ONE of the most charming Dutch Colonial residences in the district, both for its setting and for its interior, is that of Mr. and Mrs. Harrison M. Wild, 9425 S. Robey Street. The house is placed on a deep lot on the east side of the street, with a beautiful garden at the rear and carefully groomed lawns at the front. Red pressed brick is used for the exterior, with white wood trim, green shutters, awnings and slate colored shingles. The front lawn is set with shrubs, and there is a line of kochias on each side of the walk leading to the door.
The entrance, on the west, opens to the stair hall and here the staircase is unusually beautiful. There is no landing and the inner balustrade disappears into the wall. The wood trim is ivory and mahogany and the walls are finished with textone in a very deep ivory shade. A wooden door opens to the dining room on the north and an arch to the living room on the south.
Upon entering the living room the observer’s eye is caught by the deep fireplace in the center of the south wall. The fireplace has a heavy ivory tinted mantle, with a design in color worked upon it, and before it is a large inlaid wood screen. On each side of the fireplace are French doors, which open to the sun room on the extreme south. Two tall and wide square paned windows are found at the east and west ends of the room. The fixtures, the wall candle type, are of old brass and the wood trim is done in ivory tones. Draperies are hung at the windows from heavy wooden poles. The sun room, with casement windows on the east, south and west sides, is shaded by brown and buff awnings. The walls are of brick and the wood trim in ivory.
The dining room, also done in textone with ivory trim, has exposures on the north and west. The fixtures here are also of old brass, both wall and hanging. A swing door opens to the kitchen on the northeast and leads directly to the breakfast nook in the northeast corner. This nook has windows on the north and east and adjacent to it are cabinets and china shelves. The kitchen, well equipped, connects with a rear hallway and with the entrance hall. One of the unusual features of the house is that there are no steps at either the front or rear.
The upper floor contains three bedrooms and the bath, which opens from an L shaped hallway. Two of the bedrooms occupy corner positions on the north side and the master bedroom is found on the south and contains three closets and has three exposures. All of these rooms are finished in pleasant tones of textone, with ivory wood trim. Period furniture is used throughout.
A large, floored attic extends over the whole upper floor and the heating plant is one of the oil burning type.
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