1120 Michigan Avenue was built in 1914 for Alfred and Helena Bersbach. The Prairie Style house was designed by John S. Van Bergen and is eligible for local landmark status as an outstanding example of this style and by the significance of its architect. The house is listed as significant in the Wilmette Historical and Architectural Survey of East Wilmette and was included in the Illinois Historic Structures Survey, a windshield survey of significant historic buildings conducted in the mid-1970s by the state of Illinois. The house retains a high amount of its integrity. The front façade has had little change. In the rear, the coach house has recently been attached to the main structure. This is not visible from the street, however.

The Prairie Style is the culmination of a movement in architecture that was led by Chicago architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The style that enjoyed its greatest popularity between 1900 and World War I is typified by its horizontal lines.

It (the horizontal line) affected virtually every aspect of the residential design – the disposition of the single mass or composite massing, the shape of the low, hipped or gable roof, the horizontal banding of windows, the emphatic belt course or shelf roof between the storeys – which often continued on one side as a lateral porch…Every feature of the building – from the basic mass to the smallest detail – was clear, precise, and angular. Ornament, per se, was a rarity; enrichment was dependent on the textural expression of materials and the often lively juxtaposition of various shapes and forms. Only in the stylized or abstract patterns of the leaded glass (or zinc strip) windows did one find consistent ornament…The materials employed were generally brick, or wood and plaster. A light tinted sand plaster (or stucco as it was also called) was used in combination with rough-sawn, stained wood which either suggested the building’s structure or served as trim. Brick was never used interspersed with these materials, being used alone, or on the first storey of a building when wood and plaster were combined above… [1]

The Bersbach House is considered Van Bergen’s best example of his interpretation of the Prairie Style. The brick-and-plaster house is situated on the shore of Lake Michigan and was designed to take advantage of its location.

A lively interplay exists between cantilevered slabs, piers, and chimney masses, while the projecting porch and porte-cochere emphasize a union with the surrounding space. The floor level is elevated to improve the view, so that steps from the entrance lead up to a reception hall from which one has a screened panorama across the dining room to the lake beyond. The major rooms – dinning room, living room, and porch – all are orientated toward the lake. [2]

The front façade of the house is a series of horizontal levels of brick broken up by wood banding. The second storey and rear façade is of cream colored plaster and both elevations have bands of leaded glass casement windows.

Architect’s Biography:

John Shellette Van Bergen was born in Oak Park, Illinois on October 2, 1885 to William F. and Ella Van Bergen. As he grew up in Oak Park Frank Lloyd Wright began building the first of his Prairie Style houses near to the Van Bergen home. The Furbeck was built across the street in 1897 and then in 1901 the Fricke House was built next door. Wright’s home and studio were built in Oak Park in 1889 and 1895 respectively.

In 1909, before he was even a licensed architect, Van Bergen went to work in Wright’s Studio. The last addition to the Studio, Van Bergen was put in charge of finishing many of Wright’s projects. After leaving the Studio, Van Bergen briefly worked for another former employee of Wright’s Studio, William Drummond. In 1911 Van Bergen received his architect’s license and left Drummond to set up his own practice.

Many of Van Bergen’s early designs are Prairie Style. During World War I, with business slowing, Van Bergen enlisted in the army. During his assignment at Fort Sheridan he met his future wife, Ruth Bemis. The two wed on September 9, 1919 and they then set up house in Highland Park. While living is Highland Park Van Bergen became close friends with the naturalist Jens Jensen whose work influenced Van Bergen’s future designs.

John Van Bergen continued to design homes throughout the country until 1963. He died after suffering two strokes on December 19, 1969.

[1] The Prairie School H. Allen Brooks, (University of Toronto Press, 1972.) p5.
[2] Ibid p. 280.