Broad Margin — Attraction in Greenville

Broad Margin was named by its architect, the renowned Frank Lloyd Wright. The house was designed by Wright in 1951 specifically for the landscape of the property and construction was completed in 1954. Henry David Thoreau wrote a memoir titled Walden, in which he states, "I love a broad margin to my life." It was Wright’s inspiration for the name of the house and property. The home is one of only two buildings in South Carolina designed by Wright, the other is the Auldbrass Plantation in Beaufort County. For years, unmarried sisters Gabrielle and Charlcey Austin had asked the aging architect to design a house for them. The siblings, both librarians, would send him photos of their lot on North Main Street. He once responded, “I do not design houses on lots. I design houses on acreage.” So, they purchased two uniquely inclined acres on a heavily wooded West Avondale Street lot. Wright strategically placed the home within the landscape so that it is concealed from the street and the neighbors’ view. Built into a slope located between two creeks, the home’s roofline is the only visible feature from the northern side. On the opposite end, the home rises approximately 20 feet above ground from the bottom of the slope. The house was constructed with cypress wood throughout, including the doors and cypress-board ceiling. Cypress wood window frames were built on-site into the 12-inch-thick steel-reinforced concrete walls. Copper tubes embedded into the polished red-concrete slab floors heat the house using hot water. Frank Loyd Wright also designed built-in and unattached furniture specifically for Broad Margin. Wright signed a concrete block beside an interior door, leaving his autograph on Broad Margin. Hidden within its forestry, The National Register of Historic Places home also sits inside a gated community. Here’s a picture...

I grew up in the North Main neighborhood and spent many years in this home which was owned by the Webb family at the time. Jim Webb was (not surprisingly) a local architect who was passionate about Frank Lloyd's work. I carpooled to school with the Webb daughters and we spent afternoons in this amazing home. I was heavily influenced by the house/design and decided to study Architecture at Clemson as a result. During my years in the home, I had no concept of the significance of the home or it's designer but the organic ambiance of the home and it's existence as part of the landscape left a powerful impact on me. This is a special place and I am fortunate to have experienced what it's like to "live" in one of Frank Lloyd Wright's homes.

The home was built in 1954 on a 2 acre lot. The furniture for the home was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built specifically the home. The door and windows were made from cypress trees which were cleared from the property to build the house. The interior floors are polished red concrete and the home uses stone extensively on the interior...

Unfortunately, it's a private residence with absolutely no public view of the Frank Loyd Wright designed home. It's hidden in a deeply wooded lot. The greenery surrounding it looks beautiful and very well taken care of though. Being as it's on the National Register of Historic Places and a Greenville landmark I'd love to see the outside. Would be nice if the private owners of all these historic Greenville landmarks would have an outdoor "open house" once a year for us regular folk' to get a look at the exterior of some of these beautiful historic places. Who knows, We might...