Thermo-Con House

Here follows the inscription written on this roadside historical marker:

‘Thermo-Con’ House
In 1948, the Department of Defense worked with Higgins Industries to develop a standard house design to meet the Army’s housing shortage. Higgins Industries designed and mass-produced landing craft during World War II and held the patent for ‘Thermo-Con,’ a cement material that expanded as it cured. The renowed industrial architects, Albert Kahn & Associates, designed the prototype in the International style and the 410th Engineer Battalion (Construction) completed the building in 1949. Due to its innovative design and construction techniques, the house was plaed on the Virginia Landmarks Register in 1997. In 2000, the Army renovated and returned ‘Thermo-Con’ House to use as distinguished visitor housing.

Erected by Fort Belvoir.


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Regarding ‘Thermo-Con’ House. Designed by E. S. Henderson, Albert Kahn Associates of Detroit, Michigan.

Also see . . .
Thermo-Con House. “The house features several elements associated with the International Style, an early-20th-century style of design that shunned historically based decoration. Elements integral to the International Style include an asymmetrical mass, a flat, asphalt roof, smooth unornamented wall surfaces, vertical windows, a wide, boxed overhang, a simple, unadorned front door, and plain round supports for the house. A water table and second-floor belt course stress the building's horizontality.”

Nomination Form for the National Register of Historic Places:
“The ‘Thermo-Con’ material used to construct the walls, floors, and roof system of the house was comprised of ‘ordinary cement, water, and a patented formula of mineral origin.’ The mixture was combined in a ‘Thermo-Con generator’ and made into a thick paste called ‘Thermo-Con Slurry’. It was then pumped into a standard building form for concrete through a flexible hose to a predetermined depth. This material was then left to set for forty-five minutes. During the setting period the mixture expanded a remarkable two and one-half times its original size. At the time it was noted that this house ‘rose like bread dough.’ According to an article in a 1949 issue of the Fort Belvoir Castle, Thermo-Con was a new building material that was creating quite a stir in the construction field. The author stated, ‘Its qualities are almost legend—it floats, can be sawed with an ordinary carpenter’s handsaw, drilled with a brace and bit; it holds nails and common wood screws, and its heat resistance and insulating qualities defy belief.”

Thermo-Con House was built in 1949 and is the only International Style building at Fort Belvoir in southern Fairfax County. It was designed by E. S. Henderson of the renowned industrial architectural firm of Albert Kahn Associates of Detroit, Michigan, and was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as an experimental structure to test an innovative cementitious material known as ”Thermo-Con.” The effort was an attempt to bring quality standardized housing to all army posts after World War II and to test the suitability of Thermo-Con in the mass production of lightweight houses. The Thermo-Con House may be the only one of this type of design and material built by the Army Corps of Engineers in the United States.


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Here follows an excerpt from the Clio Foundation website as written by Genna Duplisea:

Introduction
Part of United States Army's Fort Belvoir, the Thermo-Con House is the only International Style building at the fort. Dating back to 1949, the house was the product of a collaboration between the Department of Defense and Higgins Resources with the goal of creating a standard house design to address a housing shortage on Army bases. E. S. Henderson of architecture firm Albert Kahn & Associates designed the house, and an engineering battalion built it. Although the Army did not end up building more houses from this prototype, the Thermo-Con House symbolizes the shift in housing construction from traditional craftsmanship to industrial design and production.

Backstory and Context
During World War II, the United States military had begun partnering with modern architects and large industrial firms to produce housing for workers, soldiers, and other personnel. The U.S. Division of Defense Housing, Clark Foreman, believed that such partnerships would contribute to the practice of architecture and reduce the stigma associated with public housing in the United States. Several successful projects emerged from these partnerships in the early 1940s.

The name of the Thermo-Con house refers to the material used to construct the walls, floors, and roof. "Thermo-Con" combines cement, water, and a proprietary mineral in a specialized mixer, which when poured into place expands as it cures. Higgins Resources, Inc. (also known as Higgins Industries), which had produced landing craft during World War II, held the patent for this material. Shortages of building materials like wood and steel during the war had led to the invention of this and other innovative materials.

E. S. Henderson of industrial architecture firm Albert Kahn & Associations designed the Thermo-Con house as a prototype, and the 410th Engineer Battalion (Construction) built the structure in 1949. The Kahn design utilizes the International Style, which avoids any historically-based decoration. The style favors a flat roof (often asphalt), smooth surfaces, asymmetrical massing, and simplicity. Other experimental housing designs emerged during this time period, but none of them were ever mass-produced as they had been intended. Despite the housing shortage and need to inexpensively produce housing, the International Style did not appeal to consumers and the Thermo-Con prototype did not produce any additional houses.

The house served as the unofficial residence of the Post Sergeant Major at Fort Belvoir. Some renovations to the two-story building took place in the 1970s. The National Register of Historic Places recognized the property in 1997, at which time it was unoccupied. Three years later, the Army renovated the building for use as housing for distinguished visitors to Fort Belvoir.


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Here follows an excerpt from the Fort Belvoir Housing History website:

Thermo-Con House
Thermo-Con House, a prototype constructed in 1949 using an experimental building material, represents Fort Belvoir's best extant example of the International Style. The house also illustrates the Army's willingness to experiment with innovative building materials and technologies.

Fast Facts
Date of Construction: 1949
Housed: Sergeant Major (historic); Guest house for distinguished visitors
Total Units: 1
Unit Type: Single-family
Architectural Style: International Style
Designer: Albert Kahn Associates, Inc., Detroit
Named to Memorialize: The "Thermo-Con" material used in the building's construction

Location
Thermo-Con House, a single-family residence, is located on South Post within the National Register-eligible Fort Belvoir Historic District. The house is set back from the corner of the intersection of Gunston Road and 21st Street, somewhat isolated on a heavily wooded site. The single-family homes of Gerber Village are to the north, and the Gerber Village duplexes are to the east.

Architectural Description
The house features several elements associated with the International Style, an early-20th-century style of design that shunned historically based decoration. Elements integral to the International Style include an asymmetrical mass, a flat, asphalt roof, smooth unornamented wall surfaces, vertical windows, a wide, boxed overhang, a simple, unadorned front door, and plain round supports for the house. A water table and second-floor belt course stress the building's horizontality.

The house is two stories plus a basement. The building's initial plan included a living room, dining room, and kitchen on the first floor and three bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor. "As Built" drawings show that the basement primarily consisted of a large open space, with a small room for coal and a laundry area.

The "Thermo-Con" building material was a combination of Portland cement, water, aluminum flake, caustic soda, and bituminous emulsion. It provided a gas-expanded, cellular cement composition having a remarkably high strength-to-weight ratio.

This building material appealed to the Army for several reasons. It had many of the advantages of wood, including the ability to saw it and drive screws or nails into it. In addition to being moisture and vermin proof, the military also liked its high heat-insulating qualities.

Fort Belvoir's Thermo-Con House has had only minor alterations. Efforts have been made to restore and preserve the building, which has been identified as a significant resource. The most notable interior alteration involved combining two of the second floor bedrooms into one master suite.

Statement of Significance
Thermo-Con House embodies the Army's willingness to experiment with aspects of the International Style and low-cost, energy efficient building materials and technologies. The prototype is also Fort Belvoir's best extant example of the International Style, a type of design not typically seen on military installations.

The house was designed by the renowned design firm of Albert Kahn Associates, Inc., a Detroit-based firm recognized for its influential industrial designs of the time. Under the direction of its founder and namesake, Albert Kahn, the firm is also credited with the design of numerous airfield and naval bases prior to World War II.

Initially, Thermo-Con House was one of two buildings constructed on Fort Belvoir of this revolutionary material. Both buildings were constructed around the same time by the 410th Engineer Battalion (Construction). The other building, the former South Post golf course club house, has since been demolished.

The building illustrates a unique construction technology. The "Thermo-Con" material consisted of "ordinary cement, water and a patented formula of mineral origin." This mixture was poured into molds and left to "rise," a process compared to baking a cake. [1] Construction of the house was completed in 1949 by Alpha Company, 10th Engineers Construction Battalion of the US Army Corps of Engineers.

Apparently a short-lived experiment, very few buildings were constructed from this material and only a handful remain. In recognition of its significance, Thermo-Con House was placed on the Virginia Landmarks (State) Register in 1997. The house continued to serve its original function, as home to Fort Belvoir's sergeant major, until 2000. At this point, a renovation project, completed by Sanders Engineer Construction Company, prepared the building for its current use as a guest house for distinguished visitors to Fort Belvoir.

Memorialization
Thermo-Con House is named for the material used in its construction. This experimental technology was developed and patented by Higgins Resources, Inc., of New Orleans.