Weltzheimer-Johnson House
Also known simply as the Frank Lloyd Wright House, the Weltzheimer-Johnson House is the first of nine Usonian homes to be built in Ohio, and the only non-Californian Usonian to use redwood.
The design bears the typical hallmarks of the style: brick construction, an L-shaped plan, a flat roof with a cantilevered carport, simple built-in furniture, and tall glass walls and doors that open to the landscape. What sets the Weltzheimer-Johnson apart in both appearance and cost—with a construction budget that rose from $15,000 to $50,000—is its relatively large scale and extensive use of masonry and decorative millwork, including roof dentil ornamentation made from hundreds of stained croquet balls. Hemispherical ornaments in the fascia and curvilinear cutouts in the clerestory panels are also unique to the design of the house. Following Margaret Weltzheimer’s death in 1963, two subsequent owners made significant alterations to the house. In 1968 Ellen H. Johnson, an art historian, purchased the house and oversaw its restoration. Upon her death in 1992 the house was given to Oberlin College to serve as a guesthouse for the Art Department and the Allen Memorial Art Museum. The house is now open to the public for tours and programs.
