TUCKED AWAY ON a quiet street in the heart of West Lafayette’s Boilermaker country, Samara House stands as one of the most complete and fully implemented Frank Lloyd Wright homes in the country. The home was finished in 1956 for Professor John Christian and his wife, Catherine. Dr. Christian was a professor in the Purdue University School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences with a specialty in bionucleonics. And as for the name Samara? It refers to the winged seeds found inside pinecones and was a nod to the couple’s interest in evergreen trees.
While Wright’s career spanned an incredible 70 years, he designed Samara toward the tail end. When the Christians first connected with him in 1950, their lives were on vastly different trajectories. They were newlyweds with no money, while he was 83 years old, world famous, and tied up with enormous, bicoastal projects, like the Guggenheim Museum in New York and government buildings in California.
The Christians knew that the likelihood of Wright agreeing to take on such a small, modest project was virtually nonexistent, but they nevertheless wanted to try. Dr. Christian reached him directly on the phone by happenstance. Associates would later recall that if the phone had been answered by a secretary (as was customary), it would have been a resounding “no.”
Wright’s willingness to accept the commission came with a caveat—the Christians would implement every facet of his design over time, and as their budget allowed. From the furniture to the lighting, to the bedspreads, and beyond, they kept their promise. Wright created detailed plans for the interior, exterior, and landscaping. All would be followed to a T across decades of joyful, dedicated ownership.
During the planning stage, one particular request was the creation of a generously sized living room. Since the Christians both worked at Purdue, they wanted a space that could accommodate students, faculty, and honored guests (including several Nobel Prize winners). Once they saw the proposed design, however, they feared it was too big and asked to reduce the size to save costs. In a telegram, Wright humorously quipped, “Sorry you feel the living room is too large. I’ve never yet seen one too large. If anything, yours is too small.”
While they did eventually compromise and slightly adjust the dimensions, Wright’s concept remained unchanged. He applied a tiered theme to the room’s layout, giving it a pseudo sunken living room feel without turning it into a full-blown conversation pit.
There’s a long, rectangular area that fits a couch, several accent chairs, and numerous ottomans that can easily move to suit shifting conversations. From there, two carpeted steps run along the length of the room and lead to a landing with wall-to-wall banquette seating, upholstered in a lime zest shade.
The room is beautifully bright, with an entire wall of full-length windows. With the bountiful sunshine, it seems only fitting that the room’s color palette leans citrusy, with hues of yellow, orange, and green, plus an occasional pop of purple.
Samara’s footprint is far from excessive with its comfortable 2,200 square feet of living space. It is built entirely of Philippine mahogany and red brick. Designed in Wright’s Usonian style, the home features many of his trademarks, including a flat roof with a broad overhang, unusual windows, terraces, and a carport rather than a garage.
Decorative copper fascia adds interest to the exterior, while also emphasizing Wright’s attention to detail. Clerestory windows showcase his design interpretation of the Samara concept, and it reappears in the dining room chairs, living room rug, and elsewhere. Several living spaces open onto the terrace and lanai for easy access to the beautiful gardens.
After the Christians passed away, Indiana Landmarks became co-stewards of Samara with the John E. Christian Family Memorial Trust. In 2015, the home was designated a National Historic Landmark. After an extensive restoration in 2023, Indiana Landmarks began offering 90-minute, guided tours from Wednesday to Sunday. This year, the tour season kicked off on July 23 and will run through Sunday, November 23.
For more information, or to sign up for a tour, visit samara-house.org/events.
