Illinois Home With Frank Lloyd Wright Connection Inspires a Buyer

A striking midcentury modern home in Wayne, IL, that was nearly designed by Frank Lloyd Wright is on the market for $1,250,000.

The residence appears to have found a buyer after just a month, and proceeds from the sale are generously being donated to charity.

“The sellers have owned the property since 1971, but this is the first time that it has publicly been on the market,” says listing agent Lou Zucaro, of Baird & Warner Barrington.

In 1957, a surgeon named Chester Trowbridge hired Wright to design the 4,153-square-foot home known as “Enwilde.”

Zucaro says the owner and the famed architect did not see eye to eye on the design, so Wright terminated his business relationship with Trowbridge shortly after the start of the project—and after creating preliminary drawings that are believed to have been incorporated into the plan.

It is unclear who actually designed the home after Wright stepped away from the project.

Wright’s influence

The home’s triangular grid, generous overhangs, bluestone floors, and absence of square-shaped rooms are all in line with a Wright-inspired design, Zucaro says.

The property has changed hands three times since it was built.

In keeping with Wright’s influence, the 4,153-square-foot house is surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows to welcome in a flood of natural light. Interior brick walls, along with the unusual incorporation of cypress walls and ceilings, are found throughout the home.

There are three fireplaces and radiant-heated floors for enhanced efficiency.

The four-bedroom home’s original layout called for a music room, where the Trowbridges are said to have hosted small concerts. Today, the open floor plan features a lower-ceiling front entry, which reveals a living room and wet bar with dramatically higher ceilings.

A spacious dining room nearby includes a fireplace, while the modern kitchen boasts wood-slat panels. There is an additional dining area and sunroom, which would be ideal for entertaining.

“In 1977, the seller hired an architect to do an addition, and they added on to the great room and primary suite,” Zucaro says. “There is also a room that is set up like a dining room with a copper hood that we think used to be a screened-in porch.”

The new primary suite has three closets and a walk-in shower and is the only bedroom that faces the backyard. The nearby original primary bedroom comes with a fireplace.

The home also features illuminated built-ins with open shelves and brick pillars.

The 6.2-acre property comes with a multilevel stone patio, pool, attached three-space carport, and barn with an upstairs studio.

Zucaro says the potential buyer was “specifically looking for something architecturally significant.”

Understandably, the listing drew interest from similar shoppers.

“Most of the people who looked at the house were looking at unique, special, and modern properties,” Zucaro says. “A Usonian house like this is hard to find, because most have been altered over the years. There have been some nice updates to this home, but they were all minimal and respectful to the aesthetic.”

The home is owned by a local psychiatrist who helped to establish the psychiatric care unit at Central DuPage Hospital and is a board member of the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. The proceeds from the sale of the home will be donated to ANAD.