George W. Smith House (1898)

George W. Smith House (1898)
404 South Home Avenue

View looking northeast from Home Avenue Built in 1898 for George Smith, a salesman for Marshall Field & Company, this house was actually designed in 1895 by Wright as one of a group of low cost houses for the noted architect Charles E. Roberts, which were never built. The stylistic design of the Smith House is clearly from Wright's earlier period.

With its roofs of high pitch and double slope, the house recalls Wright's design of the Harry Goodrich House in 1896, which may itself be one of the unbuilt designs for Roberts. Also, note that in place of the shingles covering the Smith House, bu 1898 Wright was using the horizontal board and batten siding, which emphasized the linear effects seen in his later designs.

The above commentary was excerpted from Guide to Frank Lloyd Wright & Prarire School Architecture in Oak Park by Paul E. Sprague (published 1986). The Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust Book Catalog offers a selection of guidebooks which can be ordered online.

View looking northeast from Home Avenue	Built in 1898 for George Smith, a salesman for Marshall Field & Company, this house was actually designed in 1895 by Wright as one of a group of low cost houses for the noted architect Charles E. Roberts, which were never built. The stylistic design of the Smith House is clearly from Wright's earlier period.
With its roofs of high pitch and double slope, the house recalls Wright's design of the Harry Goodrich House in 1896, which may itself be one of the unbuilt designs for Roberts. Also, note that in place of the shingles covering the Smith House, bu 1898 Wright was using the horizontal board and batten siding, which emphasized the linear effects seen in his later designs.