The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1920-09-24
Automatic" Home
Designed by Woman.
Needs No Janitor,
No Maids, No Coal
Mechanical Household Ap-
planes Are Big Part
of Unique Residence,
By EDWARD NJ. THIERRY

Chicago-A woman designed Evans
on's automatic" home. She calls it
fiat on the ground. It's a fat that
leeds no janitor, no maids, no coal.
1t cleans itself. sweeps itself, lights
tself and heats itself.
This unique residence has just been
completed The woman who designed
it is Miss Leah White She didn't even
lire an architect. The builders worked
from her own penciled plans.
Open door from the kitchen and
you're in the garage. At one end is
the laundry, electrically operated. In
a corner is pit which holds gas
furnace, operating steam-heated radi-
ators. You light the furnace in the
fall and you forget it til spring. Heat
in the various rooms is regulated by
thermostats scattered over the house
Floors Resemble Concrete
There's an electric dish washer and
drier in the kitchen And shelves and
closets all over the place. Floors
almost clean themselves. No nard-
wood. Instead floors, except for two
center spots covered by rugs, are an
imported Italian material resembling
concrete, and waxed. Linoleum covers
the bedroom floors.
Living room, dining room and sur
parlor are combined. Pillars partly
separate the latter from the other
two. One corner of the sunparlor is
a sort of breakfast room.
There are three bedrooms and
bathroom on the ground floor. Up
stairs is one long room, with hall
the full length. 1t is now a playroom
for the children of Mr.. and Mrs. Harry
Herman, who live with Miss White,
Mrs. Herman's sister. At any time
this can be made into three bedrooms,
with an upstairs bath.
Along the front over the sun parlor
is a roof garden playground. In the
rear, over the kitchen, garage and
bedrooms and other portion of the roof
will be screened in. A pergola with
heavy pillars, and awnings will be
built for outdoor sleeping in the sum
mer.
The front and one Side Of the house.
around the living room, dining room
and sun parlor, are almost entirely OF
glass, giving a maximum of sunlight
Windows have swinging screens on
the inside. In winter these can be
changed to swinging double windows.
No Plaster in House
There isn't bit of plaster in the
house. Walls and ceiling are made of
a prepared board, with a fax lining
between walls and floors. Ceilings
have been kalsomined and walls pa
pered directly over the boards. 1t
is claimed the house is fireproof and
soundproof.
Wall boarding has even been sub
oIllulcu III Slooo III PANTY anu CdP
board doors, to save cleaning. All
doors are painted black-against chill
dren's fingermarks.
The living-room-dining -room-sun-pa--
lor is AZ feet long, including the ele-
waited hall at one end, and "a feet
wide A row of pillars dividing the
sun parlor from the rest of the big
room is IL feet from the front win
dows.
Pm just trying out few ideas of
my own" says Miss White. Every
thing is my own design. 1t cost s12,-
900 to build the house. In normal
tmies it could have been done for
$4,000. The house is pretty big, with
a lot of extra room we're not using
upstairs. A smaller house with more
conservation of space could be built
for much less"