[1] The design is credited as one of the turning points in Wright's shift to geometric, Prairie School architecture, which is defined by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands, and an integration with the landscape, which is meant to evoke native Prairie surroundings.

Richard Bock, a Wright collaborator and sculptor, provided some of the ornamentation, including a plaster frieze.

[2] The Heller House was designated a Chicago Landmark on September 15, 1971, and added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 16, 1972.

[6][8] Heller purchased land in the Hyde Park area of Chicago from Jonas Hamburger on January 2, 1895, and commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to design the house in 1896.

The house was sold to Francis Bickett on June 18, 1913, as records indicate that by 1915, Heller had been living in Silver Lake for some years.

[8] In 1948, George Watson purchased the home from Fox and owned it for the next 25 years, becoming the owner with the longest tenure.

[12][18] The family again stopped listing the house for sale before again attempting to sell it in 2019, this time for $2.2 million.

[9] Sullivan's influence can also be seen in the floral pattern of the Richard Bock plaster frieze on the home's third floor.

[20] An elevator leads to the third floor, where there were originally servants' quarters and a playroom; this was later converted to a five-room apartment with a bathroom and two bedrooms.

[9] The house blends key elements of Wright's Prairie style and is located within a half mile of other early works.

[9][10][22] Many of the Hyde Park houses of Chicago are surrounded by elaborate gardens, and have been the subject of an ongoing neighborhood revitalization since the late 1950s.