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In the June 1915 Western Architect magazine, which featured John S. Van Bergen, there are a series of drawings for a residence for Mr. William Zuetell of Oak Park Illinois. This design from around 1912 is well executed and shows a mastery of the Prairie form. Had it been built, it would have occupied a place of prominence in the company of other great homes in Oak Park.
The design bears a strong resemblance to the Harry Adams Residence of 1913, by Frank Lloyd Wright, which it seems to pre-date by about a year. (The Adams house stands at 710 West Augusta Street, one block to the east of Mr. Zuetell's property.)
The lot that William Zuetell acquired on which to build a house was a large corner lot at the Northwest corner of Oak Park Avenue and Augusta in Oak Park. Van Bergen's plans for this residence probably never got beyond the initial drawings and his inclusion of the design in the Western Architect article.
It is not known why Mr. Zuetell rejected Van Bergen's design. The house that William Zuetell did build in 1912 on his lot at 707 N. Oak Park Ave. is obviously not by Van Bergen. It is a large, plain 2 story stucco building, of little architectural merit.
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