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Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House, Chicago

4.5
#5 of 34 in Historic Sites in Chicago
World heritage site · Architectural Building · Hidden Gem · Historic Site
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The Frederick C. Robie House is a U.S. National Historic Landmark on the campus of the University of Chicago in the South Side neighborhood of Hyde Park in Chicago, Illinois, at 5757 S. Woodlawn Avenue. Built between 1909 and 1910, the building was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright and is renowned as the greatest example of the Prairie School style, the first architectural style considered uniquely American. It was designated a National Historic Landmark on November 27, 1963 and was on the very first National Register of Historic Places list of October 15, 1966.
Wright designed the Robie House in his studio in Oak Park, Illinois between 1908 and 1909. The design precedent for the Robie House was the Ferdinand F. Tomek House in Riverside, Illinois, designed by Wright in 1907-08. At the time that he commissioned Wright to design his home, Robie was only 28 years old and the assistant manager of the Excelsior Supply Company, a company on the South Side of Chicago owned and managed by his father. Although later drawings of the Robie House show a date of 1906, Wright could not have started the design for the building earlier than the spring of 1908 because Robie had actually purchased the property only in May of that year. He and his wife, Lora Hieronymus Robie, a 1900 graduate of the University of Chicago, had selected the property at 5757 South Woodlawn Avenue in order to remain close to the campus and the social life of the University. The property was a typical urban lot in Hyde Park, measuring 60ft by 180ft.
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Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House reviews

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TripAdvisor traveler rating 4.5
847 reviews
Google
4.7
TripAdvisor
  • Our family toured the Robie House while in the Chicago area and had a great experience. This is definitely an activity for adults or older children; my child is a very mature tween and she enjoyed... 
    Our family toured the Robie House while in the Chicago area and had a great experience. This is definitely an activity for adults or older children; my child is a very mature tween and she enjoyed...  more »
  • Fantastic sights within the neighborhood, with more of the FLW-designed houses just around the corner! 
    Fantastic sights within the neighborhood, with more of the FLW-designed houses just around the corner!  more »
Google
  • We were the only two on our tour, and our guide was fantastic. Fascinating mixture of engineering and art; the integration of the two is everything one expects from a Wright home. Even the shadows cast by the lighting fixtures were envisioned to create an image... amazing detail. Finished in 1910, it remains modern; can you believe it has central vac? All the renovations were done very well. Why not the last star? It's missing most of the furnishings, which were specifically designed for this exact home. Even exact reproductions could be created, so much is known of the designs. It 💯 deserves to be put back into as much of it's original state as possible! Come on UoC! We know you have the skills and the people to do it!
  • Fantastic! Restoration on the house is amazing. This house is a treasure that everyone should visit. Even my husband, who doesn’t usually enjoy this sort of thing, gave this tour an A+! Mary, our tour guide was great! Be sure not to skip the audio tour of the history and architecture of the neighboring buildings. Definitely a 5 star experience!

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