With eight Frank Lloyd Wright-designed sites within driving distance from Toronto, Visit Buffalo Niagara, the Hagen History Center in Erie, Penn., and GO Laurel Highlands created the Great Wright Road Trip to honour America’s greatest architect.
I beta tested the road trip this month with my wife, Shauntelle, and present it in the form of letters back to our Toronto friends. Stay tuned for Part 2 next week.
Martin House Complex, 125 Jewett Parkway, Buffalo, N.Y.
Hey Toronto friends! The border crossing was so easy; made it to Buffalo in two hours and fueled up at Jam Parkside right across from the Buffalo Zoo (great muffins and coffee!) before hitting the Martin House Complex.
The Martin House Restoration Corp. had to rebuild the pergola and conservatory since it was demolished in the 1960s.Dave LeBlanc/The Globe and Mail
If you can take your eyes off the "Tree of Life" windows, you’ll notice how Wright always directs your gaze, horizontally, towards all of that greenery outside.Dave LeBlanc/The Globe and Mail
I know we’ve told you about Larkin Soap Co.’s Darwin Martin, and how his wealth and friendship with Frank Lloyd Wright, or FLW for short, led to the creation of one of the most exquisite Prairie School houses ever created in 1905. I think I even once blabbered on about how, 100 years later, the Martin House Restoration Corp. had to rebuild the pergola and conservatory since it was demolished in the 1960s. Anyhow, what’s really neat is that no matter how many times I visit, the tour is always slightly different due to each docent’s proclivities.
This time, we paused at one of the outdoor urns that are, in the words of our friendly guide, “integrated into the architecture, so that nature is always an element that you are interacting with whether you’re inside or outside.”
Inside, there was proof of this, of course, in the many “Tree of Life” windows and that spectacular, double-sided wisteria mosaic fireplace (only a few original tiles were found in the ash pit; the rest were recreated). If you can take your eyes off of those, you’ll notice how FLW always directs your gaze, horizontally, towards all of that greenery outside, or straight down the glowing pergola to the Nike of Samothrace statue in the conservatory. Funnily enough, by the fireplace the master also directs eyes up to the second floor and down to the basement level in a rare bit of verticality.
After showing us the vertically stacked encyclopedias (FLW liked how they mimic his long bricks), our docent took us out on the veranda – really an outdoor room – to show us the half-circle “floricycle” that FLW created so something was always blooming for Darwin and Isabelle.
We also realized two things: for a 15,000-square-foot house, there is no shortage of intimacy. However, some of FLW’s doorways and corridors could use a little more shoulder room!
The Fontana Boathouse was originally designed for the University of Wisconsin rowing team in 1905 but never built, so the Martin House people, along with television writer Tom Fontana built it in the early 2000s.Dave LeBlanc/The Globe and Mail
Fontana Boathouse, 1 Rotary Row, Buffalo, N.Y.
This is one we hadn’t seen before, but it was so worth it. Crazy thing is this was designed for the University of Wisconsin rowing team in 1905 but never built, so the Martin House people, along with Buffalo-born television writer Tom Fontana (and other investors), got things rolling in the early 2000s. And it’s actually in use by the West Side Rowing Club. They row right under the Peace Bridge.
FLW’s doors, said our docent, were developed “before the modern rigging system was developed so the boats are actually wider than the doorway, so they have to be tipped.”
On the ground floor, we marveled at the intricate ceiling and the stacks of colourful boats. “The floors are exactly as he planned,” said our docent. “These are white oak, untreated, and they’re drainable.” Upstairs, there’s a little section of low ceiling. On the balcony, we looked down at the Black Rock Channel of the Niagara River and considered how much this boathouse feels like a boat itself.
“I just love the simplicity,” said our docent.
The Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow Museum was built inside an airplane hangar-sized addition to the Frank Lloyd Wright Filling Station.Dave LeBlanc/The Globe and Mail
Frank Lloyd Wright Filling Station, Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow Museum, 263 Michigan Ave., Buffalo, N.Y.
“Wow,” said Shauntelle, “I would never buy gas anywhere else.” I don’t disagree. The two of us were so blindsided by all of the shiny copper that we literally stopped in our tracks. And that’s not easy in a place filled with a zillion interesting automotive things.
This museum is bizarre, but in a good way. Built inside an airplane hangar-sized addition to the existing building, construction of the never-built filling station (designed in 1927 for an intersection less than a mile away) was the dream of collector/curator James Sandoro. It was realized in 2014. Since the gas station is inside, there are no windows, but it’s accurate in every other way, including FLW’s two 45-foot tall “totems” and those neato gravity-fed gas hoses. There’s even a small waiting room with a fireplace in the 1,600-square-foot structure.
“We did all the work ourselves in my shop,” Mr. Sandoro said. “The copper work was all done by Rich Foley, a coppersmith that worked for us; he’s retired [but] he comes in and cleans the copper once a year.”
Graycliff is perched on a 70-foot cliff and with a sweeping view of Lake Erie.Dave LeBlanc/The Globe and Mail
Graycliff, 6472 Old Lake Shore Rd., Derby, N.Y.
The last time we were at Graycliff – while the city house was Darwin Martin’s, Graycliff was definitely Isabelle Martin’s – was 10 years ago and the restoration was still in progress.
Perched on a 70-foot cliff and with a sweeping view of Lake Erie, even the master knew his architecture must defer to the great lake: “When he came out,” said our docent, “he said we need to feature the lake here, so we don’t want the house to intrude upon that, we want you to see the lake through the house.”
With Isabelle’s failing eyesight at this point, this was a necessity. Even on the cloudy day we visited, the house was so filled with light we were able to easily make out the initials carved into the flagstone of the Fern Room; our docent tells us that in the 1920s, the City of Buffalo was replacing its flagstone sidewalks with concrete and you could get it “for a very cheap price.”
We also learn about all of the items FLW tried to incorporate into the house that Ms. Martin had to fight him on, such as a narrow infinity pool for the backyard that would have created a trompe l’oeil with the lake. We also learn how Mr. Martin asked for the same finishes in his bedroom as those in the servant’s quarters.
Next week, we’ll tell you all about FLW’s San Francisco office, now installed in Erie, Penn., plus Kentuck Knob, Fallingwater and Polymath Park.
If you go
To avoid the chaos at the airport, this trip is best experienced by car. With so much to see in Buffalo (and Derby, a 25-minute drive away), we recommend staying at least one night.
The Hotel at the Lafayette is a restored 1904 downtown gem with an art deco renovation still intact; it’s a 10-minute drive to the Martin House. To walk to the Martin House, stay at Parkside House Bed and Breakfast a few blocks away. If the Hotel Henry is back in operation when you plan your trip, consider the 88-room hotel housed in a former H.H. Richardson-designed asylum. It closed in early 2021 due to the pandemic, but plans are afoot to reopen under new ownership.
Buffalo’s food scene is incredible, and we had an amazing meal at the fourth-generation, lunch-only Italian restaurant Ditondo, and dinner at Billy Club in Allentown. Of course, there’s always the beef on weck sandwich, and for that you’ll need to visit Bar Bill Tavern or Schwabl’s.
Portions of Mr. LeBlanc’s trip were provided by Visit Buffalo Niagara, which did not approve or review this story before publication.
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