Visiting one of the many Frank Lloyd Wright homes open for tours is perhaps the greatest way to experience the architect’s genius. Though many of his public buildings, such as the Guggenheim or the Marin County Civic Center are exemplary, it’s his private residences that demonstrate Wright’s guiding passions, philosophies, and beliefs. Ultimately, he maintained that good design enriched people’s lives, and perhaps nowhere was that more important than the places we rest our heads at night. So the architect crafted homes that prompted life in harmony with nature and advocated for affordable, beautiful residences for all. To this day, many of his homes remain in the hands of private owners and continue to inspire their stewards to slow down, appreciate the world around them, and bask in the small moments.
While having the opportunity to live in a Frank Lloyd Wright house is the exception among modernist architecture lovers and not the rule, there are a number of homes by the mastermind that the public can actually visit—some of the sites even offer overnight stays. Below, AD visits 30 Frank Lloyd Wright homes open for tours, from his early Prairie style designs to his Usonian masterpieces and experimental moments in between.
Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio (1889)
Go back and see where it all began at the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio. As the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust puts it, the historic home was “the birthplace of an architectural revolution.” Here, Wright experimented with his own aesthetic ideas while developing his signature Prairie style, which can be seen across a number of Wright properties around Chicago. Admission: $20–$30. Buy tickets here.
Bradley House (1900)
Considered Wright’s first Prairie house, the Bradley House was the former home of B. Harley Bradley and his wife, Anna. Featuring over 90 art glass windows, the early design exemplifies Wright’s lifelong pursuit of blurring the indoors and the outside. Now owned by the non-profit Wright in Kankakee, the organization offers various tour options throughout the year. Admission: $25–$100. Book a tour here.
Dana-Thomas House (1902)
Designed for Susan Lawrence Dana, a progressive socialite, this Springfield home was Wright’s 72nd construction. Spanning 12,000 square feet, the property houses more than 100 original pieces of furniture and 450 works of art glass. The Historic Preservation Division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources currently maintains the property. Tours are available daily at 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 and 3:00 p.m. Admission: Free. Book a tour here.
Fabyan Villa (1907)
Multimillionaire couple George and Nelle Fabyan hired Wright in 1907 to remodel their home located on their country estate, Riverbank. The architect added hallmark elements of his Prairie style including three verandas, large eaves, and geometric window motifs. The home is now a museum, which tells the story of the couple as well as the work Wright completed. The property reopens for tours in May. Admission: $10. Book a tour here.
Martin House (1903)
Darwin Martin, an employee of the Larkin Soap Company, and his wife, Isabelle Reidpath Martin, were important early patrons of Wright’s work. Darwin originally hired the architect in the 1900s to design a home for his sister, Delta, and her husband, George Barton. Considered successful, Darwin offered Wright his first-ever commercial commission, the Larkin Administration Building, as well as the chance to design the Martin’s own home and the rest of the Martin House estate. Admission: $15 and up to $500 for private tours. Book a tour here.
Meyer May House (1908)
Considered Michigan’s Prairie masterpiece, the Meyer May House is among Wright’s finest Prairie style homes. The property features a T floor plan, two stories, hip roofs with overhanging eaves, and art glass windows. Meyer S. May and his wife, Sophie, commissioned the home, which is now open for tours on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. Admission: Free. Book a tour here.
George Stockman House (1908)
While meeting with clients in Mason City to discuss plans for a proposed bank, hotel, and office, Wright met Dr. George C. Stockman, who commissioned a home from the up-and-coming architect. The home is the third built example of Wright’s fireproof home, a design originally published in Ladies Home Journal with an accompanying article. Though the version published in the magazine called for concrete, the Stockman House is made from a wood frame and stucco. Admission: $15. Book a tour here.
Robie House (1908)
Perhaps Wright’s most famous Prairie style design, the Robie House was designated by the American Institute of Architects as one of the 10 most significant structures of the 20th century. When the house faced demolition threats, once in 1941 and again in 1957, Wright himself campaigned for its salvation. Admission: $20–$75. Book a tour here.
Taliesin (1911)
Wright’s second home and studio—and his school—is located in the Wisconsin valley, settled decades before by the architect’s Welsh ancestors. The move from his Oak Park studio to Wisconsin coincided with some less than shining press after Wright began an affair with Mamah Borthwick Cheney, the wife of his neighbor and client. The two would soon abandon their families for a year to travel Europe and, unsurprisingly, received a cold welcome upon their return. Going back to his boyhood roots, Wright built Taliesin so he and Borthwick Cheney could start a new life. The Taliesin Preservation offers various tours of the home including private, group, full estate, and home highlight tours. Admission: $37–$200. Book a tour here.
Henry J. Allen House (1915)
Wright began working on the Allen House—commissioned by Elsie and Henry Allen—while simultaneously enthralled with designing for the Imperial Hotel in Japan. Featuring a square structure with an enclosed lily pool and garden, the home carries obvious Japanese influence. Tours take place Wednesday through Sunday. Admission: $22–$40. Book a tour here.
Hollyhock House (1919)
Wright’s first California commission, the Hollyhock House, stands in an arena of its own. The architect himself called the style California Romanza, though it has also been described as Asian-, Egyptian-, Mayan-, and Aztec-inspired. The home is often viewed as a merging point between Wright’s Prairie style and the textile block structures that he would continue to explore throughout the 1920s. Aline Barnsdall, an oil heiress, commissioned the home. Admission: $3–$7. Book a tour here.
Graycliff (1926)
Nicknamed the “jewel on the lake,” Graycliff was a summer estate designed for the Martin family, the same couple who commissioned the Martin House. Spanning 8.5 acres, the property includes three structures and gardens designed by Wright, including a main house with a pavilion-like transparent center that offers views through to the nearby Lake Eerie. Admission: $25. Book a tour here.
Hanna House (1937)
Located on Stanford University’s campus, the Hanna House was designed for Stanford professor Paul Hanna and his wife, Jean. The home served as an important experimentation for Wright, who designed the property based on hexagonal geometry without any right angles in the floor plan. The property is open for tours twice a year. Inquire about tours here.
Fallingwater (1935)
No Frank Lloyd Wright home is as famous as Fallingwater, his 1936 masterpiece designed for Edgar and Liliane Kaufmann. Built over a waterfall, the home is one of the most pristine examples of Wright’s organic architecture philosophies. The home is open for visits Thursday through Tuesday. Admission: $35–$1,800. Book a tour here.
Taliesin West (1937)
Frank Lloyd Wright’s winter home and studio, Taliesin West, was inspired by the Arizona desert. The property was built and maintained by Wright and his apprentices and is now the home of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Guests can take part in a number of visit options, including a self-guided audio tour and a guided tour. Admission: $39–$54. Book a tour here.
Wingspread (1938)
What Wright considered his final Prairie house, Wingspread was commissioned by the S.C. Johnson family, who were longtime patrons of Wright’s work. Spanning 14,000 square feet, it’s also the architect’s largest Prairie home. Now owned by the S.C. Johnson Foundation, tours of the home are available for free with advance reservations. Admission: Free. Book a tour here.
Bernard Schwartz House (1938)
Also known as Still Bend, the Bernard Schwartz House is a rare two-story Usonian home. Designed as part of a Life Magazine article titled “Eight Houses for Modern Living,” the glossy commissioned eight plans from architects—four modern and four traditional—for typical American families with incomes ranging between $2,000 to $10,000 a year. Wright designed a modern home for the Blackbourn family, whose annual household income was between $5,000 to $6,000 but were unable to build the property. Later, Bernard and Fern Schwartz, who were eager to own a Wright home, commissioned the Life dream home, which Wright was happy to see materialize. The home is now open for both overnight stays and tours. Admission: $25. Book a tour here.
Stanley Rosenbaum House (1939)
Wright believed that Usonian houses should grow with a family, a conviction made abundantly clear with the Stanley Rosenbaum House. The property was originally 1,540 square feet, but when the family grew to include four sons, the Rosenbaums reached out to Wright asking for an addition. So in 1948 Wright added 1,084 square feet that blend seamlessly with the rest of the home. Admission: $10. Book a tour here.
Pope-Leighey House (1939)
The Pope-Leighey House was originally built in Falls Church, Virginia, but has since been relocated to Woodlawn Plantation, a historic site once owned by George Washington. The Wright home, designed in his Usonian style, was commissioned by newspaper columnist Loren Pope and later sold to Robert and Marjorie Leighey. When threatened with demolition in 1963, Marjorie, by then a widow, made a deal with the National trust for Historic Preservation. The property was moved to Woodlawn, where Marjorie lived until her death, and was then converted into a museum. Admission: $15. Book a tour here.
Lowell Walter House at Cedar Rock (1942)
Cedar Rock is more than just a Usonian house, it’s a whole Usonian estate. On the property are multiple Wright designs, including the main house, a boathouse, the entrance gate, and an outdoor hearth. The primary residence follows a similar “tadpole” plan as other Usonian designs, featuring a wing of bedrooms as the “tail” and the living and dining area in the “head.” Tours open for the season in May. Admission: Free. Book a tour here.
Laurent House (1948)
The Laurent House is particularly special in Wright’s catalog of work, as it was the only home he designed for someone with a disability, Kenneth Laurent, who used a wheelchair, and his wife, Phyllis. “This house helps me focus on my capabilities, not my disability. That is the true gift Mr. Wright gave to me,” Kenneth said about the property. Admission: $25. Book a tour here.
Wilbur Pearce House (1950)
One of Wright’s rare solar hemicycle designs, the residence’s southern face curves inward to take maximum advantage of the sun. Konrad Pearce, the owner and grandson of the original client, is currently offering tours of the home to fund a restoration of the property. Admission: $50. Book a tour here.
Spring House (1950)
“Find your ground, not on a lot and get in touch.” This is what Frank Lloyd Wright said to Clifton Lewis when she asked the architect to design a house for her family. One of only two “pod-shaped” houses, it was designed at the same time as the Guggenheim Museum, with both structures based on the confluence of arcs. Admission: $25. Book a tour here.
Kraus House (1951)
Defined by its complex geometry, the Kraus House is constructed based on two intersecting parallelograms and features a dramatic cantilevered roof on its southern side. The property is unique among Wright homes in that it still has most of its original furnishings and fabrics. Admission: $25. Book a tour here.
Bachman-Wilson House (1954)
Built for Gloria and Abraham Wilson in 1956, the Bachman-Wilson House was originally located along the Millstone River. But after facing multiple flood threats throughout the year, its second owners, Lawrence and Sharon Tarantino, decided to sell the house to an institution that could relocate it. In 2013, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art bought the home, then had it taken apart and rebuilt on their campus in 2015. Admission: $12. Book a tour here.
Samara (1956)
Designed for Purdue University professor Dr. John Christian and his wife, Catherine, Samara is one of Wright’s last designs. The property gets its name from the winged seed found in pinecones, which are abundant in the Hoosier state. Samara recently underwent a $2 million yearlong renovation and is now open for tours once again. Admission: $20. Book a tour here.
Gordon House (1957)
Among the many Frank Lloyd Wright homes open for tours, the Gordon House is the only one in Oregon. In fact, it’s the only Wright design in Oregon at all. Commissioned by Evelyn and Ed Gordon, the residence was based on the same Life Magazine dream house design and was completed five years after the architect’s death in 1964. Originally located in Wilsonville, Oregon, the home was dismantled and moved to Silverton in 2001. In addition to tours, the property is also open for overnight stays. Admission: $20. Book a tour here.
Seth Peterson Cottage (1958)
At 880 square feet, the Seth Peterson Cottage is Wright’s smallest residential design. Seth Peterson, a longtime admirer of the architect, had tried to commission Wright multiple times but was consistently turned down. Peterson then sent Wright a $1,000 retainer, which the architect spent immediately, giving him no choice but to accept the commission. Sadly, Peterson, 24 years old at the time, committed suicide before the cottage was finished. The State of Wisconsin bought the home six years later, and in 1989 local volunteers negotiated a lease with the state to manage the home. Admission: $5. Book a tour here.
George and Millie Ablin House (1958)
When Mildred Ablin wrote to Wright asking him to design a home for their large family, she was smart to include plenty of information about the land she and her husband owned. “We have a high, steep hilltop lot with an excellent view…at the edge of the Mojave desert with mountains always prominently visible.” Perhaps this is why Wright agreed to the commission—much to the surprise of the couple—and drew up plans in 1958, a year before his death. Tours are led by its current owner, David Coffey. Admission: $50. Book a tour here.
