A Frank Lloyd Wright–Designed Home is For Sale in an Unlikely Location
BY KATHERINE MCLAUGHLIN, ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST
Original Article Published by Architectural Digest
It’s been over a year since Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fawcett Farm hit the market—and the Usonian masterpiece is still in search of its next steward. Originally listed in August of 2022 for $4.25 million, the home was taken off the market during the holiday season, but is now available again. To sweeten the deal, the relisted property came with a notable price cut, now at $3.825 million.
Listed through Crosby Doe Associate, the Fawcett Farm, or Randall Fawcett Home as it’s often called, was designed in 1955 and completed in 1961, two years after Wright’s death at the age of 91. The seven-bedroom and six-bathroom home features many elements Wright is known for, such as large floor-to-ceiling windows, Cherokee red floors, and a strong connection to the surrounding nature.
Located in Los Banos, California, the property is in a somewhat unusual location—even for a Usonian home, which are often in lower profile areas. A town where the largest employer is the local school district, the rural city in California’s central valley has a population of less than 50,000. It’s not the type of place you typically associate with world-class architecture and design, but then again, nothing about the home’s origins are what you’d expect.
After graduating from Los Banos High School, Randall “Buck” Fawcett continued his academic career at Stanford University. On campus, he was a star athlete and participated in football and track. After enlisting as a paratrooper in the army during World War II, he was picked by the Chicago Bears in the 1944 NFL Draft. Instead of accepting a jersey with his name on the back, Fawcett touchingly chose to return to Los Banos to help out on his father’s farm. It was here that he and his wife met with Wright to design their family home, which they built themselves over two years using the architect’s blueprints.
Whoever buys the Fawcett property will be the third family to live in it and the second to enjoy the home after a premier restoration completed in consultation with Eric Lloyd Wright, Wright’s grandson, and overseen by Arthur Dyson, a Taliesin Associated architect. According to SF Gate, since relisting, the home has received three offers; however it remains available.
