April, 1 910 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



127 



The Homes of Four Architects 

 in the Middle West 



By Francis Durando Nichols. 



T IS not often that one has the opportunity living-porch is provided with movable sashes, and is en- 

 of inspecting the interior of an architect's closed in the summer with wire screens, and in winter with 

 home, and it is just possible that the mod- glass. The entrance to the house is through the vestibule, 

 estv of the designer is the principal cause built at the entrance porch. Directly opposite the entrance 

 of his objection to its publication. But door, the stairs ascend to the second story. This hallway 

 it is frequently the desire of a layman is separated from the living-room by a beamed arch sup- 

 to see a house in which an architect may ported on square columns. The woodwork of the hall, 

 live, and the four houses illustrated herewith, represent living- and dining-room, is of cypress, stained and finished 

 the homes of four of the profession, and built in four dif- in a Flemish brown. The walls are covered with a mus- 



ferent localities. 



The home of Law- 

 rence Buck at Rogers 

 Park, 111., illustrated 

 in Figures i, 2, 3, 4, 5, 

 and 6, is a particularly 

 interesting house, built 

 in a simple manner, and 

 at the same time with 

 sufficient exterior detail 

 to give it the artistic 

 expression it enjoys. 



The house is de- 

 signed with square 

 lines running straight 

 from the front to the 

 rear, thereby insuring 

 square rooms on the 

 interior. This is a 

 verv important matter 

 to be considered when 

 building a house, for it 

 is not only an economy 

 of space but also a 

 plan to follow in re- 

 gard to the judicious 

 expenditure of money. 



1 he main walls ol 

 the building from, the 

 grade line to the peak, 

 are covered with a ce- 

 ment stucco, finished 

 with a soft gray cement 

 wash. The roof, con- 

 structed in a simple 

 manner with a straight 

 ridge extending from 

 the front to the rear of 

 the building, is covered 

 with shingles. 



The entrance porch 

 is a simple one, placed 



'm^ 



Fig. I — The entrance porch to Mr. Buck's Home. 



tard yellow burlap, 

 harmonizing well with 

 the color tone of the 

 woodwork. The walls 

 of the dining-room are 

 paneled with narrow 

 battens, of cypress, ex- 

 tending from the floor 

 to the ceiling, and the 

 panels formed by these 

 battens are covered 

 with a similar burlap. 

 The open fireplace in 

 the living-room is built 

 of brick. with an 

 arched opening. The 

 facings of the fireplace 

 extend from the floor 

 to the ceiling, and are 

 laid in white mortar 

 with wide joints. A 

 panel seat is placed at 

 one side of the fire- 

 place. The kitchen is 

 provided with a 

 dresser, a cupboard, a 

 sink, and a lobbv large 

 enough to admit an ice 

 box and stores. The 

 seconci storv contains 

 three bedrooms and a 

 bathroom. The wood- 

 work of these rooms, 

 with the exception of 

 the bathroom, is stained 

 and finished in Flemish 

 bro\^•n. The owner's 

 room has two arched 

 alco\es, one of which 

 provides a lounging 

 place, and the other an 

 open fireplace. The 



at the corner of the building, while the living-porch, open- bathroom is furnished with porcelain fixtures anti exposed 



ing from both the living- and dining-room, is built at the nickel plated plumbing. The cellar contains the heating 



side of the house, and with its arched ends of cement apparatus, fuel rooms and a laundrv. The cost of this 



stucco give the chief characteristic to the building. This house was $3,000, exclusive of grading and decorations. 



