Frank Lloyd Wright is arguably the most famous American architect, and a little bit of his history is right here in Leelanau County, in a home located near Northport. And before you ask, no, it is not open to visitors.

Which is a shame, because like virtually all Wright’s work, it is interesting, engaging, and anything but cookie-cutter. The Amy Alpaugh Studio Residence on Peterson Park Road was built in 1947. Today the home near the tip of the peninsula — owned by Peter Jorgenson of the Detroit area and two siblings — is hidden behind fences and gates. 

Jorgenson didn’t return requests for comment, but William Allin Storrer of Traverse City was happy to expound on the residence. Storrer is an authority on Wright, having written "The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, A Complete Catalog." He visited the home prior to the current owners taking possession.

“It’s way off the road on a long loop to Lake Michigan. It’s out in the boonies,” says Storrer.

The Northport home was called a studio residence. Another Wright design was originally scheduled to be built just 75 feet away, but the original owner ran out of money and the second design was never constructed.

“Amy Alpaugh was a native of Cincinnati, and a graduate of Cranbook. She had a weaving studio and would bring [items] to the Cherry Festival,” says Storrer.

“Amy was an artist. She wanted a place with a studio.”

He says the plans called for two decks and two bedrooms, but it didn’t include any reference to one of the more interesting elements: “Goats would climb the roof and look down at guests,” Storrer says.

Wright first became known for his Prairie Style of architecture, which incorporated low-pitched roofs, overhanging eaves, a central chimney, and open floor plans. He saw the style as a remedy to the confined, closed-in architecture of the Victorian era.

Wright designed some 800 buildings, 380 of which were actually built. Eight of them, including Fallingwater, the Guggenheim Museum, and Unity Temple, were designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as World Heritage sites in 2019. Unity Temple’s painstaking restoration is also the subject of a forthcoming documentary film narrated by Brad Pitt.

The home in Northport hasn’t gained such honors, but Storrer says having a Wright-designed residence was a status symbol, then and now. 

Storrer became interested in Wright after his brother studied with the renowned architect. While studying for his Ph.D., Storrer studied comparative arts, and he and another student were asked to teach an architectural history class. That led Storrer to study Wright’s work and the buildings he’d designed — but there wasn’t any central collection or authoritative books on the subject. So he wrote one.

Wright’s fame, says Storrer, both encompassed and exceeded his architectural prowess. “He was always promoting himself. He was an interesting person beyond architecture.” Wright’s personal life also helped boost his notoriety, with his affairs (two of his mistresses became two of his three wives) and the concurrent abandonment of his children; a fire and murders at Taliesin, Wright’s 800-acre estate, studio and school; and his arrest along with his third wife for violating the Mann act against human trafficking regarding her daughter (the charges were later dropped).

Storrer’s take on Wright’s Northport commission? “This one to me is a little awkward. The house is an L but cuts off half of the L. The living room is really quite small. It was built on five-foot square modules.” But he says despite its inelegant layout the Amy Alpaugh Studio House has a certain appeal, especially considering the Leelanau view it has.  Those lamenting the fact that they can’t see it for themselves may find consolation by peeking inside another Frank Lloyd Wright abode on Lake Michigan’s coast. Featured in Dwell magazine, this gem in Indiana’s Ogden Dunes is currently listed for $1,145,000.

Images supplied by William Storrer