This Tiny Cottage Rental in a Wisconsin State Park Is the Smallest Home Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright

From his first Great Plains-inspired, Prairie-style buildings to the quiet serenity of Fallingwater, Frank Lloyd Wright defined American architecture during his seven-decade-long career with his innovative designs. Throughout his lifetime, Wright created 1,114 architectural works, 532 of which were actually constructed.

One of the least known — and the most petite among all of his structures — just might offer the most intimate experience for casual visitors and super-fans alike. The Seth Peterson Cottage, located within Mirror Lake State Park, clocks in at just 880 square feet.

And though it may be small, it's one of the best examples of Wright's Usonian houses, a style design intended for middle-class families that offered practical, affordable, yet still beautiful homes. But what makes the Seth Peterson Cottage even more unique among Wright’s works is that it was the first — and now one of the few — homes that are available as a vacation rental.

“Serene and energetic, the little cottage perched high above Mirror Lake is muscularly geometric, seeming at once to hug the earth and burst forth from it,” the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation says on its site.

The one-bedroom cottage sits on a wooded hill, flanked by a small wall made of local sandstone, and features some of Wright's signature trademarks such as picture windows, a cantilevered roof, and a large, centrally located chimney,

“The flagstones used to pave the outside terrace continue inside the building as the cottage floor, manifesting Wright’s philosophy of making little distinction between the outside and inside worlds in which we live,” the Seth Peterson Cottage Conservancy says on its site.

The home was commissioned by Peterson, who was a huge fan of Wright. He applied to join Wright's Taliesin Fellowship (an architectural school founded by the architect and his wife, Olgivanna) but was rejected. Then, he tried to commission Wright to build a home for him several times but was also denied. Finally, Peterson sent $1,000 to Wright (who promptly spent the money) as a retainer — and having burned through the cash, Wright had no choice but to accept the commission. Unfortunately, Peterson did not have enough financial reserves to complete the project and even tried to keep construction costs down by doing some of the work himself.

The building was still in progress at the time of Wright's 1959 death, and Peterson died by suicide shortly before it was completed in 1960. And though the State of Wisconsin bought the property six years later, it sat abandoned for several years. In 1989, local volunteers formed the Seth Peterson Cottage Conservancy to restore the architectural gem — and to rent it out.

Over the course of its existence, the tiny home has hosted more than 10,000 guests from around the globe. The cottage sleeps two people and is equipped with an additional fold-out couch for another two guests. There’s also a galley kitchen stocked with all the essentials, and, if you prefer to dine al fresco, there's an outdoor barbecue area with a grill.

The cottage's quiet location is perfect for taking in the pastoral Wisconsin countryside — after all, Wright hoped that his designs would inspire residents and visitors alike to feel more connected with their natural surroundings. A canoe, paddles, and life preserves are included with the rental, as is a healthy supply of firewood. Popular activities in the area include hiking, biking, boating, fishing, swimming, and golfing. If you visit in the winter, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing opportunities are plentiful.

Cottage rentals go for $325 per night year-round, with an additional $30 handling fee per reservation. There's a two-night minimum, and reservations can be made through Sand County Vacation Rentals up to two years in advance, though they book up quickly.

But for those who would prefer to simply stop for a visit, the Seth Peterson Cottage is open for tours the first Sunday of every month from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., with the final tour beginning at 3:30 p.m. Tours cost $5 per person, though children 12 and under can get in for free.

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