George A. Lougee House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
George A. Lougee House
|
|
 |
|
 Location in Wisconsin
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 620 S. Ingersoll St. Madison, Wisconsin |
|---|---|
| Area | 0.1 acres (0.040 ha) |
| Built | 1907 |
| Architect | Claude and Starck |
| Architectural style | Prairie School |
| NRHP reference No. | 78000090 |
| Added to NRHP | June 7, 1978 |
The George A. Lougee House is a special historic home. You can find it at 620 South Ingersoll Street in Madison, Wisconsin. This house was built in 1907 for a hotel owner named George A. Lougee.
The famous local architects Claude and Starck designed it. They were known for their connection to Frank Lloyd Wright. The house is a great example of the Prairie School style. It became part of the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. This means it's an important historical building.
Contents
Meet George A. Lougee
George A. Lougee was born in New Hampshire in 1850. He started working in the hotel business around 1875. He even ran the very first dining car for the Pennsylvania Railroad.
Mr. Lougee managed Madison's Park Hotel from 1891 until 1911. Even though his house was built later, in 1907, he lived in Madison until he passed away in 1932. He also managed other big hotels, like the Palmer House in Chicago.
Designing a Special Home
Lougee chose the well-known Madison architectural firm of Louis W. Claude and Edward F. Starck to design his house. These two architects worked together from 1896 to 1929. They designed many homes and public buildings across Wisconsin and nearby states.
Louis Claude was a friend of the famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright's Prairie School designs really influenced their work on homes. The Lougee House is quite similar to Wright's B. Harley Bradley House in Kankakee, Illinois. It's considered one of Claude and Starck's best home designs.
What Makes the House Unique?
This two-story house has an outside made of stucco. This was a common material for homes built in the Prairie School style. It also has a gable roof, which is a roof with two sloping sides.
A part of the roof, called a cross gable, sticks out from the front of the house. There's also a porch attached to the south side of the home. The main entrance is next to the cross gable. It has beautiful leaded glass windows with flower patterns.
You'll notice horizontal wooden bands above and below the windows on both floors. There's also a low wall along the east side. These features make the house look wide and flat, which is a key part of Prairie School architecture.
A Recognized Landmark
The George A. Lougee House was named a landmark by the Madison Landmarks Commission in 1977. It was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 7, 1978. The house is also located inside the Orton Park Historic District, which is another historic area.
