Monday, April 13, 2020

Special Places To Visit: The Walter House at Cedar Rock

   Getting off the beaten path during one vacation, Cathy and I came across the town of Quasqueton Iowa.  This town had an attraction that I have never seen before and that was a genuine Frank Lloyd Wright house.  This house is located in the Cedar Rock State park that runs close to the Wapsipinicon River. The park is not too far from the town of Quasqueton Iowa. We were traveling down the rural roads when we saw a sign advertising the house and we decided to stop and see, as we have heard about Frank Lloyd Wright houses but have never seen one before. 
   When we arrived we drove into the park and found the visitor center.  The visitor center had a scale model of the house and had several letters from the owners of the house, Lowell and Agnes Walter, to Frank Lloyd Wright.  There was a lot of detail on the planning that was involved in first getting Frank Lloyd Wright involved in the project and once he was involved many more letters and items detailing what went on to get the home built.  From the start I could see that Mrs. Walter and Mr. Wright had a real plan and that Mr. Walter was happy to make his wife happy.  From the visitor center you take a wagon ride down to the house, as no one can drive to the home anymore.  The wagon ride was interesting and it gave you time to soak up the forest area as well as get that special glimpse of the house appearing around a bend.  I have to admit the house fit in with the land and did not stick out as peculiar.  When we got out of the wagon the tour guide started in telling all about the house and how each official Wright house had a tile in place that was sort of a Wright signature declaring that this was his design. 



  

  Cathy was shocked to hear that part of the agreement of Mr. Wright designing and building a home, was that he could have access into the home anytime he wished.  He would have a key and drop by to inspect the house and basically approved of any contents that were placed in "His" house.  Cathy did not like that deal and would never go along with it she said.  After the initial tour of the outside we were taken inside and all I can say is "Wow!"  The house looked just like the couple just up and left and locked the doors.  The house was started in 1948 and completed in 1950.  Frank Lloyd Wright put his signature on every aspect of this design and practically everything that was in the house.  From the furniture, to the paint, to the kitchenware, to the tableware, etc...  Practically everything in the house screamed his design.  I can say I was impressed and like I said it was like stepping back in time.


   My first impression was that the living area was spacious, but the rest of the house seemed small.  The tour guide said it was created to be efficient.  I guess that can be translated to small, but it seemed that every space was used efficiently and Frank Lloyd Wright meant it to be that way.  No excess stuff and no wasted space. Cathy seemed to be thinking the same as I was in that the kitchen and bedrooms were very small and there was not much storage.  I think minimalist would be a good word.

   After looking over the house we were told we could explore the property and go see what Mr. Walter ask Mr. Wright to build for him.  You see Mrs. Walter was happy but Mr. Walter saw that he needed his space, so Mr. Wright designed a boat house/poker shed/man shed for Mr. Walter.  A place where he could take his buddies and get the boat out on the river as well as play poker and smoke cigars.  We walked down the hill and followed a path to the Wapsipinicon River.  There by the river was Mr. Walter's man shed.


Walter Boat 5.jpg

   The man shed was interesting in that it had the look that Frank Lloyd Wright put in the main house, but I think it had less restrictions on what could be in it.  Still it was a very nice place and I could see that it would be a great place for the guys to get away and let the women have the house to themselves.
   After walking around a few more minutes Cathy and I boarded the wagon and rode it back to the visitor center.  All in all this little excursion was really worth the trip and another reason to get off the beaten path when vacationing.


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