William Heath was a lawyer who served as office manager, and eventually vice-president, of the
Larkin Company in Buffalo. Heath's wife Mary was a sister of
Elbert Hubbard, a former Larkin executive. Another Hubbard sister was married to company president
John D. Larkin. Hubbard had retired in 1893 and established the
Roycroft Movement, an
arts and crafts community in nearby
East Aurora. though Heath was from
Chicago and coincidentally had a brother-in-law from
Oak Park on the building crew of Wright's
J.J. Walser House. Wright had arrived in Buffalo in 1903 to build a
house for Martin, Although only feet from the sidewalk, the house retains a measure of privacy. Wright elevated the house itself on a terrace above the street level. replacing a single story
stable. The ground floor is reminiscent of the
Isidore H. Heller House, The Heath House is distinctive due to the house being designed to compensate for the narrow lot. It is considered a precursor to Wright's renowned
Frederick C. Robie House built in
Chicago in 1909, constructed on a similarly sized block of land. ==See also==