Evanston, Illinois – An architecturally significant Evanston home designed by office colleague Frank Lloyd Wright went on sale this week for the first time in more than 40 years.
Built in 1895, the William G. Hempstead house was designed by Robert Spencer and features both Queen Anne and Prairie styles.
A year after the house was completed, Wright and Spencer began sharing the loft space at Steinway Hall in downtown Chicago with several other young architects who would form the nucleus of the house. Prairie School Architecture – a new style free from the burdens of classic European styles and tailored to the climate and conditions of the Midwest.
Six years after the house was completed, Spencer designed a new, straighter porch that reflected the emerging style, according to the home’s National Register of Historic Places nomination form. It has also been recorded as an Important Historic Structure in Evanston since at least 1972.
According to a 1974 pamphlet from the Evanston Department of Planning, the house is perhaps best thought of as an example of the relationship between Queen Anne and lawn styles.
“Spencer was a close friend of Frank Lloyd Wright, but he never became a true Prairie Style. He was particularly fond of English styles,” she said. “This house, which houses more of a prairie Queen Anne, has the prairie elements on the porch deck and underside; diamond-encrusted glass on a south window; and the wood and stucco materials favored by prairie architects.”
A manifesto of historical significance produced as part of the local landmark identification process said the design also shows evidence of the emerging Tudor Revival style with its heavy wooden balconies and moldings on bay windows.
“This is an early building that was well designed by an important architect. Its ground floor contains decorations that will later find their way into the prairie style, namely the broad horizon of the baseboard area and the treatment of the hills below the window sills,” he said. “The late Queen Anne can be seen in the soaring sloping roof, in the sloping roof windows on the south roof deck, in the polygonal bays below, and in the semicircular bay with its conical roof on the north side of the foreground.”
Hempstead owned the home until sometime after 1914, according to a letter his grandson sent to the homeowner more than 30 years ago.
“My mother was born there,” he said. “According to my mother, William Hempstead built this house near the rails so that his wife, Emma, could see her father pass on his way to work in Chicago in the Northwest.”
The view of the trails from the property – which is on a block west of the intersection of Ridge Street and Green Bay Street – is now obstructed by the “Grand Bend” apartment building at 1228 Emerson Street.
Architect Spencer went on to partner with Horace Powers to form the architectural firm Spencer & Powers, and also founded the Casement Hardware Company, a successful manufacturer of window parts.
The three-storey house has four bedrooms on the second floor and two more on the third floor. It has a complete basement with family room, recreation room and utility space. The home has large rooms, hardwood floors throughout, French doors, a bay window, and four fireplaces, according to its listings.
According to the listing, “The most recognizable are the horizontal lines of the two balconies, the decorative elements of the house that face them, and the original diamond-shaped stained-glass windows.” “All design elements come together to give this distinctive home its remarkable appeal and unique place in Evanston’s history.”
The house’s roof, furnace and hot water heater have all been replaced in recent years, according to the listing, which it described as “private property ready for retrofit” and noted that the property is being sold “as is.”
The property was last purchased in 1979 for just $140,000 by John Giuffreau, who later transferred ownership to a trust. Adjusted for inflation, this selling price came to about $533,000 in 2021.
According to the Cook County Assistant’s Office, the estimated home market value of the property is approximately $740,000. Last year’s annual property tax bill was about $18,000.
Lynne Chamberlain, a listing agent for the property, said the house needs some updating, but it also attracted a lot of interest in its first day on the market in more than four decades.
“We make a lot of appointments for clients to come and see the house,” Chamberlain said. “My colleague and I are busy this week.”
- Address: 1833 Asbury Ave. , Evanston
- Built year: 1895
- Lot size: 0.2 acres
- Square feet: 3247
- Bedrooms: 6
- Baths: 3
- Last sale: $140,000 in October 1979
- Asking price: $800,000 on December 6
Listing information appeared on redfin.com. For more information and photos, click here.