James Ford - Classic Modern Homes of the Thirties: 64 Designs by Neutra, Gropius, Breuer, Stone and Others

1929

Richard J. Neutra. Dr. P. M. Lovell, Health house in Los Angeles. Steel skeleton; steel sash an integral part of frame. Outside shell of reinforced concrete slabs shot through a 200 hose from an air compression gun placed on street level.

1929

Kocher & Ziegler experimented with a system of forms for the construction of cavity walls of concrete in the Rex Stout house in Fairfield County, Connecticut.

1930

John Walter Wood designed for Sherman Pratt at Niagara Island, Gananoque, Ontario, a house of ferro-concrete with reinforced concrete piers; floor and roof slabs integrally colored.

1931

Howe & Lescoze . Concrete house; residence of Frederick V. Field, New Hartford, Connecticut.

1932

Herbert Lippmann designed this week-end house for Frances Taussig and Eleanor Blackman at West Redding, Connecticut, of poured double-wall reinforced concrete, unplastered on exterior and interior.

1932-5

Robert W. McLaughlin (of Holden, McLaughlin, and Associates) as early as 1932 was designing prefabricated houses of modern design for American Houses, Inc. This is the American Motohome built at White Plains, New York, of steel frame with unpainted walls of insulating composition material.

1934

A. Lawrence Kocher & Albert Frey designed this week-end house, erected at Northport, Long Island. The light frame is borne by six 4 tubular steel columns. Wall insulation: aluminum foil to reflect heat waves.

1934

William Lescaze in 1934 and Morris B. Sanders in 1936 made notable contributions in remodelling city houses to ensure light with privacy on the street side by the use of glass brick. New York City.

1935

Hays and Simpson, ca 1935, designed this low-cost weather-boarded house of seven rooms at Willoughby, Ohio, at 32.8 cents per cubic foot.

1936

Gardner Dailey of San Francisco designed this week-end house for William Lowe, Jr., at Woodside, California. It is a three-room house of diagonal braced sheathing on fir framing with exterior of redwood siding. Interior of Greylite insulation board. Many built-in features are included. Cost $4,800.

1936

Robert L. Davison, Director of Research of the John B. Pierce Foundation, and notable experimenter in prefabrication of horizontal units, with the collaboration of John Callender, assembled two of his previous exhibition houses to construct his own house at East Northport, Long Island. Construction, 4 horizontal units of microporite on first floor and plywood covered with canvas on second.

1936

Michael Goodman designed a house in which plywood was used for exterior treatment. Home of Professor Tryon, Berkeley, California.

Family Composition. Young couple. Fond of outdoor living.

Site. Level lot. Filled ground. Particular problem was the street, which loops around 3 sides of the lot. Privacy dependent on planting.

Construction. 8 x 8 posts, 8 on centers in living room, anchored to foundation by steel straps to act as vertical cantilevers for resistance against earthquake stresses. This allows great openness without sacrifice of stability.

Exterior. Walls: cream stucco. Roof: gravel surfaced cap-sheet. Trim: salmon colored redwood. Sash and doors salmon sugar pine. Blinds: natural white cedar. Celotex insulation.

Interior. Woodwork: white pine. Living room-dining room ceiling continues through windows to form overhang. Suspended plaster panel 14 wide over fireplace conceals outlets of air-conditioning equipment, circulating fireplace heater grills, and lights.

Cost. $6,970, including 12 22 swimming pool, large paved areas for terraces, outdoor barbecue, semi-airconditioning.

Special Features. All rooms have 8 wide doorways to individual gardens. Living room has two 8 sliding doors, giving a 16 opening. Roof overhang of bedroom continues into pergola which crosses pool. The smaller bedroom used as a guest room can be shut off from main part of house.