Of all the mid-century historic houses I’d like to visit, Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion House — which has been reassembled inside the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich. — is at the very top of my list. This is the only known prototype of Bucky’s dream home, envisioned as a solution to provide affordable housing to the masses after World War II. The Museum acquired the house in 1991 and over the next decade restored the priceless relic. The Dymaxion House — which was officially known as The Dymaxion Dwelling House — was opened to the public in 2001.
“Comprehensive, anticipatory design scientist”
Buckminster Fuller is such a fascinating person. He had to have been one of the most genius minds of the 20th century… According to his daughter, he identified himself as a “comprehensive, anticipatory design scientist.” He is most famous for working with the geodesic dome. He coined the term “spaceship Earth”… and the word “synergy.”
Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion Dwelling Machine
The Museum says:
Conceived and designed in the late 1920’s but not actually built until 1945, the Dymaxion House was Fuller’s solution to the need for a mass-produced, affordable, easily transportable and environmentally efficient house. The word “Dymaxion” was coined by combining parts of three of Bucky’s favorite words: DY (dynamic), MAX (maximum), and ION (tension). The house used tension suspension from a central column or mast, sold for the price of a Cadillac, and could be shipped worldwide in its own metal tube. Toward the end of WW II, Fuller attempted to create a new industry for mass-producing Dymaxion Houses.
The story gets pretty fascinating. Fuller created a company to try and produce the house. But only two prototypes were made before the company collapsed over creative differences. An investor, William Graham, purchased the two prototypes and in 1948, incorporated at least one of them into a house he built for his family in Wichita, Kansas. The family lived in the house into the 1970s and in 1991, donated the Dymaxion to the Henry Ford Museum.
The Dymaxion House was built of aluminum. Fuller chose this material because it was light to transport, strong enough to withstand a Kansas tornado, and because after World War II, there were aircraft manufacturing facilities with capacity to manufacture it.
The house was “designed to be about 1,100 square feet or about the size of a small Cape Cod-style bungalow. It was supposed to cost about $6,500 in 1946.” The efficient and ingenious layout held “two bedrooms, foyer, living room, dining room, kitchen, kitchen storage, stainless steel fireplace, optional folding stairs to the balcony, accordion doors, O-Volving shelves, revolving shoe and clothes rack, tie and hat rack, and the Dymaxion bathroom.”
Hey-Wake in the Bucky living room 🙂
“Everybody is an astronaut… You all live aboard a beautiful little spaceship — called Earth.” – Buckminster Fuller
Link love:
Eartha Kitsch says
The hubs just visited Mr. Fuller’s personal dome home in Carbondale, Illinois. He said it was really cool. It’s abandoned now and sitting there looking really sad but there is a group that’s trying to get it preserved and cleaned up. He showed me some pictures where you could barely see inside – original floors and vintage furniture still sitting where it was left. Very intriguing..
http://fullerdomehome.org/preservation
Ashly says
I’m going to be a nitpicker… it should read “Visit *a* historic house”, unless you pronouse House as “ouse” and I don’t think many people do! http://www.grammar-monster.com/lessons/an_or_a.htm
Chad says
Actually, using an is for ease of pronunciation, so you use it based on the word that follows it, not based on the noun it modifies. And I’m pretty sure that a “h”istoric house and an ‘istoric house are both acceptable.
Robin, NV says
I believe “a” and “an” are both acceptable. I’m a(n) historical archaeologist and those of us in my field have this debate all the time.
Ashly says
While regionally, there may be some play with “a” and “an”, it is most common to use “a” in this instance, and especially when addressing a national audience. For those of us who do not drop our H’s (most of us), it looks sloppy to write “an”. /nitpicking
pam kueber says
I am going to use “an”. Golly.
Chad says
Stand your ground, Pam!
Ashly says
Hey – it’s your website! If you’re comfortable with the uncommon usage of “an”, then by golly, go for it!
I assumed it was an oversight on the editor or graphic designer’s part. Most of us pronounce the “H” in historic and would say and write “a historic” (and a quick google search confirms this to be the case), but I can see how if you hail from an area that would pronounce historic as “istoric,” that you would not find the use of “an” to be strange. Since I am the only person who took issue (enough to say something, at least) with the “an”, I will move on and privately cringe when I see the images again in the future.
Robin, NV says
Geez louise! I can assure you that it’s perfectly OK to write “an historic” with the “h” pronounced. It really has nothing to do with whether or not the “h” is silent. But if you want to get nitpicky, the “h” is not vocalized. From a phonetic perspective, it sits on the border of vowel and consonant – so in my opinion, it’s OK to use “a” or “an.” I’ve seen “an” used extensively in professional journals.
But what REALLY matters is that Pam and Kate came up with a super cool map!! Why are we arguing over grammar? Hugs Pam.
Kathy Merchant says
Makes me want to know more about the history of my house and its design. I have the original pamphlet with the different models available and floorplans from the builder. Maybe I will try the internet and see what I can find!
Sarah g (roundhouse) says
Is your house round?!
Sarah says
The Henry Ford (and Greenfield Village) is my favorite place in the world, hands down, and the Dymaxion is part of that reason. It is SO COOL, the revolving shelves and self cleaning bathroom are the stuff of dreams. If you haven’t been make plans to go because it is amazing and you won’t regret it.
Mary Tatum says
It’s the house version of an Airstream!
Janice says
I was thinking the very same thing!
Jenny A. says
We went to The Henry Ford a few years ago and I saw the Dymaxion House. It’s such an amazing concept and really a pity it didn’t catch-on. I enjoyed touring it immensely and it was really my favorite part of the whole museum (which is saying a lot because the whole place is just fascinating). 😉
Nancy B says
This is fascinating!! Some people are just ahead of their time! This is at the top of my list (and can’t thank you enough for the list)!
Angela says
This is AMAZING!! What forward thinking! I would love, love, love to go see it.
Sarah g (roundhouse) says
This is at the top of my list too! I must go see it one day. The architect that designed my house must have been very influenced by buckminster fuller’s dymaxion house. Living in a round house definitely has its advantages. They are very energy efficient. My home is about 2500 ft2 and has whatever insulation still exists from 1964 and paper thin windows but my elec bill never goes above $100 and it is currently 98 degrees here in south LA. In the winter months it can be as low as $40. Having the ac centrally located and shooting out air in a wagon wheel configuration works so much better than trying to cool off a long rectangle house with an ac unit off on one side.
It’s also convenient in the fact that you are never at the ‘far end’ of the house, there is none! Any room is just a few steps away.
And they are great for areas prone to tornados and hurricanes. The wind has no flat walls to push against so the chances of wind damage are slim. My house came out fine during hurricane Rita (just as bad as Katrina) and I know of other camps further south that benefited from being roundish ( they were octagons).
It’s funny to think of what America’s landscape would look like if fuller’s idea had really taken off and we all lived in round dwellings…
Kate H (in Va) says
Would love to see a floor plan of your house, or of any round house, really. This is such a neat idea and I didn’t realize how much more energy efficient they were.
Nancy says
deltechomes.com: The inspiration, terms and ideas for these homes come from none other than R. Buckminster Fuller. I’ve been presenting the Dymaxion House at Henry Ford Museum for over 10 years! Come experience this, and so much more at The Henry Ford (Museum, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge Factory Tour).
Nancy says
To rephrase my earlier comment, I would say instead that the creators of deltechomes were inspired by Buckminster Fuller and his ideas for producing round efficient homes. You can find out more about this company (and see illustrated floor plans) by going to their website.
jeanne says
It truly is something to see in person! The bathroom is a bit claustrophobic. Come to Dearborn, you won’t be disappointed. 🙂 My daughter-in-law works at The Henry Ford. We can hit up the Saarinen house while your here. I have a nice knotty pine bedroom you can sleep in.