Max and Esther De Pree House
The Max and Esther De Pree House is a private house located at 279 South Division Street in Zeeland, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.
History
Max De Pree is a son of D. J. De Pree, founder of Herman Miller office furniture company. The company had close ties with Charles and Ray Eames, beginning in 1946. In 1953, Max De Pree saw a model house design in the Eames Office in Los Angeles, and asked Eames if he could build it in Michigan. Charles suggested instead he design another house for Max. He designed this house for the De Prees, sited on a small lot next to the house they were living in at the time.The De Prees lived in the house until 1975, when they sold it to Bob Rynbrandt, a Herman Miller employee. The Rynbrandts lived in the house until 2010, when it was purchased by Herman Miller, Inc., who planned to restore and preserve it.