Chalk Hill, PA - 03/21/2015: Kentuck Knob. Architect Frank Lloyd Wright. built 1954; Shutterstock ID 1179463627; full: Digital; gl: 65050; netsuite: poi; your: Barbara Di Castro
1179463627

Shutterstock / Jim Packett

Kentuck Knob

Western Pennsylvania


This home, designed in 1953 by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1956, is built into the side of a rolling hill with stunning panoramic views. It's noted for its natural materials and obsessively designed interior – note the hexagonal design and honeycomb skylights. House tours (reservations recommended) last about 45 minutes and include a jaunt through the on-site sculpture garden, with works by Andy Goldsworthy, Ray Smith and others.

The house was built at a cost of $82,000 for the Hagan family, friends of the Kaufmanns (owners of Fallingwater) and owners of an ice-cream manufacturing company, who lived here full-time for 28 years. It was purchased by Peter Palumbo (aka Lord Palumbo) in 1986 for $600,000 and opened to the public a decade later – Wright himself never saw the house in its finished state. In general, it's a cozier, more family-friendly and modest application of Wright's genius than Fallingwater.

Of a comparably small scale and with a fairly plain exterior typical of Wright's Usonia-style, every nook and cranny of the 22,000-sq-ft home balances form and function, especially Wright's signature built-ins, such as the room-length couch and cabinets.

Children must be six or older to visit and be accompanied by an adult.


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