Born in Oak Park in 1885, John Van Bergen was the second of four children. He had an uncle who was a residential contractor and was surrounded by construction projects from a young age as the streets of Oak Park began to fill with newly built homes.
As a child, Van Bergen’s family lived at what is now 532 Fair Oaks Ave. The Victorian home sits across the street from Frank Lloyd Wright’s Rollin Furbeck House. The home still stands today and was greatly altered in the 1940’s.
He attended Oak Park High School, when it was on Lake Street. While there, he created his first known drawing: a map of the high school district dated June 1904.
After working for his contractor uncle as young man, he began to work in the office of Walter Burley Griffin for the sum of $6 per week. Griffin had previously worked for Frank Lloyd Wright before striking out on his own in 1905.
Van Bergen later studied at Chicago Technical College and went on to work in the Oak Park office of architect E.E. Roberts. In 1909, Van Bergen became the last employee hired by Frank Lloyd Wright for his Oak Park studio. Along with Wright employee Isabel Roberts, Van Bergen closed Wright’s studio when Wright left Oak Park.
Van Bergen briefly worked with William Drummond before striking out on his own. By 1911, Van Bergen was a licensed architect and had opened his own Oak Park studio.
He designed dozens of Prairie Style homes in the Oak Park and River Forest area until leaving to serve at Fort Sheridan during World War I. When he was discharged, he married and moved to Highland Park where he designed numerous residences along the North Shore, continuing to work in the Prairie Style.
In Highland Park, Van Bergen was a neighbor of landscape architect Jens Jensen, and they collaborated on several projects, with Van Bergen creating buildings that were harmonious with the area’s prairie setting.
A large number of Van Bergen homes still exist in Oak Park today. He is well known for adapting Wright’s $5,000 “Fireproof House” for his own practice and built as many as 16 variations of the plan in Oak Park between 1911 and 1923.
His three Flori Blondeel homes are striking on three adjacent lots at 426, 432 and 436 N. Elmwood Ave. Blondeel, a florist, commissioned Van Bergen to build the homes and sold them with the help of George Hemingway, a real estate agent, in 1914.
A few blocks away, a Van Bergen design at 806 Columbian Ave. recently hit the market for $950,000. The William H. Watt House was designed in 1913.
Originally a 3-bedroom, 1.5-bathroom home, previous owners expanded the home, adding a primary suite with a full bathroom on the second floor, and a family room on the first.
Realtor Alice McMahon of @properties Christie’s International Real Estate says the addition was seamless and kept to the character of Van Bergen’s design.
“The home has been well-cared for,” she says and notes that the home has a brand-new roof, a finished basement and rec room in the basement.
She expects the home will sell quickly. “It has a fun history and it’s a beautiful block,” she says.