Why you might roll your eyes:
There are other, more well-known Frank Lloyd Wright houses in the country to visit, such as the famed Fallingwater in Pennsylvania.
Why you’ll love it:
Right in Alexandria, open to the public, is one of Wright’s own favorites, which you don’t have to be an architecture buff to appreciate.
The house was finished in 1941 for Loren Pope, a journalist with the Washington Evening Star; was sold to Robert and Marjorie Leighey in 1946; then, in 1964, was moved from Falls Church by the National Trust for Historic Preservation because it sat in the path of Route 66 construction. The house is a mere 1,200 square feet, with no garage, basement, or attic storage (Wright believed possessions cluttered one’s life). Visitors can admire tricks the architect used to make the space feel larger, such as using different ceiling heights, not walls, to define “rooms.”
Admission is $10, or $15 for a ticket that also grants admission to neighboring Woodlawn, a historic home built for Martha Washington’s granddaughter.
9000 Richmond Hwy., Alexandria; 703-780-4000.
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