Going Back In Time At The Rosenbaum House

The home looks just as it was. It's kinda spooky in a way, but the Rosenbaum House (http://www.wrightinalabama.com/rosenbaum.html) is must-see for any visitor to Florence, Alabama. After all, how often do you get to see a Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) home.

Here's the background: In 1939, Stanley Rosenbaum commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to design his first home as a gift for his bride, Mildred. He also had Wright design all of the interior--including the furniture, which they kept until they moved out of the home. The usonian-style house, on Riverview Drive, is now a National Historic Property. And in fact is the only Frank Lloyd Wright structure in the state of Alabama and one of 26 pre-World War II Usonian houses in the U.S. The original owners lived in the house until 1999 when the city of Florence purchased it from the family.

Now, the Rosenbaum House is opened for tours, has been since 2002. It is a fascinating house--an L-shaped house constructed of all-natural materials such as cypress, brick and glass. This house incorporated the first carport, use of under floor heating, curtain walls, and a multi-level, canti-levered roof. The outdoors can be accessed from almost every room. According to Wright, his houses were not only homes, but also works of art. Wright’s Usonian style (named for the United State of America) was a low-cost home for middle income families. The Usonian style house originally contained 1,540 square feet, but when the Rosenbaum household grew, the family called Wright to design an addition. In 1948, 1,084 square feet was added, with a larger kitchen, a guest bedroom, storage space and a dormitory for the kids.

Wright wasn't shy about setting his own style and architectural agenda. He experimented with forms and materials. His forward-thinking career began in Oak Park, Illinois, and he became one of the most influential architects ever. Perhaps his most recognized masterpieces is the Guggenheim Museum in NYC, which took him 16 years to complete.

The Rosenbaum House was fixed up by the city and is now a tourist attraction--and an interesting bit of Americana.

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