If you don’t wish to be known as an American, try Usonian. The word was coined in 1903 by American-born writer James Duff Law. In Here and There in Two Hemispheres he wrote: “We of the United States, in justice to Canadians and Mexicans, have no right to use the title ‘Americans’ when referring to matters pertaining exclusively to ourselves.” The word gained traction at the 1910 World Congress of Esperanto (in Washington, DC) when the creator of Esperanto, L.L. Zamenhof, used Usono in his speech. But it was architect Frank Lloyd Wright who would take the word to greatest heights. His “Usonian Homes” were typically economical in size (single-story), location (inexpensive plots), and material (constructed with native materials, flat roofs and overhangs instead of garages. (The word carport was coined by Wright.)
About 30 Usonian houses were built in America, er, Usonia. Visitors of the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, New Hampshire may take a tour of the Zimmerman House, designed in 1950 by Wright for Dr. Isadore and Lucille Zimmerman. Wright designed the house, the interiors, all the furniture, the gardens, and even the mailbox. (The Zimmermans had a pretty nice collection of modern art, too, which is also on view in the house.) It is the only Wright home open to the public in New England.
Frank Lloyd Wright (1950), The Zimmerman House, exterior and interior (living room).
All photos courtesy of Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH. Photography by David Bohl.
