Personal business this afternoon took me Western Springs, Illinois, which is about 10 miles west of Chicago's city limits.This house has a Zook Roof, named for prolific Chicago area architect R. Harold Zook, the man who came up with the concept of a shingle design resembling a thatched roof.
Click on the photograph so you can fully appreciate the genius of Zook's vision.
He died in 1949, which doesn't make this a true "Zook Home," Marathon Pundit reader Brian P, who lives next door to this home, told me the roof of this house was placed on top of the existing structure about ten years ago.
Zook was a resident of Hinsdale, which is just west of Western Springs, during the latter part of his life, many of his homes can be found there.
However, his most famous project is Park Ridge, Illinois' art-deco Pickwick Theatre, which he designed with William F. McCaughey.
I grew up down the street from thehousein question. As I recall, the original house had the unique roof, but the addition (70's?) did not. It was rather disconcerting to see them together on the same building. When they replaced the roof it became universally much more like the original.
ReplyDelete