Tolstoy Park, The Henry Stuart House, Historic circular hut in Montrose, US
The Henry Stuart House is a circular concrete dome structure approximately 14 feet (4.3 meters) in diameter, encircled by six windows and topped with two roof skylights. The building was constructed partially below ground level and sits beneath a large oak tree in a commercial parking lot.
Stuart built this concrete dwelling in 1925 after receiving a tuberculosis diagnosis prompted his move from Idaho to Alabama's coast. The structure was later listed on the National Register of Historic Places, documenting a period of architectural experimentation in the region.
The house demonstrates early 20th-century experimentation with new building methods and materials in coastal communities. Visitors can observe how the circular design and window placement shaped daily living in such an unconventional space.
The structure sits in a publicly accessible business parking lot along US Route 98 in Fairhope and can be viewed from the outside. The location is easy to reach and provides parking directly near the site.
Stuart mixed and poured every concrete block by hand, creating one of the Gulf Coast's earliest owner-built concrete structures. Inside, he maintained a garden and wove rugs, demonstrating how he adapted his experimental dwelling for everyday activities.
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