The Carter House of 1960, by Wilson, Morris, Crain and Anderson, is one of Houston’s most prominent modern houses and is in need of a new preservation-minded owner. This is Houston Mod’s first opportunity to tour the house since 2004 when it was the location of a party held in conjunction with the lecture given by Los Angeles architect Leo Marmol. The flat roofed, steel framed design, is formal and symmetrical with a mostly closed street elevation contrasting with a mostly glass rear elevation opening to a landscaped swimming pool terrace. The street was originally home to several other fine vintage modern houses. Only three remain.
The architecture firm had several partner arrangements yet mainly consisted of F. Talbott Wilson (1912-1988), Seth I. Morris (1914-2006), Bluford Walter Crain, Jr. (1914-1995) and Ralph Anderson (1923-1990). All were graduates of the Rice School of Architecture except for Crain who was a University of Texas School of Architecture graduate. Their major commissions shaped Houston plus much of the state and include work all or in part on such major buildings as the Astrodome, First City National Bank, the Houston Public Library Downtown, One and Two Shell Plaza, Pennzoil Place, the Wortham Theater, Glassell School of Art (demolished), Williams Tower, the Houston Post building, KPRC and KHOU TV offices (both demolished), the Frank Erwin Center (set for demolition), Harris County Family Law Center (endangered), and numerous others.
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