Allan and Helen Miller Residence - 1915
7121 S. Paxton - Chicago, Illinois
The only surviving building in Chicago by Van Bergen, this house was designed for Allan Miller, an executive in the advertising industry, and his wife.
Allan Miller (1181 – 1984) and his wife Helen Reeves Miller (1184 – 1973) were both born in Aurora, Illinois. They met and were married in Chicago. The Millers had two daughters, Marian and Ruth Ruggles who grew up in the house. The family moved away in 1923, after Mr. Miller died in a hunting accident.
The lot for this house was chosen by Mrs. Miller because she liked the large golden willow tree at the back of the property. The house was one of the first in this south side Chicago neighborhood, just south of Jackson Park and 71st street.
Van Bergen’s first scheme for the house included a “moat” around the fireplace like Frank Lloyd Wright’s Dana and Barnsdall houses. This idea was rejected by the Millers.
The structure has a series of flat roofs and has leaded glass windows which are very similar to those of the Munyer apartment building in Oak Park. This large house is unique in plan. The house still has unpainted, buff colored stucco.
Allan Miller House
The Allan Miller House is a prairie style house in the South Shore neighborhood of Chicago, United States. Located along Paxton Avenue, the home is the only surviving example of Frank Lloyd Wright colleague John S. Van Bergen’s work found in Chicago. The house is cast in prairie style and was constructed in 1913. The building has been declared a Chicago Landmark and is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
History
The Allan Miller House, on Paxton Avenue was designed by John S. Van Bergen in 1913 for advertising executive Allan Miller
Architecture
The Miller House is considered an “excellent” example of prairie style architecture and it is Chicago’s only surviving example of architect John S. Van Bergen. The home, like all prairie style homes, is meant to evoke the Midwestern prairie through its horizontal form and integration with the surrounding natural landscape.
SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA
