The Sam and Ruth Van Sickle Ford House is a historic house located at 404 S. Edgelawn Drive in

Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. The house was built in 1949–50 for painter and art teacher Ruth Van Sickle Ford and her husband, civil engineer Sam Ford. Architect

Bruce Goff Bruce Alonzo Goff (June 8, 1904 – August 4, 1982) was an American architect, distinguished by his organic, eclectic, and often flamboyant designs for houses and other buildings in Oklahoma and elsewhere. A 1951 ''Life'' magazine article sta ...

, an influential figure in the

organic Organic may refer to: * Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity * Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ Chemistry * Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...

movement, designed the house. The house is dome-shaped, with

Quonset hut A Quonset hut is a lightweight prefabricated structure of corrugated galvanized steel with a semi-circular cross-section. The design was developed in the United States based on the Nissen hut introduced by the British during World War I. Hund ...

ribs forming the frame of the dome. Most of the dome is covered in shingles; however, the southeast side of the dome was left open to give the house outdoor rooms. Two smaller domes containing the home's bedrooms abut the south and northeast sides of the main dome. The house was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on March 8, 2016, and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 2023 for its architecture. It remains privately owned.

References

National Register of Historic Places in Kane County, Illinois Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Houses completed in 1950 Organic architecture Bruce Goff buildings Buildings and structures in Aurora, Illinois National Historic Landmarks in Illinois {{KaneCountyIL-NRHP-stub