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AS OF 102913 THE FUTURO HOUSE PROJECT HAS ITS OWN DOMAIN AND ALL UPDATES ARE NOW FOUND ON THEFUTUROHOUSE.COM

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 UPDATED 040513 | ADDED 091511 | ROYSE CITY, TX, USA | RETURN TO THE MAIN FUTURO HOUSE ARTICLE | RETURN HOME

9573 State Highway 276 W, Royse City, TX 75189, USA | 32°53'52.99"N 96°17'59.41"W

Featured Image By The Grumpy Old Limey | Image Date 091411

 
Google Maps | Satellite Imagery Date 060510

Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA  
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Additional Images

 
Notes, History & Resources

Update 040513

Seems like the Royse City Futuro was the "butt" of an April Fool's joke this week on the part of PlanetRockwall.com who reported on a Rockwall County government "expedition" to "retrieve" the Royse City Futuro from its Hunt County location and place it outside the Rockwall County Courthouse.

The image below is by PlanetRockwall.com and "shows" the Futuro at its "new" April 1st location; read the full article here.

Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Planet Rockwall - 040113



Update 033013

A recent picture taken 031713 by Molly Block confirms that the Royse City Futuro is still on site. It's condition appears to be pretty much unchanged although someone has stood up the steps since I was there in September 2011. Thanks for the photo Molly.

Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Photo By Molly Block



Update 100512

A nice new set of photos by element321 dated 092812 confirm this Futuro still on site as of that date.



Original Images 091511

Original images from my visit to the Royce City Futuro on 091411.

Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 1 Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 2
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 3 Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 4
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 5 Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 6
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 7 Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 8
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - GOL 9

A selection of images from Steevithak's [CC 2.0] excellent collection of images taken on 021510 [and yes I know his photos are far better than mine - my excuse is that I am a Futuro "geek" and have no time to be a photographer]. You can access the full collection here.

Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Steevithak 1
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Steevithak 2 Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Steevithak 3
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Steevithak 4 Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Steevithak 5
Futuro, Royse City, TX, USA - Steevithak 6

Photographer Dustin Hollywood used this Futuro as a backdrop for a photoshoot 063011 of Mia DeBaun; access the gallery here [images feature mild nudity].
 
Update 110412

I have often seen references to a 2001 Dallas Morning News article about the two Texas Futuros, this one and the Rockwall one, but I have never been able to find a copy of the paper. I still have not found one but I did discover that the Dallas Morning News archives it's articles and that they can be accessed online; of course it costs more for a single article online that it did to buy the whole newspaper but I guess that is a sign of the times.

Amyway having found the text of the article [the archives do not include photos used in the paper] it turns out that there are a couple of interesting little snippets in there about this Futuro's history.

The article tells us that the Royse City Futuro was owned by the late Jerry Moore; we read that:

"He and his brother Terry opened a used-car business years ago on a small plot of land on Highway 276 at South Munson Road. Terry Moore said he couldn't remember when the pair started their business, but he remembered that his brother saw a Futuro in Garland and bought it for $10,000, about what it would have cost new.

Some years later following a divorce jerry turned the Futuro into a bachelor pad and eventually the Futuro and the land it stood on was sold to Mario Santa Cruz. At the time of the article [2001] Santa Cruz was planning to open a restaurant or some other business but as we know that never came to pass and the Futuro is currently derelict but still in the same location.

The article tells us the Futuro was at one time located in Garland, Texas but we have no indication of when it was moved. It is visible in Google Earth in Royse City as far back as 012396. There is imagery from 1995 of Garland but it is a large and heavily developed area to the east of Dallas and finding a Futuro that might have been long gone by then anyway is a tall order so likely Google earth will be no help. If anyone has any information about or photos of a Futuro in Garland, Texas I would love to hear from you.

For the record The Dallas Morning News actually published two different versions of the article under different titles. The articles are dated 020901 and were under the titles "Hot Saucers" and "Back To The Futuro".



Original Information 091511

Through all my past and ongoing research for this project I have come across what I can only describe as a little confusion regarding the Futuro House [or houses] in Rockwall County, TX. References are made to as few as one and as many as three but blogs, blog comments and forum threads often seem to confuse one with another or consider two to actually be the same one. Mention is made of Futuro's located in Quinlan, Rockwall, around Lake Tawakoni and many other places.

I was able to locate two using Google Maps and Google Earth and it became apparent to me that they were not the same one [I had seen it suggested that it was the same one relocated]. Google Earth dates its satellite imagery and, if older imagery is available, includes the ability to "roll back" and look at that earlier imagery. I was able to establish that both Futuro Houses had been visible on satellite imagery from the same date several times [012396, 033101, 102105, 103008 and 060510]. For them to be a single Futuro someone would have had to be doing some incredible feats of moving the Futuro one way and then back the other way; the two locations are only 10 miles apart but on country roads that would be some trek for a 24' diameter Futuro given that it would have had to race either the airplane or satellite that was capturing the images.

Given the confusion, my belief that there were two distinct Futuros and the fact that I live about 50 miles away from the area I decided there was nothing for it but to check it out for myself, put the confusion to rest and confirm my findings.

The end result; there are two confirmed Futuro Houses in Rockwall County, TX. I visited and photographed both on 091411. One, this one, is at 9573 State Highway 276 W, Royse City, TX 75189 and the other is at 779 Stevens Rd, Rockwall, TX 75032. The one often mentioned as being around Lake Tawakoni is, as far as I can ascertain, actually the Highway 276 one [it is located about 18 miles west of West Tawakoni which sits on the west shore of the lake].

The Royse City Futuro features in the cover art for the self titled third album of the band Juno Specter. Judging by the photo it lookes like the Futuro was shot at a time when it was in somewhat better condition.

A "Lost Soul"

Sadly this Futuro is in a very dilapidated state as both sets of photos show. I have no idea when it was left to the elements but my guess is quite some time ago; certainly most articles, comments and forum threads I can find as far back as they go talk of it being in a very poor state. The graffiti "Lost Soul!" seemed almost poignant and certainly appropriate given the abandoned and derelict state of the "home".

Despite the state of the Futuro my visit on 091411 was still very interesting. Obviously I could not get a feel for what the Futuro was like in its original, as manufactured, fully furnished state but what I could get was a much better perspective on the size and shape than I had been able to get previously from the many photographs I had seen. The Futuro was advertised in its heyday as being able to accommodate 8 adults. In the main article I mentioned my reservations about that statement, certainly as far as I was concerned. Having now had the opportunity to stand inside a Futuro, albeit a wreck, I now feel more than ever that for me there is no way a Futuro could have comfortably accommodated 8 adults.

It has been my experience that an empty, unfurnished room looks and feels bigger than a furnished one; think about your own experience the last time you were house hunting. The Futuro was completely empty which in my opinion would make it feel and look far bigger than it would have done when furnished and fully appointed and yet in its current state it really did not feel much bigger than a good sized family room. Imagine yourself and seven others living in the den! For me having now had the opportunity to stand inside a Futuro I would think that having one as a second/vacation home somewhere cool would be fantastic for a couple but for more people or as a full time home - well, that just is not me.

Sources & Reference
Got new, updated or corrected information or an image I could use?

I am always looking for additional information, history, details, images, videos; just about anything Futuro I guess - if you would like to contribute please use the Futuro Contact Form at the bottom of the main article or email me.

As far as images go I am particularly interested in those that are either significantly better than the ones already on this page or show a different aspect or detail. If you own an image meeting one or both of those criteria I would love to be able to use it on this page but I will simply provide a link if that is your preference. Where permission is granted to use an image on the page appropriate attribution will be provided by means of a link to the original image, a link to a website of your choosing or both.