, provided some of the ornamentation, including a plaster
Plaster
Plaster is a building material used for coating walls and ceilings. Plaster starts as a dry powder similar to mortar or cement and like those materials it is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens. Unlike mortar and cement, plaster remains quite soft after setting,...
frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
. The ownership history of this building demonstrates the property's evolution and development in the framework of surrounding Hyde Park buildings, and the building's location in the current community—near other Prairie School architecture—includes this building into the overall body of Lloyd Wright's work. The Heller House was designated a Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation of the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council for historic buildings and other sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artistic, cultural,...
on September 15, 1971, and 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...
on March 16, 1972. On 18 August 2004, the U.S. Department of the Interior designated the house 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...
.
History
Little is known about Isidore H. Heller and his family, but what is known has been compiled through personal interviews as well as census and county records. Heller was born in AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
in 1847, and his wife, Ida, was born in Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
in 1857. In America, Heller worked at Wolf, Sayer, and Heller: Packers and Butcher’s Supplies, which was located on Fulton Street, Chicago, on the northwest side of the city. Heller and Ida were later married and had three children, including Walter Heller, a Chicago investment banker.
Heller purchased land in the Hyde Park area of Chicago from Jonas Hamburger on 2 January 1895 and commissioned Lloyd Wright to design the house in 1896. A building permit was issued on 13 July 1897, at a cost of $7.70, and named William Adams as the builder. The building was constructed on the 50 by lot in 1897. The total cost of the work is estimated at $12,500. In 1906, the lot was enlarged when Heller purchased an additional 25 feet (7.6 m) to the north of his original plot.
The Hellers lived in the house for about 16 years, until the death of Ida Heller on October 11, 1909. The house was sold to Francis Bickett on 18 June 1913, as records indicate that by 1915, Heller had been living in Silver Lake for some years. Bickett sold the house within a year to Charles McFarlane, and from 1924–39 the Heller House was owned and occupied by Joseph Mayer and his wife; the house became known as the "Joseph Mayer House" to local residents. The Mayers sold the home to Mr. and Mrs. Wilfred Fox in 1939, who reportedly made alterations to the home's third floor.
In 1948, George Watson purchased the home from Fox and owned it for the next 25 years, becoming the owner with the longest tenure. Lewis Bradford then bought the house in 1972, and had the exterior sandblasted. In 1977, Victor and Danielle Barcilon bought the house. They occupied it until 1987, when it was sold to David and Catherine Epstein, who sold the home to Serafino Garella and Judith Bromley, in 1995. They restored a bathroom and restored the master bedroom's fireplace
Fireplace
A fireplace is an architectural structure to contain a fire for heating and, especially historically, for cooking. A fire is contained in a firebox or firepit; a chimney or other flue allows gas and particulate exhaust to escape...
. The building was designated a National Historic Landmark in the same year. The house was then sold in 2004 again to the current inhabitants the Goldstein family, who in 2006 restored the roof of the house.
Architecture
Louis Sullivan
Louis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...
, and demonstrates Wright's move towards Prairie School homes which would epitomize much of his early work. Sullivan's influence can also be seen in the floral pattern of the 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....
plaster frieze on the home's third floor, although during the 1970s, restoration
Art conservation and restoration
Conservation-restoration, also referred to as conservation, is a profession devoted to the preservation of cultural heritage for the future. Conservation activities include examination, documentation, treatment, and preventive care...
work—which utilized sandblasting—destroyed much of the detail on the frieze.
The 26 by rectangular house stands 41 feet (12.5 m) high and was built with Indiana Limestone
Indiana Limestone
Indiana Limestone, also known as Bedford Limestone is a common regional term for Salem limestone, a geological formation primarily quarried in south central Indiana between Bloomington and Bedford....
, and yellow Roman brick
Roman brick
Roman brick can refer either to a type of brick originating in Ancient Rome and spread by the Romans to the lands they conquered; or to a modern type of brick, inspired by the ancient prototypes...
, which emphasizes the geometric and horizontal nature of the home's exterior. The house was constructed on a narrow lot, so the main entryway is located on the side of the building, similar to Wright's Warren McArthur House of 1892. The south side entrance was adorned with Classical detailing and the 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...
ed entry lintel
Lintel (architecture)
A lintel can be a load-bearing building component, a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. It is often found over portals, doors, and windows.-Structural uses:...
, which sits on two ornately detailed stone column
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
s, was decorated with quatrefoil
Quatrefoil
The word quatrefoil etymologically means "four leaves", and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts.-In heraldry:In heraldic terminology, a quatrefoil is a representation of a flower with four petals, or a leaf with four leaflets . It is sometimes shown "slipped", i.e. with an...
s which were set on a stone panel. The front room is not split by a corridor or side hall, making it more spacious.
Significance
The Heller House was Lloyd Wright's first work in the Hyde ParkHyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
neighborhood of Chicago, an area that was influenced by the Gothic Revival work of Henry Ives Cobb
Henry Ives Cobb
Henry Ives Cobb , born in Brookline, Massachusetts to Albert Adams and Mary Russell Candler Cobb, was a Chicago-based architect in the last decades of the 19th century, known for his designs in the Romanesque and Victorian Gothic styles...
. The house blends together key elements of Wright's Prairie style and is located within a half mile of other early works. Wright's 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...
is six blocks from the Heller House, and the Blossom House and McArthur House are nearby, in Kenwood
Kenwood, Chicago
Kenwood, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, Illinois, is one of the 77 well-defined Chicago community areas.Kenwood was part of Hyde Park Township, which was annexed by the City of Chicago in 1889....
.
Many of the Hyde Park houses of Chicago are surrounded by elaborate gardens, and have been the subject of an ongoing neighborhood revitalization
Urban renewal
Urban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...
since the late 1950s. Hyde Park experienced an explosion of growth after the Township's incorporation into the city of Chicago in 1889, the establishment of the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
in 1892, and the Columbian Exposition in 1893. The design of the Heller House was unlike any other home in Chicago at the time it was built and was called Wright's most "outrageous" design.
See also
- Emil Bach HouseEmil Bach HouseThe Emil Bach House is a Prairie style house in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, United States that was designed by famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The house was built in 1915 for an admirer of Wright's work, Emil Bach. Bach was co-owner of the Bach Brick Company...
- Frank Lloyd Wright Historic DistrictFrank Lloyd Wright-Prairie School of Architecture Historic DistrictThe Frank Lloyd Wright/Prairie School of Architecture Historic District is a residential neighborhood in the Cook County, Illinois village of Oak Park, United States. The Frank Lloyd Wright Historic District is both a federally designated historic district listed on the U.S. National Register of...
- James Charnley House
- Frank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd WrightFrank 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...