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George Barton House

Coordinates: 42°56′11.50″N 78°50′52.00″W / 42.9365278°N 78.8477778°W / 42.9365278; -78.8477778
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Barton House
Darwin D. Martin House Complex
Map
Interactive map showing the Barton House’s location
Location118 Summit Avenue, Buffalo, NY
Coordinates42°56′11.50″N 78°50′52.00″W / 42.9365278°N 78.8477778°W / 42.9365278; -78.8477778
Built1903 - 1904
ArchitectFrank Lloyd Wright
Architectural stylePrairie School
NRHP reference No.86000160
Significant dates
Added to NRHPFebruary 24, 1986 [2]
Designated NHLFebruary 24, 1986[1]

The George F. Barton House was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, built 1903–1904, and is located at 118 Summit Avenue in Buffalo, New York. The Barton House is part of the larger Darwin D. Martin House Complex, considered to be one of the most important projects from Wright's Prairie School era.

History

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The complex was commissioned by Darwin D. Martin, an entrepreneur who worked at the Larkin Soap Company. The site was purchased by Martin in 1902 as a location where he planned to build two houses:[3] one for himself, and one for his sister, Delta Martin Barton, and her husband, George F. Barton.

Martin and Barton were colleagues at the Larkin Company, and Wright also designed houses for other Larkin employees William R. Heath and Walter V. Davidson, as well as the Larkin Company's administration building.

Barton House c. 1905
First and second story floor plans

Of the Martin Complex's six buildings construction on the Barton House began first[4] and not only was it the first building of the complex to be completed but also the first of Wright's in Buffalo.[5]

The Barton House is on the north east corner of the complex.[6]

The basic floor plan is cruciform, with the principal living spaces concentrated in the center two-story portion of the house where the reception, living and dining areas open into each other.[5] The two main bedrooms are on the second story, at either end of a narrow hall.[5] The kitchen is at the north end, behind the main stairway, while an open porch is to the south.[5]

Wright's K. C. DeRhodes House in South Bend, Indiana, has a nearly identical floor plan to the Barton House—although on a 90-degree axis in relation to the front veranda. The F.B. Henderson House in Elmhurst, Illinois is also similar in plan.

The Martin House Restoration Corporation operates guided public tours and presents educational programs for both volunteers and the general public.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Darwin D. Martin House". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007. Retrieved September 11, 2007.
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  3. ^ Tafel, Edgar (1985). Years with Frank Lloyd Wright: Apprentice to Genius. Courier Dover Publications. p. 83.
  4. ^ Darwin Martin House Complex: Reference Sheet Archived March 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ a b c d Banham, Reyner; Kowsky, Francis R. (1981). Buffalo Architecture. Buffalo Architectural Guidebook Corporation. pp. 195–197.
  6. ^ Complex Model at www.buffaloah.com
  • William Allin Storrer, The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion. University of Chicago Press, 2006, ISBN 0-226-77621-2, (S.303)
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