The Futuro House

The Futuro House was conceived by Matti Suuronen in 1968 as a "portable" ski chalet. It is an iconic piece of architecture and this site is devoted to documenting the history of the Futuro and the current status and whereabouts of the remaining examples.





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About "Things Futuro" | TheFuturoHouse.com Collection

Our interest in the Futuro House quickly became our passion for the Futuro House and eventually, perhaps some might say, our obsession with the Futuro House. We collect books, magazines, collectibles and other items that relate to the Futuro House in some way. As is the case with all collections it started off relatively small with easy to obtain pieces but over time it has become quite extensive and worthy of "Futuro Nuts".

The collection contains all manner of items from unique original pieces from the early days of Futuro through contemporary mass-produced items and everything in between. The collection currently (as of the date of the latest addition/update to this page) comprises 512 physical items plus 161 "digital" items (in particular digital copies of newspaper articles) and these pages are effectively the collection's "catalog".

Additional items can also be found in The Charles Cleworth Futuro House Archive and in several smaller collections and archives.

As is the case with most collectors we are always looking to add to this collection so if you have Futuro related items for sale or know of any Futuro items for sale please let us know.

A Few Notes Relating To This Collection
  • Out Of Date Item Descriptions: Item descriptions were accurate at the time collection items were acquired but may have become outdated since. In the event that information pertaining to an item has changed following the reference links in item descriptions will take you to pages where that updated information can be found.
  • Translation: There are a number of items in this collection in languages other than English. While Google Translate can be a valuable tool it is never as good as a true translation by a bi-lingual person. Such items will display a "Translate" icon. If you are able and would be willing to translate an item please click the "Translate" icon for that item to send an email requesting high res files for the purposes of translation. Thank you in advance for any help you can offer. You would receive full attribution for the translation along with a link to your own website (or other website of your choosing) and you would also have the satisfaction of knowing your are contributing to the Futuro knowledge store here on this website.
  • Copyright: These pages contain photographs of various books, magazines and other items in this collection. Many of these items, and certainly the majority of the books and magazines are subject to copyright and the images are deliberately of a fairly low resolution and are used here simply to catalogue this collection and to provide you with a glimpse of what you would be getting if you chose to follow a similar path to us and purchase any of these items for yourself. If you wish to display any of this subject matter on your own website or otherwise use it please respect the publishers copyright and purchase your own copy.
  • Amazon Links: These pages are not aimed at advertising and we are not trying to sell you anything. However, there are expenses with keeping up a website such as this and we spend a great deal of time researching and trying to maintain this site as the most up to date and complete Futuro House resource on the web. So if, and only if, you already intend to purchase for yourself something we have in this collection please consider using the links provided here to do so if the price is right (we strongly suggest exploring other online retailers as well before making a purchase; most of the links here are to Amazon and while their prices are almost always competitive they are not always the cheapest). Doing this will not increase your cost but it will earn us a small (and it is small) commission on the sale that will be put towards our recurring web hosting costs. You know what the proverbial "they" say - every little helps!
  • Item Loans: We have in the past loaned items to institutions for various exhibitions (details here) and, on a case by case basis, are prepared to do so again in the future. If you are interested in such a loan please contact us with details of the Institution and/or Exhibition making the inquiry, the dates the items would be required and which items you are interested in displaying.
Sections Of The Collection

Newspapers Digital A-M

This collection is a collection of physical items associated in some way with Futuro. That said there are a several magazines and newspapers that contain articles on Futuro that we have not yet been able to find physical copies of and, in the "digital age" we all now live in, it is not unreasonable where they are available to add "digital versions" of these to this collection until such time as we able to source physical copies. In the event you have, or are aware of, physical copies of any of these publications for sale please let us know.

Listed below are "digital" newspapers and newspaper articles (titles A-M) related to Futuro included in this collection.

Latest Update(s)/Addition(s) ***
  1. Asbury Park Evening Press | 050672 Issue | Added 100116
  2. Asbury Park Evening Press | 050874 Issue | Added 100718
  3. Courier Post | 122873 Issue | Added 100718
  4. Courier Post | 091576 Issue | Added 100718
  5. Courier Post | 110504 Issue | Added 120416
  6. Delmarva News | 030173 Issue | Added 123017
  7. Detroit Free Press | 042972 Issue | Added 100516
  8. Florida Today | 100771 Issue | Added 100116
  9. Helsingin Sanomat | 050712 Issue | Finnish | Added 080115
  10. Glens Falls Post Star | 102584 Issue | Added 123017
  11. Iltalehti | 050512 Issue | Finnish | Added 080115
  12. Ironwood Daily Globe | 091371 Issue | Added 123017
  13. Janesville Gazette | 022070 Issue | Added 123017
  14. Janesville Gazette | 122471 Issue | Added 123017
  15. Länsi Savo | 041412 Issue | Finnish | Added 080115
  16. Latrobe Bulletin | 041070 Issue | Added 072719
  17. *** London Evening Standard | 070715 Issue | Added 061721
  18. Longview Morning Journal | 060886 Issue | Added 100116
  19. Mansfield News Journal | 012969 Issue | Added 100717
  20. Mansfield News Journal | 030576 Issue | Added 062417
  21. Marshall News Messenger | 061582 Issue | Added 012018

Asbury Park Evening Press - 050672 | Added 100116

The only "stretched" Futuro II-X of which we are aware was located in Harvey Cedars, NJ in the early 1970's. As far as we know it was later demolished and there are no remaining examples of this "stretched" version of the Futuro.

The 050672 issue of the Asbury Park Evening Press included an article that reported on the road transport of this Futuro from the manufacturing plant in Pleasantville, NJ to Harvey Cedars. The article includes a couple of photos and dates the delivery of the Futuro to the previous day, 050572. A little more information and larger photos can be found here.

Asbury Park Evening Press 050672 Issue Page 1

Asbury Park Evening Press 050672 Issue Page 4

Courier Post - 091576 | Added 100718

Courier Post 091576The 091576 issue of the Cherry Hill, NJ publication the Courier Post carried an article on the Willingboro Futuro titled "It's not an invasion, just a new office".

The article, which is accompanied by a single photograph, reported on the official "dedication" of the structure as Willingboro Township's Parks Information Office. The structure had actually been moved (by flatbed truck) to Mill Creek Park in Willingboro many months prior in November 1975 but local authorities had not previously got around to scheduling the dedication.

An issue of the same publication almost thirty years later suggested that the move to Mill Creek Park was facilitated by a helicopter. Such confusion is not unusual where the history of Futuros is concerned. In this case it seems most likely that the earlier report, written at the time, would be more accurate that the report written thirty years later.

Delmarva News - 030173 | Added 123017

Delmarva News - 030173The Delmarva News was published in Selbyville, DE but, as far as we can tell, it ceased publication some time ago.

The 030173 issue carried a rental ad for two Futuros owned by Joe Hudson. The ad reads:

"TWO FUTURO HOMES, seasonal rental beginning April 1 to November 1, Broadkill Beach, next to wildlife refuge, 200ft. from the beach. $2,400.00 for season. Also in Cave Colony location, country setting, home in wooded area, $1,800.00 for the season. Call Joe Hudson, xxx-xxxx or xxx-xxxx."

Joe Hudson, through his company New Dimensions Of Delaware Inc., was very active in the US Futuro community in the early to mid 1970's.

Detroit Free Press - 042972 | Added 100516

On 042972 the Detroit Free Press published an article about the Futuro under the headline:

"A Spaceship from Mars? No - It's a Vacation Home"

More specifically the article was about Futuro of Michigan, a company based in Chelsea, MI that owned the Michigan distribution rights for Futuro. It included specifications for Futuro along with a little general history and some information about the Michigan distributorship. The article was accompanied by one photo and one drawing.

More information can be found in the Futuro Of Michigan section of the "Concept, Design & Manufacturing" page.

Detroit Free Press 042972 - Page 5b

Detroit Free Press 042972 - Page 7b

Glens Falls Post Star - 102584 | Added 123017

Glens Falls Post Star - 102584The late theme park developer and philanthropist Charles R. "Charley" Wood had a Futuro on his Gaslight Village property in Lake George, NY during the 1970's and 1980's.

What happened to the Futuro after Gaslight Village is unknown and until now we were not sure when it was even moved but an article in the Glens Falls Post Star published 102584 suggests that the Futuro was most likely sold and relocated in 1984.

The article, titled "For sale: Thrill rides, Dracula's Castle", reports on an auction to be held 102784 at another of Woods' properties, The Great Escape Fun Park.

The auction was being held to free up space for new attractions at Woods' parks and Woods' Futuro was noted as being among the unusual items for sale. We have found no other record of the auction and so we have no idea if the Futuro actually sold but, assuming it did, it seems reasonable to assume it would have been removed some time shortly thereafter.

Ironwood Daily Globe - 091371 | Added 123017

Ironwood Daily Globe - 091371The Ironwood Daily Globe, published in Ironwood, WI, carried a short article on Futuro on 091371.

The article included a photo of a Futuro "perched near Lake Michelle in Hurley, WI". It goes on to indicate that the Futuro was the first of several Futuros planned for a leisure home sub-division being developed by Thomas LaBlonde.

This newspaper article is the first mention we have come across of a Futuro at this location and we have no idea what became of it or whether any of the additional Futuros planned ever made it to the sub-division.

Since this is a completely new Futuro location (to us at least) the Lake Michelle Futuro has been added to the "Lost Souls" page.

Janesville Gazette - 122471 | Added 123017

Janesville Gazette - 122471Larry Tracy, president of Janesville based Futuro Enterprises is known to have been the "mastermind" behind the siting of a Futuro at the Lake Geneva Playboy Club in the early 1970's but, as is the case with much of the history of the Futuro, it has always been difficult to establish exactly when the Futuro was there.

This Futuro ultimately ended up in Rockland; additional information can be found in the "Janesville Futuro" section of the "Lost Souls" page.

The 122471 issue of the Janesville Gazette carried an article that, along with a second article from the same newspaper dated 022070, allows us to accurately date the presence of the Futuro at the Playboy Club.

The article reports on the movement of the Futuro from the club to a lot in Janesville the day prior to publication and it includes a rather nice photo of the Futuro, dwarfing the truck carrying it, on the road through Janesville.

With the earlier article providing the approximate date of arrival of the Futuro in Lake Geneva it can now be placed onsite between late February / early March 1970 and 122371.

Latrobe Bulletin - 041070 | Added 072719

Latrobe Bulltin 041070The 041070 issue of the Latrobe, PA based Latrobe Bulletin carried a short Futuro article accompanied by a single photo.

The article reports that the Futuro which had been on display for more than a year on Philadelphia city property had been forced by the city to relocate. The Futuro, previously located at 20th & The Parkway, had been relocated to a parking lot a couple of blocks away. Information about the previous location can be found here.

The same photo had appeared a week earlier in the Scranton Tribune and the Philadelphia Inquirer on 010772 reported on the Futuros removal from the parking lot some 20 months later.

Longview Morning Journal - 060886 | Added 100116

The 060886 issue of the Longview Morning Journal included an interesting article that includes the first photos we have come across of the Rockwall Futuro during the time it served as a snow cone store in Marshall, TX. For more information see the Rockwall Futuro page.

Longview Morning Journal - 060886 Issue - Page 1F

Longview Morning Journal - 060886 Issue - Page 2F

Marshall News Messenger - 061582 | Added 012018

News Messenger - 061582The 061582 issue of the Marshall News Messenger carried a short article on a Futuro (now located in Rockwall, TX) owned by Ed Hoffman who had purchased the unit from a Minnesota farmer and subsequently moved it to Marshall, TX.

According to another newspaper article (Longview Morning Journal of 060886) Hoffman later sold his Futuro to Marshall native Michael Thompson who relocated it (still in Marshall) and turned it into a business called "Cosmic Cones".

Interestingly the article suggests that the Futuro had been "dis-assembled into five segments" and then later "re-assembled in two parts on a truck for its trip to Texas". Difficult to envisage a Futuro being dis-assembled to five segments; maybe the top half was broken down to four segments so the bottom half could then be loaded onto a truck with the top half then being reassembled again for transport?

The Asbury Park Press - 050874 | Added 100718

The Asbury Park Press - 050874The 050874 issue of the Asbury Park Press carried a short article that referenced the "Space Bank" that had been located at a shopping center in Tom's River, New Jersey since 111172.

This was one of several Futuros that served as branches of City Federal Savings and Loan in the New Jersey area during the early 1970's.

Two variants of Futuro were used in this way, standard Futuros with 16 windows around the circumference of the unit and a variant which had only 8 windows. More information on "Space Banks" can be found here.

Courier Post - 122873 | Added 100718

Courier Post 122873The 122873 issue of the Cherry Hill, NJ publication the Courier Post carried an advertisement for a "Space Bank" located at the Village Mall in Willingboro Township, New Jersey; the unit had been installed a couple of weeks earlier on 121473.

This was the one of several Futuros that served as branches of City Federal Savings and Loan in the New Jersey area during the early 1970's.

Two variants of Futuro were used in this way, standard Futuros with 16 windows around the circumference of the unit and a variant which had only 8 windows. More information on "Space Banks" can be found here.

Courier Post - 110504 | Added 120416

Update 100718

An issue of this same publication from almost thirty years earlier reported on the arrival of this Futuro in Mill Creek Park. That article indicated the Futuro was transported by flatbed truck not helicopter as suggested here. Confusion is not that unusual when it comes to Futuro history; in this case we tend to think the earlier report, written "at the time" is most likely to be correct.

Original Information 120416

The 110504 issue of the Cherry Hill, NJ publication the Courier Post carried an article on the Willingboro Futuro.

The article appeared on pages 1B and 3B under the headline "Spaceship never took off" and is accompanied by two photos. The article tells us that (at the time) the Futuro was owned by the town and used as an office by the Police Athletic League.

The article adds a little history reporting that the Futuro was once a banking office (more information on "Space Banks" can be found here) located in the parking lot of the Acme & Caldor shopping center on Route 130. It was flown into Mill Creek Park by helicopter sometime in the 1970's where it served as a security office for the park and then a tennis office prior to being taken over by the Police Athletic League.

Courier Post 110504 Page 1B

Courier Post 110504 Page 3B

Florida Today - 100771 | Added 100116

Florida Today - 100771The 100771 issue of Florida Today reported on the 1971 "Internationale Kunststoffhaus Ausstellung der Welt" (IKA) that was held outside the German town of Lüdenscheid.

The article was really just a couple of photos with a common caption; the caption was actually inaccurate in that it described the Futuro as having been designed by Alco of Goslar, Germany.

In one photo the Futuro is seen in the background behind the Rondo; the other is an interior shot of a Futuro. More information and photos from the IKA can be found here.

Helsingin Sanomat - 050712 | Added 080115

Helsingin Sanomat - 050712TranslateThe 050712 issue of Helsinki based Helsingin Sanomat, Finland's largest daily newspaper, featured a full page article on the Futuro House.

It appears to include some history and basic facts about Futuro as well as referencing Futuro #001 and its restoration and display at the WeeGee Exhibition Center in Espoo.

The article includes photos of Futuro #001, the Dombai Futuro and the Berlin Futuro along with a world map of locations (it lists 45 Futuros, as we know the list has grown since then).

Iltalehti - 050512 | Added 080115

TranslateIltalehti is a Helsinki based newspaper published Monday through Saturday. The 050512 issue contained a short piece on Futuro #001 which included the dates the Futuro would be displayed at the WeeGee Exhibition Center in its first year post restoration. There is also a nice photo of Futuro #001 nearing the completion of its reassembly on site at WeeGee.

Iltalehti 050512

Janesville Gazette - 022070 | Added 123017

Janesville Gazette - 022070The 022070 issue of the Janesville Gazette carried an article titled:

"Flying Saucer? No, Sir, It's New 'Futuro' Home!"

The article reports on an interview with Larry Tracy, president of Janesville based Futuro Enterprises. It provides general information about Futuro and is accompanied by a single photo (likely of the first Futuro that was displayed in the US at the Philadelphia International Airport in 1969 though the photo is poor quality and we cannot be certain).

Most interesting is the last paragraph of the article which reports that "The Lake Geneva Playboy Club will be the site of a fully constructed and equipped Futuro within the next two weeks". The presence of a Futuro at the club is well documented but this article provides precise dating for its arrival at the club. Along with a second article from the Janesville Gazette of 122471 which reports on the move of the Futuro from the Playboy Club to Janesville this places the Futuro in Lake Geneva from Feb/March 1970 until 122371.

This Futuro ultimately ended up in Rockland, WI and additional information can be found in the "Janesville Futuro" section of the "Lost Souls" page.

Länsi Savo - 041412 | Added 080115

Lansi Savo 041412 ATranslateThe 041412 issue of Mikkeli based daily newspaper Länsi Savo contained an article about the Futuro House. Specifically it appears to reference Futuro #001 and its restoration prior to being installed at WeeGee Exhibition Center in Espoo, Finland.

The article also references the company Ekin Muovi which was involved (we believe) in the restoration of Futuro #001 (Ekin Muovi was also involved in the 2001 project to restore the Futuro now located in Kauhava and then transport and display it at the 7th International Istanbul Biennial in the grounds of the Ottoman Mint at the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, Turkey).

Lansi Savo 041412 BPhotos accompanying the article include one pre transport for restoration, a couple of interior shots and one post restoration shot that we are assuming was taken at the Ekin Muovi shop prior to the unit being moved to WeeGee.

This article is one of a number of very similar (at least as far as we can tell given that we cannot read Finnish) newspaper articles published around this time. Others can be found here, here and here.

Mansfield News Journal - 012969 | Added 100717

Mansfield News Journal - 012969The 012969 issue of the Mansfield News Journal carried a short Futuro article on page 5 that reported on a Futuro "being readied for display at a building fair in Essen, Germany".

With a publication date of January 1969 this is one of the earlier Futuro House related newspaper articles we have come across and the Essen building fair to which it refers would also have been one of the earlier exhibitions to feature a Futuro House.

The article is accompanied by two photos, one exterior and one interior. The exterior photo appears to be of the original Futuro prototype (#000) during the time it was located on the property of Jaakko Hiidenkari in Turenki, Finland (it is now in the collection of the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam).

Mansfield News Journal - 030576 | Added 062417

Mansfield News Journal - 030576The 030576 issue of the Mansfield News Journal carried a short Futuro article on page 12.

The article includes a single photo of the Futuro now located in Covington, Kentucky. This photo gives a good look at one of the unique features of this Futuro which was manufactured with 8 windows but ended up with 10 (note the large spacing between the windows but then one pair right next to each other) when owner Rob Detzel made several major alterations including the addition of two more windows and an extra entrance.

In part the article reads "the first of several flying saucers has "landed" on a Northern Kentucky hillside overlooking Cincinnati". Given the date of the article and the fact that the Futuro was installed in its current location in 1987 despite the description sounding very like the current location the photo is likely a photo of a previous location in the Cincinnati area (for more on this see the Covington page).

London Evening Standard - 070715 | Added 061721

The London Evening Standard - 070715The 070715 issue of the London Evening Standard, a Monday to Friday free tabloid, carried a short article about Craig Barnes' UK Futuro.

The article recounts a very brief and general Futuro history and reports on the potential for the UK Futuro to find a home at the University of the Arts, London following the end of its stay at Matt's Gallery.

The article is accompanied by an interior photo of a Futuro and an exterior shot of Futuro #001.

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