“Flying Saucer? No, Sir, It’s New ‘Futuro’ Home!”
That was the headline of an article reporter Lynn Forbish wrote about the spherical houses which appeared in the February 20, 1970 edition of the Janesville Gazette.
The Futuro House, designed by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen in 1968, manufactured in 11 countries, and market as a vacation home, is an iconic piece of architecture. Futuro houses were 26 feet in diameter, 11 feet high at the center, and weighed 8,000 pounds. The unit rested on four legs of steel tubing secured to the ground and were adjustable so the house did not have to be on level ground. A counter-balanced retractable fiberglass stairway provided entry.
At the time, a fully equipped (with furnishings) Futuro could be had for $14,000 and was sold through regional franchises. Long-time Janesville residents may even recall the flying saucer-shaped home that floated around the city in the early 1970s. Janesville resident Larry J. Tracy handled the Midwest franchise from his home on N. Harmony Drive after he and friend Norm Sauey went to Philadelphia to purchase one, according to a November 1, 2009 Gazette article.
In 2009, Tracy self-published a memoir, A Letter to Annabelle, which includes a chapter on flying saucer-shaped structure. He eventually moved the Futuro house to a piece of land he owned south of Janesville. Later, a Ford Dealership used it for a promotion, and it eventually was moved north of Interstate 90/39 near what is now the AmericInn, the 2009 article states. “I don’t know what happened to it,” Tracy said. “I think a farmer bought it.”
Learn more about Futuro Houses by stopping by the library's Woodruff Display case. Interested in learning more about local history? Check out our online resources and databases.
