The Flying Saucer House, TN, USA

About three weeks ago we published an article on the "UFO House" in Royse City, TX. That was one of the late 20th century Futuro homes. Here we bring you another "UFO" style home though this one is be more commonly referred to as the "Flying Saucer House". This home, while just as strange as the Futuro homes, is unique and very definitely "one of a kind". Constructed in 1970 the "Flying Saucer House" is located on Signal Mountain in Tennessee on a switch back along ...

The Kirsch Home, Oak Park, IL, USA

Now this one was a bit of a challenge! Saw this a while ago on a blog somewhere; just a picture with no info of any sort but the picture looked interesting so I decided to try to track it down. It took a little while but I was successful in the end. The "Bunker" as it seems to be referred to was designed by the architect Errol J Kirsch and there is a series of images of the home on his website. Unfortunately there is no additional information on the rationale behind the design or the construction methods; just ...

The Cigar House, Albuquerque, NM, USA

The Mead/Penhall house or the "Cigar House" as we have termed it is located in Albuquerque, NM. Many of the buildings we feature have nicknames that have been around for a long time and we have no idea of their origin; some make sense and some seem a little obscure. We have not previously heard of a nickname being applied to this property so we chose to create one; perhaps it will stick, perhaps not. In any case if you take a look at the close in aerial shot taken from Google Maps...

Dome Of A Home, Gulf Breeze, FL, USA

Valerie and Mark Sigler had had just about enough after their home was severely damaged for the third time by a hurricane. In 1998 following Hurricane Georges they had what remained of their home demolished and started the search for the architect who would build them their new home. After a lengthy search they came upon Jonathan Zimmerman [who passed away 2005], the architect behind the "Dome Of A Home" which was constructed in 2003. The Sigler house is without doubt ...

The Brenton House, Boulder, CO, USA

The Brenton House in Boulder, CO is one of a long list of notable designs by architect Charles Haertling. The home was built for Dr. Stanley Brenton and his family who had selected a home site in the Wonderland Hills subdivision of Boulder for the construction of their new home. The site was idyllic perched above a lake and having superb views of the lake, the mountains and both sunset and sunrise. With a design said to have been inspired by the barnacle [Haertling was ...

Sheep And Dog Buildings, Tirau, New Zealand

Tirau is a small town [population 732, 2006 census] in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island and lies around 30 miles or so south of Hamilton. Traditionally a farming community the town has started to generate income as a tourist destination. The town was in decline during the late 20th century and was on its last legs by the late 1980's. A revival of sorts was initiated in 1991 by Henry Clothier, a local businessman. Tirau's location is significant in that it lies ...

The Coney Island, Bailey, CO, USA

Coney Island Colorado or, as it is commonly known "The Coney Island" is a 50's style diner built in the form of a hot dog. Complete with indoor seating the bun is 35 feet long and the dog is 42 feet long. Being constructed mainly of concrete and ironwork the stand weighs in at a hefty 18 tons. It was built in 1966 under the direction of architect Lloyd Williams for Marcus Shannon. Shannon named the diner, located on Colfax Ave. in Denver, The Boardwalk At Coney Island. His intention was to build ...

The Benewah "Milk Bottles", Spokane, WA, USA

The "Milk Bottle" building in Spokane, Washington was a pretty clear advertisement; no words were necessary to get the message across. Standing at 321 S. Cedar and created in 1935 for the Benewah Creamery Co. the building was one of six planned and two actually built. The one on S. Cedar has a sister located at 802 W. Garland. The unusual creations were the work of architectural firm Whitehouse and Price and are reported to have cost $3700 each. The buildings were constructed as retail ...