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What is unique about this Oak Park home of 1914 is the underground garage addition under the veranda. According to Village of Oak Park building permit records, this addition was designed by Van Bergen himself in 1923 for Mr. Leland Babcock, probably the second owner of the house. The most interesting detail is the use of rough cut stratified limestone for the driveway retaining walls. These walls seem to be original and fit with the style often used by Van Bergen in his houses in the 1920s and beyond.
The house sits on a very small lot with no alley. The lot line behind the house is only 3 or 4 feet away. This is the reason a garage had to be incorporated into the main building as there was no room for a separate attached or detached garage.
The most striking and dramatic detail of home is the two very tall windows on the stair landing.
There have been many alterations to the house over the years. Among them, a powder room was added off the front entry hall extending onto the old outside front landing. The house originally had a cedar shingle roof but now has asphalt shingles.
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