Stockman, Dr. G. C., House

About this property

The Dr. G.C. Stockman House (also known as Mrs. Evangeline Skarlis House) was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1908 for Dr. George C. and Eleanor Stockman in Mason City, Iowa. The home was originally located at 311 1st St. SE, but was moved to 530 1st St. (David Christiansen) NE to avoid demolition. It has been fully restored as a public museum and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It features numerous authentic period furnishings and reproduction pieces. In 1907, Frank Lloyd Wright was commissioned to design a mixed-use building for Mason City attorneys, James E.E. Markley and James E. Blythe. Construction on what became known as the Park Inn Hotel and City National Bank Building did not begin until April 1909, but Wright made many visits to the site during the 1907–1908 design period. While on one of these visits in 1908, Wright was contracted by Markley's neighbor George Stockman and his artist wife Eleanor to design a house on a small lot within blocks of his hotel and bank project. For the design of the Stockman House, Wright adapted a plan he had published in the Ladies' Home Journal in 1907. Titled "A Fireproof House for $5000," it re-envisioned Wright's Prairie Style in a smaller, more compact dwelling that was more affordable for a family of medium income. The Stockman House was Wright's third constructed version of the "Fireproof House" after completing both Tan-Y-Deri (the Andrew T. Porter House) and the Stephen M. B. Hunt House I in 1907. Stockman owned the house until 1924, after which the house passed through at least six owners, including one who used it for a photography studio. Although the house became dilapidated, very few alterations were ever made. Following the death of the final occupant in 1987, the house was put up at auction. The only bidder was the neighboring First United Methodist Church, which desired the land for a parking lot. The offer was below the minimum bid and hence rejected. Subsequently, a group of Mason City volunteers formed the River City Society for Historic Preservation in hopes of saving the house. Local inventor and entrepreneur, David Murphy (1918–1999), stepped in to satisfy both groups by donating an additional $20,000 to towards the Methodist Church's purchase under the agreement that the Stockman House would be donated to the city instead of being demolished. Ownership was transferred to the River City Society, and two years later the house was moved roughly two blocks east and two blocks north to its present location at the end of 1st St. NE. The restoration that followed included a new roof, repair of exterior stucco and interior plaster, new wiring and plumbing, and refurbishing of most other finishes inside and out. Original materials and architectural integrity were maintained as much as possible, but in some cases the Society substituted less costly, modern products for missing or damaged material. For instance, the roof was resurfaced in asphalt shingles instead of replicating the long-removed oak shingles.

Location

Categories

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

More in Cerro Gordo County

Historic places, battles, and census history across Cerro Gordo County.

More historic places in Iowa

Browse all historic places in Iowa.

Conflict records

Explore 19,000+ military engagements across American history.

Iowa history

Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.