Solar House by Alden B. Dow

Alden B. Dow was among the group of leading architects commissioned by the Libby-Owens-Ford Glass Company in 1945 to design medium-sized, medium-priced houses that were oriented to take advantage of the sun through extensive windows or walls of glass. In their designs, the architects were not only to use solar energy for auxiliary heating but also to unite the interior of their houses with the outdoors.

Although Mr. Dow’s Michigan solar house was not built, it was featured in the book, Your Solar House, one of the earliest books published about solar homes in 1947. In the text that accompanies his drawings, he wrote, “The Michigan solar house is a happy house because it is natural. It is an exciting one because it is colorful, spacious, and alive with the movement of nature.”

Mr. Dow’s design flooded every room with the low winter sun, while in summer each room was shielded by the roof overhang and deciduous plantings. The front door provided a covered entrance for automobile passengers. He called the space for housing the auto the “car berth” because it was used only for storing the car at night. During the day it could serve as a playroom, workshop, or laundry. The living room was separated from the porch by high double-hung sash which, when opened, provided a clear area through the house to the screened porch and beyond.

Planting or landscaping was an essential part of the house. As Mr. Dow explained, “Not only does it create a pleasant shade for the windows in summer, but, most important, it provides a constant, living change that animates the house to something beyond mere physical functional space…the kind of space that is inspiring to human growth.”