martinhouseclr

28 DARWIN D. MARTIN HOUSE // CULTURAL LANDSCAPE REPORT Martins unease was concerning the exterior arrangement of the grounds for the yet-to-be- designed Martin House, particularly with one of Wright’s most studied design features, being an indirect and ultimately revealing circulation to the main entry, was conveyed in March 1903 letter to Wright: 46 The more Mrs. Martin turns the matter over in her mind, the more unhappy she becomes about your exteriors. I think that awful Fricke approach and entrance is what distresses her, and possibly the (Hertley? [sic]) has something to do with it. I think she fully agrees with me that the interior of our own home will be safe in your hands, and that only the exterior causes anxiety. 47 More than simply minimally altered off-the-shelf plans (as Martin had earlier described to John D. Larkin) and costing much more than anticipated, the Barton House was only ready for bidding and construction in late 1903. This was well after Wright had begun design work on both the Larkin Administration Building and the rest of the Martin House structures. Wright’s first correspondence regarding the design of the Martin House was on May 1903: 46 Though requested early on by the Martins on several occasions to be removed and supplanted with a more traditional direct walkway to the front door, this indirect circulation designed by Wright was ultimately constructed and should be considered an important character defining feature of the site composition. 47 DDM-FLW, 26 March 1903, Trans. Jack Quinan 2003, WMP- UB. Fig. 13 Parcel acreage and ownership map. Map shows various deeded parcels and subdivisions of property to present day (dashed lines). Grey buildings are presently owned by MHRC and existed prior to Martin’s land purchase. Red buildings are Martin House structures for orientation only. Parcels of initial Martin purchase. Additional later purchase for Gardener’s Cottage. Additional later purchase for ‘Garden Plot.’ Additional later purchase. Historic Core boundary MHRC Present Day Ownership