Triangle Modernist Houses

Compiled by George Smart, Jr.                                                          

HARWELL HAMILTON HARRIS, FAIA (1903-1990)

Harwell Hamilton Harris was one of the country's leading architects yet he had no formal training in architecture.  He worked with Richard Neutra until 1932 then was in private practice in Los Angeles.  He designed a home for himself but lived there only five days, moving in 1951 to work in Texas.  In 1962, Harris accepted a teaching position at the NCSU School of Design.  He retired from teaching in 1973 and from private practice in 1975.  Harris won the Richard Neutra Medal for Professional Excellence in 1982.

1940 - Harris' most famous house is the Weston Havens Residence, 255 Panoramic Way, Berkeley CA.   In 1957, the AIA compared the Weston Havens House to Richard Neutra's Lovell House and Wright's Fallingwater.  The last individual owner, John Weston Havens Jr., died in 2001 at age 97.  Now belongs to the University of California-Berkeley.

1963 - The J. Francis and Primrose Paschall House, 1527 Pinecrest, Durham.  Sold to chef Scott Howell in 1995.  Sold to current owner Donald C. Mullen in 2002. 

1964 - The Roy Lindahl Residence, 305 Clayton Road, Chapel Hill.  Sold in 2004 to Jason and Teresa Wilson.  Remodel design by Bill Waddell, who furnished the color pictures. Drawing from Harwell Hamilton Harris by Lisa Germany.

1966 - 1702 Woodburn Road, Durham.  Designed for William and Carol Van Alstyne on land purchased from Duke University.  Drawing from Harwell Hamilton Harris by Lisa Germany.  After their divorce, Carol (now Frances) took full ownership.  It is now a rental house, perhaps the only Harris house available for rent in the country.

1967 - The Magnolia Cottage (Ralph and Evelyn Bryant House), 1500 Lake Dam Road, Raleigh.  Purchased by the City of Raleigh in early 1980’s for a park.  Now available as a rental for weddings and meetings.

1968 - Designed for current owners Kenneth and Mary Sugioka, 319 Bayberry Drive, Chapel Hill  Harris frequently brought students to see the house.  He insisted the family not put anything up on the walls, and they complied.  It was only after his death that the artwork went up!  After Hurricane Fran damaged the house in 1997, Werner Hausler did the renovation, faithful to the original plans.  The Sugiokas recall Harris as a "delightful individual with a dry sense of humor." 

1969 - Left photo, in his own home/office at 122 Cox Avenue, Raleigh, known as the “Box on Cox".  Later the building became the office for Bucky Fuller's design firm Synergetics, Inc.  Harris lived next door in the green bungalow (still there) during construction.  Now owned by Natural Capital Investments as offices for Williard Ferm Architects. 

1971 - Dr. H. Stanley Bennett Residence, 107 Bowden Road, Chapel Hill.  About 34 acres.  Bennett died in 1992.  Sold to the Tanaka family.  No photo.  Do you have one? 

1971 - A house for Buckminster Fuller protégé and NCSU Professor Duncan Stuart (left) and his wife Pud, 6710 Leesville Road, Raleigh.  Now owned by architect Norman Eugene Bartholomew and Kathryn Bartholomew.  Thomas Crowder worked with Harris on the home's renovation in the 1980's.  Currently getting new carpet and hardwood flooring. 

1978 - Designed for current owner William J. Watson, 9413 Bartons Creek, Raleigh.  Construction by the owner.  3 acres. 

1964 - The Frank Klingberg House, 505 Hawthorne Lane, Chapel Hill.  Harris did not design the house, but he modified the entryway and the Klingbergs were instant fans.  A visit here prompted Kenneth Sugioka, above, to commission Harris a few years later.  Sold to current owner William Leuchtenburg in the 1980's.