The McElroys would have entered the first floor of the home through one of the four small triangular-shaped spaces. The image on the next page provides the best reconstruction of the Octagon House’s original floor plan. 14 This floor plan bears some striking similarities to the layout of the McElroys’ home. Howland, and called “The Best Plan Yet,” it featured four roughly square-shaped rooms surrounding a central stair- case, with the rooms separated by triangular shaped spaces at the corners. The McElroys may have taken the inspiration for the floor plan of their approximately 1,620- square-foot two-story home from a plan published in the 1853 edition of Fowler’s book. 13 At least five other octagonal homes are also known to have been built in San Francisco during the mid-nineteenth century. Fowler’s book inspired the construction of more than a thousand octagonal houses across the country, not to mention churches, schoolhouses and other structures. They were more economical because the octagon came close to the circle (or sphere) in maximizing the volume of interior space, while providing a more compact floor plan.
#HISTORY OF OCTAGON WINDOWS WINDOWS#
They were healthier because the windows and cupola would let in more natural light and ventilation than traditional housing. (Later editions also promoted “gravel wall” or concrete-like construction tech niques.) Fowler’s book argued that eight-sided houses were healthier and more economical than four-sided houses. Fowler, 12 the book advocated the building of multi-story eight-sided homes with windows in all sides and a cupola typically positioned over a central stairway.
Written and self-published by an amateur New York architect named Orson S. The book went through at least nine different editions before the fad had run its course. Octagonal houses were first popularized by an 1848 book titled A Home For All. The McElroys chose to follow the latest architectural fad in building their home. Howland and originally published in Orson S. “The Best Plan Yet” – Floor plan submitted by Mr.
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