William H. Emery, Jr. House
Encyclopedia
William H. Emery, Jr. House is a historic residence in the Prairie School
in Elmhurst
, Illinois
. It was designed by renowned architect Walter Burley Griffin
for his friend William H. Emery, Jr. The house was completed in 1903. William Emery, Sr. moved to Chicago
and purchased the Seth Wadhams farm in Elmhurst in 1887. Aside from profits made from developing the farm, Emery served as president of the Elmhurst school board, Golf Club, and the New England Society of Chicago. Emery also had an important role in bringing electricity and water supply to the town. William H. Emery, Jr. was a personal friend to Griffin, who he met in school.
Griffin, at the time, worked for Frank Lloyd Wright
in his Oak Park studio
. Griffin had designed the Elmhurst Golf Club, but the Emery house was his first residential commission. Emery had ideas about what he wanted his house to look like, and believed that Wright would not be tolerant of his opinions.
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,...
in Elmhurst
Elmhurst, Illinois
Elmhurst is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage and Cook Counties, Illinois. The population is 46,013 as of the 2008 US Census population estimate.-History:...
, 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,...
. It was designed by renowned architect 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...
for his friend William H. Emery, Jr. The house was completed in 1903. William Emery, Sr. moved to 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...
and purchased the Seth Wadhams farm in Elmhurst in 1887. Aside from profits made from developing the farm, Emery served as president of the Elmhurst school board, Golf Club, and the New England Society of Chicago. Emery also had an important role in bringing electricity and water supply to the town. William H. Emery, Jr. was a personal friend to Griffin, who he met in school.
Griffin, at the time, worked for 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...
in his Oak Park 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...
. Griffin had designed the Elmhurst Golf Club, but the Emery house was his first residential commission. Emery had ideas about what he wanted his house to look like, and believed that Wright would not be tolerant of his opinions.