Parkwyn Village

Center of Kalamazoo Modernism

Parkwyn Village, a subset of the Winchell Neighborhood, is the most recent ‘place’ to be designated historically significant by the National Register of Historic Places (2022). Known for the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed homes that make up four of the homes in Parkwyn Village, there are several other strikingly Modernist homes that boldly and elegantly embody Wright’s Usonian concept, including several by local architects George Sprau Jr. and Norman F. Carver Jr. The high volume of Wright-inspired homes makes Parkywyn Village the local epicenter of Modernist architecture in Kalamazoo.

Established in 1947 as a planned, cooperative housing development influenced by Wright’s vision of the “Broadacre City” model, the neighborhood reflects a particular period in post-war, American design and lifestyle thinking, when several families sought to “develop a distinctive residential community that the residents would help design and build, thus not only avoiding the rigid sameness of many commercial developments but also, importantly, saving money through pooling materials purchases and performing much of the development work themselves.” A good portion of these early experimenters were employees of the Upjohn Company. Wright, the nation’s most celebrated architect by that point, made several trips to Kalamazoo to consult with the homeowners. A similar planned community called The Acres was established near Galesburg, and features several Wright-designed homes. From its inception in 1946, the Parkwyn Village Association, has had 59 past presidents.

The mini-neighborhood is comprised of the roadways (Lorraine Avenue, Winchell Avenue, Parkwyn Drive, Taliesin Drive) and 40 homes. Wright’s original vision was to have circular lots, an idea less practical than originally conceived (they were eventually squared off). Most of the architects involved with the homes have not been identified, but Michael Dunn and Roger Lepley were two that have.

Written by Ryan Gage, Kalamazoo Public Library staff, June 2024