Hanna-Honeycomb House - Stanford, CA
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member saopaulo1
N 37° 24.942 W 122° 09.851
10S E 573961 N 4141316
Stanford University home design by Frank Llyod Wright.
Waymark Code: WM56MF
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 11/18/2008
Published By:Groundspeak Regular Member Lat34North
Views: 7

"The Hanna-Honeycomb House, also known as simply the Hanna House, located on the Stanford University campus in Palo Alto, California, USA, was Frank Lloyd Wright's first work in the San Francisco region and his first work with non-rectangular structures. The house is recognized as a National Historic Landmark.

Begun in 1937 and expanded over 25 years, this is the first and best example of Wright's innovative hexagonal design. Patterned after the honeycomb of a bee, the house incorporates six-sided figures with 120-degree angles in its plan, in its numerous tiled terraces, and even in built-in furnishings. In American National Bibliography Frederick Ivor-Campbell wrote "(the) Honeycomb House showed how Wright's system of Polygonal modules could provide the openness that he associated with freedom of movement while gracefully integrating the house with its sloping topography. The hexagonal modules of the floor plan gave the appearance of a honeycomb; hence the name of the house."

The Hanna-Honeycomb house was designed for Paul R. Hanna and his wife Jean, both well-known educators and for many years associated with Stanford University and the Hoover Institution. The project was begun while they were a young married couple and the house was expanded and adapted over time, with Wright's assistance, as their professional and personal needs changed.

The construction process was not without difficulty. Wright's initial plans called for flat terrain, but the lot the Hannas purchased was hilly. Cost overruns meant that the original $15,000 price tag ballooned to over $37,000. Additionally, Hanna discovered that lot encompassed a portion of the San Andreas Fault. Wright, whose Imperial Hotel had survived the 1923 Great Kanto earthquake, was undaunted. Unfortunately, it was severely damaged by the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. Although that branch of the fault was inactive during the quake, the foundation and chimney were essentially unreinforced and likely would have collapsed if the earthquake had lasted longer. A major 10-year restoration was completed in April 1999, this time with seismic reinforcement.

The house is one-story high with a central clerestory (an outside wall of a room or building that rises above an adjoining roof and contains windows) and is constructed of native redwood board and batten, San Jose brick, cement and plate glass. The house clings to and completes the hillside on which it was built as the floor and courtyard levels conform to the slope of this one and one-half acre site. The entire site includes the main house, a guesthouse, hobby shop, storage building, double garage, carport, breezeway, and garden house with pools and water cascade. After living in the house for 38 years, the Hannas gave the property to Stanford University in 1974.

It is now owned by Stanford, and is a private residence, occasionally used for university functions such as seminars and receptions." (visit link)
Street address:
737 Frenchman's Rd
Stanford, CA USA
94305


County / Borough / Parish: Santa Clara

Year listed: 1978

Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering

Periods of significance: 1925-1949, 1950-1974

Historic function: Domestic

Current function: Domestic

Privately owned?: yes

Primary Web Site: [Web Link]

Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]

Season start / Season finish: Not listed

Hours of operation: Not listed

Secondary Website 2: Not listed

National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.
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Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log User Rating  
DougK visited Hanna-Honeycomb House  - Stanford, CA 11/19/2009 DougK visited it
saopaulo1 visited Hanna-Honeycomb House  - Stanford, CA 12/24/2008 saopaulo1 visited it

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