Great Depression Survival

Frank Lloyd Wright house endangered by Somerset County flooding

In recognition of National Preservation Month, Preservation New Jersey on Wednesday announced its 17th annual list of the 10 Most Endangered Historic Places in New Jersey.

The only Somerset County site on the list is the Bachman Wilson House — one of only four houses in New Jersey designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright — which suffers repeated flooding and possible destruction every time the nearby Millstone River leaves its banks. Ironically, the list came out on a day when the Raritan, Passaic and Millstone rivers were all under a state-imposed flood watch.

The Bachman Wilson House at 1423 Millstone River Road in Millstone Borough was built in 1954 and, as one of only four documented Frank Lloyd Wright houses in New Jersey, is “a rare and quintessential mid twentieth century landmark,” according to Preservation New Jersey.

The Bachman Wilson House is a “Usonian,” Wright’s term for architecturally distinct yet cost-conscious house designs, which he first promulgated during the Great Depression. Wright designed a compact house for the Wilsons, with dramatic cantilevered roofs and balconies. Its open floor plan, and soaring glass window walls which maximize natural light, make it seem larger than its actual dimensions. The glass walls also afford Wright’s signature feel of being close to nature: in this case, arguably too close. The property lies in a floodplain and is subject to continual inundation by the very river that defines the site.

When the current owners purchased the property in 1988, it was in a state of ill repair largely rooted in damage from previous flooding. Over 23 years, the current owners have painstakingly restored the house, using original construction documents from the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives. The restoration was celebrated in 2008 when the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy awarded the project the Wright Spirit Award, and in 2009, the New Jersey chapter of the American Institute of Architects created a Preservation Merit Award to recognize their achievement.

Soon after completion of an extensive round of renovations in 1999, the area was hit by Hurricane Floyd. The first floor was underwater then and has been repeatedly in subsequent years.

Numerous federal and state agencies, including the Army Corps of Engineers, Natural Resources Conservation Service, New Jersey Water Supply Authority, and the Department of Environmental Protection, are involved in flood damage reduction and ecosystem restoration efforts in the Millstone River basin, but none seem likely to alleviate the problem at the Bachman Wilson house. There is indication that flooding on the property is increasing both in intensity and frequency, threatening the house itself and its viability as a residence.

Previously unseen color pictures from the Great Depression

I find these pictures fascinating for a couple of reasons: #1. It shows people are pretty much the same in any generation (ie. You can see parents' love for children, people working hard to get by, the struggles of existing during hard times, etc. in these pictures). #2. It puts a "face" on what life was like during that troubling time and if we ever do descend into something similar it is a reminder that we can come through it and, seeing how humans have always adapted to survive in the past, that we will endure.

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