Octagon Houses

For a brief time in the USA, eight-sided houses were a thing. Based on the crackpot theories of one fellow.

The example above can be found in my native Rhode Island. I used to marvel at it all the time when I was younger.

Read the history here.

Order a book here.

Who We Are
Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Posted By: Paul - Mon Oct 20, 2014
Category: Buildings and Other Structures | Eccentrics | Nineteenth Century

Comments

Cool house Paul, I have always liked houses that are unusual! It's even cooler that it is the result of advanced planning that caused it to be so! :lol: :coolsmile:

Posted by Tyrusguy on 10/20/14 at 09:08 AM

How dumb are we supposed to be? Here's what I got from Wikipedia, "They are characterised by an octagonal (eight-sided) plan".

So, Octagon Houses were octagonal (eight-sided) in shape. A marvel of an explanation.

Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 10/20/14 at 09:55 AM

I think they were built all over the country. There are several here in Connecticut. In Montville there is a hexagonal house. Try thinking outside the box!

Posted by John Ayer on 10/20/14 at 01:36 PM

In the 60's it was 'dome homes', based on Fuller's geodesic domes. Artsy, but hard to furnish.
I found Frank Lloyd Wright's hexagon-based homes (i.e. Hanna House) more creative and adaptable, with the added bonus that noise does not seem to reverberate in a hexagonal room.

Posted by tadchem on 10/20/14 at 03:06 PM

I wonder how Orson Squire Fowler would feel if he knew that today the only place you're likely to find anyone in an octagon is at a mixed martial arts event.

Posted by Rocket J. Squirrel on 10/20/14 at 03:34 PM

If I built one it would be a sextagon which I think isn't a real word though. It's ratios would be 6x6x6 🐍

Posted by BrokeDad in Midwest US on 10/20/14 at 05:43 PM

I think that is close enough to correct BD, especially as I know what you'd be doing in there! 😜

Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 10/20/14 at 07:08 PM

I think these suffer the same interior-division problems as a dome.

A zome solves a lot of those (a dome is like cutting a ping-pong ball in half, a zome is like cutting an egg in half) by giving you two long, relatively flat walls.

If you didn't make it a regular hexagon (all walls the same length), you could lessen the effect of the corners and add a lot of usable space.

Posted by Phideaux on 10/20/14 at 07:51 PM

I have been inside an octagon house. The floor plan is very well-thought out. Lots of light, usable space, and fun nooks and crannies for playing hide-and-seek.

Posted by ScoutC on 10/20/14 at 08:09 PM

Unusual and most furniture is designed for square or rectangle rooms and not pie shaped ones.

Posted by Gator Guy on 10/20/14 at 08:58 PM

Commenting is not available in this channel entry.