Well howdy do — Frank Lloyd Wright houses came with pink bathrooms, too. And just wait until you see the vintage 1964 Formica kitchen counter tops in Brady Bunch bittersweet orange Proof yet again — that the most hi-falutin’ architect-designed homes and the most modest ones shared many common elements once inside. The Gordon House — located in Silverton, Oregon — is considered a lovely example of a Frank Lloyd Wright “Usonian” house — and it’s one of the last ones ever commissioned. Let’s take a closer look…
I found the best write-up on The Gordon House on The Oregon Encyclopedia. It explained:
- The house was designed in 1957 — commissioned by farmers Conrad and Evelyn Gordon for their remote property along the Willamette River about 20 miles from Portland.
- The house was not built until 1964. It is the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed house in Oregon.
- In 2000, new owners of the property were planning to tear down the house, which had fallen into decay. A well-publicized campaign was launched, and the house was moved to its present location in Silverton, Oregon, where it is now part of The Oregon Garden complex. The Oregon Garden is “an 80-acre botanical garden, featuring more than 20 specialty gardens showcasing the diverse botanical beauty that can be found in the Willamette Valley and throughout the Pacific Northwest.”
- The Gordon House was added to the National Historic Register in 2004.
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian Houses
Moreover, the Gordon House is considered a prototypical “Usonian” house. On Wikipedia, it says that this house was one of the last Usonian houses commissioned.
“USONA” was Frank Lloyd Wright’s acronym for United States of North America. Usonian houses were his vision for low-cost housing for the masses — he began work on the concept in the 1930s. You will recall that just yesterday, we wrote about Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion House — Bucky’s vision for low-cost housing for the masses. Seems like all the big brains were contemplating this topic. Note: Seems to me that in the end, we ended up with variations on my heartthrob Royal Barry Will’s Cape Cod — albeit more and more “ranchified” especially as you moved to the west. Sometimes the easiest solution is the most practical solution… Also, I think that Americans are simply very conservative about the houses they want to invest in — the traditional Colonial is still the prototype for “The American Dream House” and the Royal Barry Wills Cape Cod is a Colonial variant. Architectural critics may turn down their noses. But what if smarty had a party and no one came to smarty’s party?
Anyway, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian houses all had a relatively small footprint… they were built on a T-plan… and shared certain concepts like lots of built-in storage and thick slab concrete floors with radiant heat underneath.
The Gordon House has 2,133 s.f. of floor space, according to Wikipedia.
Another feature of this house — and of all Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian houses (if I am reading the research correctly) — is the “fretwork” window screens used throughout the house, shown above. Each FLW Usonian house received a unique design. The screens are strategically located on windows to block the high sun of the summer. There is no known meaning to the designs, although it’s believed they reference FLW’s love of Japanese woodblock prints.
This house is built of concrete block and cedar.
Lots of built-ins, to maximize living space and make the house easier to clean.
Here are the orange Formica counter tops we promised. I am pretty sure I spy a vintage Revco refrigerator peeking into the photo at the left — see this story showing a Revco fridge, confirmed in the wild.
And apparently (again, if I am reading the writeups correctly), the ceiling in the kitchen is two stories high. I don’t know if I like that particular FLW idea. High ceilings are less cozy, and I think I think a kitchen should be cozy. Also, I think it would feel like there is more opportunity for dust to be flying around up there and falling into my food… It must be something to see, though…
Can anyone identify the built-in oven (with warming drawer underneath??), the stove top — with cover!… and dishwasher? This is a lovely, no-nonsense kitchen. Very nice.
The fretwork is so pretty and sparkly-like with the light streaming in… Also notice the square recessed can lighting. We have done research indicating where you can still get square recessed can lighting today.
Link love:
See The Gordon House our epic list of 59 mid-century & modern historic house museums you can visit
Janet A. says
Note the countertop edge detail angling out instead of the now standard square edge. Great look but looks a bit fragile.
pam kueber says
ahhhh, interesting! good catch!
Janet in CT says
Funny, Janet, I noticed that too but wasn’t sure it was my bad eyesight! I would think it more likely to chip too. Beautiful house!
Mary says
I just visited this house about a month ago on a trip to Portland. It was even more impressive in person! Plus, it’s located on the lovely grounds of the Oregon Gardens which are an oasis of floral design.
To answer your question about the stove, it is a Jenn-Air. I took a close-up photo of it here: https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/293894_10200689597754313_685453325_n.jpg I also want to confirm that the kitchen is indeed cozy, despite the two-story high ceiling. It’s a small space, and the ceiling height actually opens up the room because it lets natural light in with a skylight (this is the only window). Feel free to browse my photos to see other angles of the room and tour the house.
pam kueber says
Thank you, Mary!!!
Jay says
Late to the game. I was going to say probably a skylight above as it’s the case with Kentuck Knob. FLW liked to juxtapose ceiling heights. Enter a low ceiling vestibule before entering a high ceiling great room, etc. He tended to put utilitarian spaces – kitchens and baths on the interiors of houses to save window walls for the living areas so the natural light would have to come from above.
Doug Camin @ House on Rynkus Hill says
I love Frank Lloyd Wright houses – I’ve visited a number of them over the years (Fallingwater, Robie House, Kentuck Knob, Darwin D. Martin House)…always stunning to see them in person.
Kate H says
Kentuck Knob in Pa has a double-height ceiling and a fold-out stove. I found the kitchen to be claustrophobic even then — it’s pretty cramped, and the high ceiling might make it really loud during food preparation, not to mention hot. I think it was this house (or maybe the one in Va or Falling Water) that also had cork bathrooms. As in: instead of tile, he used waxed cork. The docents didn’t know how well this would hold up, as compared to tile, but as you can imagine, they made for a very subdued bathroom, but quiet! I imagine it would be a nice place to take a bath.
JKM says
The high ceiling in the kitchen probably had something to do with ventilation and natural lighting. FLW buildings are well-known for having notoriously low ceilings so this makes me think it served a specific purpose. Note how the surrounding cove at the top of the cabinets visually brings down the room’s height to a human scale – something he was a master at doing.
Patty says
An architect attributed the ceiling height to FLW’s own height.FLW was short and had a big ego. Thought he was the perfect height.
My architect friend was also a friend of the Mr. Kraus.
pam kueber says
yes, he was in interesting bird. i read a ginormous book about him about 20 years ago. what i mostly remember was that there was a sensational murder in wisconsin
Patty says
Ken Burns has a biography about him for anyone who wants to know more.
pam kueber says
ahh, good to know, I’ll check it out!
Jay says
Thanks for the reminder. The ducumentary he did for PBS was a visual treat. Would love to see it again.
Patty says
I think the high ceiling was necessary to add natural light to the kitchen. It looks like it would be cozy. I don’t think the Kraus house in St. Louis has traditional windows and it’s super cozy. The guide said when the replaced something (can’t remember what) it had to come in through the kitchen’s skylight.
pam kueber says
Makes sense!
Rita@thissortaoldlife says
We recently toured this house, and the guide told us that the high kitchen ceiling was designed for functional reasons–so that heat and odors would rise above the “work room.” Wright didn’t like the word “kitchen.”
Erin-in-Ohio says
There’s an entire community/suburb of Wright-inspired Usonian homes tucked into a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. I lived just a few miles away for almost 10 years before I discovered it.
http://www.worthingtonhistory.org/_Resources___Links/Around_Worthington/Rush_Creek/rush_creek.html
It’s a beautiful, natural setting close to all the conveniences of the city. Dreamy!
Jenny A. says
Thanks for the tip, Erin! I’m in OH, too, and will definitely have to check-out this neighborhood. I have no idea who the architect was for our house but strongly feel that he (maybe a “she”, but in 1956 probably a “he”) were influenced by the Usonian houses. I would love to see a whole neighborhood of other Usonian-inspired houses!
pam kueber says
Wow!
Beth C says
Woahhhh… those homes are gorgeous! For anyone interested, you might want to Google pix of Rush Creek Village. It’s drool-worthy. Pam, we need an article. (c:
Diane H says
Astounding! I could ride my bicycle to this neighborhood…and I think I will, soon. Columbus has been my home since 1973, and I never knew about this. Thanks so much for posting! As of today (6/19/13) there looks to be just one house for sale and it’s a beauty. Here’s the listing:
http://www.kw.com/homes-for-sale/43085/OH/Worthington/204-E-South-St/3yd-CCOMLSOH-213014218.html
pam kueber says
Lovely!
Trouble says
Nice. Never knew about that but will soon. I work just down the street from Worthington and will be there tomorrow to check it out!
pam kueber says
yay!
Sarah g (roundhouse) says
I’m so glad this beauty was saved and not torn down! It’s so amazing that we are able to move whole houses, it’s interesting work to watch being done.
linda h says
We have visited 4 FLLW houses and the Oregon one is on our list to visit.
Chad says
I read about a Usonian house (actually a cluster of 4 attached houses, with T shaped party walls, not in a row) somewhere in the Philly suburbs with a 2 story bathroom. The owners said he had to provide ventilation so he did that to allow for a skylight. The owners took away the double height ceiling to add a second bathroom upstairs. This probably has nothing to do with the double height kitchen, but sounds like these houses shared similar quirks.
Jay says
They are the Suntops in Ardmore, PA; very small townhomes. They go on the market once in a while.