Designed for two remarkable women this is the Isabel Roberts House. It stands as a testament to Prairie School architecture. Here at 603 Edgewood Place in River Forest Illinois stands the Isabel Roberts House. Frank Lloyd Wright designed it in 1908 for Isabel Roberts and her widowed mother Mary Roberts.
Interestingly some scholars believe this design was originally intended for Joshua Melson. Melson co-developed Rock Crest-Rock Glen in Mason City Iowa. However the Isabel Roberts House found its home here. Over the years the house saw changes. William Drummond a Prairie School architect renovated it first in 1922. Then in 1958 Frank Lloyd Wright himself remodeled it. This final touch blended his Prairie Style with his later Usonian architecture.
It may surprise you that the Isabel Roberts House is sometimes called the first split-level house. Wright incorporated broad overhanging eaves. Low hip roofs stretch gracefully. Continuous bands of windows fill the home with light. He called them light screens. Notice the emphatic water table. Observe the cruciform plan. The large fireplace is surrounded by Roman brick. Built-in bookcases add character. Stained woodwork completes the interior. Wright even designed it with a tree growing through the roof. He eliminated basement and attic space. The overall emphasis is on the horizontal line.
Let’s step inside. The living room boasts windows on three walls. Some windows reach one and a half stories high. Other windows are clerestory. This provides a gracious feeling of light and airiness. The balcony overlooks the tall living room. It creates a sense of spaciousness in a small house.
Isabel Roberts was more than Wright’s secretary. She contributed original designs for the leaded glass windows. She participated in design competitions. Wright’s son John Lloyd Wright noted her valuable contributions. She helped pioneer modern American architecture. Mary Roberts moved to live with Isabel after her husband’s death. They shared this home. Isabel Roberts even claimed to be the designer of this house.
Sadly Isabel and Mary Roberts didn’t live here long. They moved to St. Cloud Florida a decade later. Mary Roberts’ health was failing. Isabel’s sister lived in St. Cloud. Mary Roberts passed away in Florida in 1920.
Isabel Roberts partnered with Ida Annah Ryan in Florida. Ryan was the first woman to earn a master’s degree in architecture from MIT. Their firm Ryan and Roberts created landmark buildings in Central Florida. Isabel Roberts remained in Orlando. She is buried there with her mother and sister.
Before we leave consider this The Isabel Roberts House stands as a testament to Wright’s genius. It also honors the remarkable Isabel Roberts. Her contributions to architecture extended far beyond this house.