Fall-Winter 2024 Preservation Work: Experience Preservation in Action!
Mill Run, Pa. — October 31, 2024 — The preservation team at Fallingwater has been hard at work over the past year tackling our World Heritage Preserved project, which is our most comprehensive preservation project in the past 20 years. Extensive preservation work addressing the stonework, flat roofs, flagstone terraces, steel window and door frames, and concrete walls will preserve this remarkable landmark for generations to come.
It’s a fascinating time at Fallingwater, and you will experience firsthand what it takes to preserve the house’s complex and innovative architecture. You will have the unique opportunity to learn how we protect Wright’s masterpiece as our educators explain how our skilled maintenance team and specialized contractors carry out this important work.
Up to this point, preservation work has focused on Fallingwater’s Guest House, which is attached to the Main House by a canopied walkway. Nearing completion, this work involved extensive waterproofing repairs that included replacing roofing membranes, addressing deteriorated concrete and injecting grout into the voids of the stone walls.
As the preservation team finishes up at the Guest House this fall, work will also begin at the Main House beginning on Oct. 30, 2024 and carry through the winter. When you visit Fallingwater this November, you will see scaffolding on the back, or north, side of the Main House. This scaffold will be enclosed with insulated walls to create a working area with the appropriate conditions to carry out roofing and masonry repairs, keeping the work area warm and dry along with construction debris and dust contained.
Our guided interior tours will continue during construction. Visitors will experience minimal disruptions during their tour, but access to Edgar Sr.’s Terrace and the Living Room’s West Terrace will be limited. Beginning December 1, 2024, additional scaffolding and enclosures will be erected over the stream on the south and west sides of the Main House and around the stone window tower at the center of the Main House. These enclosures will be visible from the grounds and Fallingwater’s iconic view.
Our staff is working hard to minimize the impacts of this crucial preservation work on your visit. The scaffolding and enclosures will impact your view of house’s exterior, and you might occasionally hear some light noise from the work crew. We are grateful for your understanding and patience while we work diligently during this pivotal time in Fallingwater’s history.
We look forward to sharing our preservation process with you during your upcoming visit or on our communications channels. For more information and updates on this preservation project, visit our preservation blog, call 724-329-8501 or email fallingwater@paconserve.org with your questions or concerns.
This World Heritage Preserved project is made possible through financial assistance provided by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Honorable Josh Shapiro, Governor, and the Commonwealth’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant program, from the many private foundations, and the generosity of Fallingwater’s member members.
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About Fallingwater
Fallingwater is a house designed in 1935 by renowned American architect Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) for the Kaufmann family, owners of Pittsburgh’s largest department store. Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater is one of his most widely acclaimed works and best exemplifies his philosophy of organic architecture: the harmonious union of art and nature. Owned and operated by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy since 1963, Fallingwater is open to the public to tour and is surrounded by the Bear Run Nature Reserve’s 5,100 acres of natural land, streams, and trails. On July 10, 2019, Fallingwater and seven other Frank Lloyd Wright-designed properties were inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List as “The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright.” In addition, Fallingwater is designated as a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. National Park Service and a Commonwealth Treasure by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. For more information, visit Fallingwater.org. Join the conversation with Fallingwater on Facebook or Instagram.