An architectural gem was almost lost to time

The Westcott House, the product of arguably the most important architect of the modern era, was designed in 1906 and built near downtown Springfield in 1908.

Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) created it for Springfield industrialist, automaker and civic leader Burton Westcott and his wife, Orpha.

Falling on hard times

After the house passed out of their family, it went through tough times. In the early 1940s, the interior alterations — the conversion of the open floor plan into a multi-unit apartment building — changed the architecture so significantly that it no longer reflected the architect’s design intent.

Because of these drastic alterations, the Westcott House remained an undiscovered relic for many years — a lost Wright artifact. The house was saved by local leaders from a looming demolition in 2001, and underwent a multimillion-dollar restoration that brought it back to its original glory.

Through the cooperative efforts of the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy and the Westcott House Foundation, today the Westcott House is an important rediscovery, a notable and revitalized example of Wright’s legacy.

The Westcott House not only embodies Wright’s innovative Prairie School architectural design but also extended Wright’s concept of relating the building to its site by means of a terrace, a lily pond, gardens, and other landscape elements. An extensive pergola capped with an intricate wooden trellis connected the detached garage to the main house, a design element included in only a few other Prairie Style houses.

Bringing it back to life

Restoration took more than four years. Stabilizing the structure to make it safe was the first step. All the 1940s apartment-dividing walls were torn down, load-bearing ones were reinforced and dry-rotted and termite-infested beams replaced. The basement had to be further excavated to add more support structures, under the heavy living room fireplace, for example. And a new custom-made red clay tile roof was installed at a cost of $500,000.

Plaster on the ceilings and walls was repaired extensively. Interior brickwork was stripped of its numerous layers of paint. The art glass in the skylight (as well as other areas) was lovingly restored and reinstalled. The installation of modern mechanical systems, including electrical, plumbing, fire and security, was also completed. The final phase of restoration consisted of landscaping the site as Wright envisioned. Research turned up a plot plan in Wright’s studio and the resulting new landscaping has seen elm trees once again thriving on the former Burton and Orpha Westcott property.