Rock Crest Rock Glen

AIA Iowa

Recognitions: Walter Burley Griffin Iowa Projects

Project Description

Rock Crest Rock Glen is a Mason City Housing Development planned in the prairie school style. Development on this 18 acre site along Willow Creek began in 1912, led by Walter Griffin. Griffin’s vision was to keep the land along Willow Creek open as a common area for the homeowners, and to place homes around the perimeter of the site in order to conserve the natural area around the site. Out of the 16 houses that were planned for the development, only 8 were built, and only five were built as Griffin had intended (Page, Rule, Melson, Blythe, and Schneider). The prairie School Style is characterized by “open and flowing plans and the use of natural ornament through the integration of structural elements into formal design.” Griffin strayed slightly from the traditional Prairie School style by emphasizing vertical movement, for example, through the integration of heavy corner piers (as seen in the Melson house). All of the homes designed by Griffin in the development are square in plan with a protruding solarium. The homes have few walls between rooms, often utilizing the fireplace to divide space, except for designating service areas. Today, the Rock Crest Rock Glen development is the largest collection of Prairie styled homes in the United States. The district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.