My dad knew the Innes family, and the story is really amusing how he met the man. My dad was out there and said he was looking at what he thought was an ostrich and said to his buddy, "Tell me. . . do you see. . . an ostrich?" His buddy looked and started laughing and asked how they were sharing a hallucination when they hadn't been using anything to make them see things. They also said it was an overcast day and not one where the top of the pyramid was shining in their eyes to make them see things that weren't there. Well, his buddy started to jog toward the bird. That's when the bird decided it was going to RUN toward them. It was an emu, and it scared the daylights out of them because they just were so shocked and not sure what to do other than my dad yelling, "STOP! STOP RUNNING!" to his buddy (not the bird, although who knows, maybe he was hoping the bird would stop, too). As soon as his buddy stopped running, the emu started to just walk and then a man came running up to get it, then apologized if the bird scared them. It was Mr. Innes. They raised all kinds of birds on the pyramid house property. Mr. Innes was apparently afraid to build "all the way out" where the domes ended up being built because they actually were thinking about erosion and thought that they'd be safe where they were. This was in the '70s. The pyramid home is rumored to have been destroyed by a waterspout that came onshore in the late '80s. My father also knew Bob Lee. He was from Gatlinburg, TN area and had made his $ in oil. I think Dad said he was a geologist. Anyway, Mr. Lee built a similar dome home in TN that he replicated out on Cape Romano. The first storm that really did a number on it was Andrew, and the picture that you show of the flooded interior (Mrs. Lee holding the baby) was after Andrew, I believe. But they had begun experiencing a lot of erosion in the years before Andrew and had lost a lot of frontage before that storm. I would imagine that the previous beach erosion followed by Andrew might have been the end of it out there. One of my cousins was inspired to build a geodesic home over on the east coast. . . a "hurricane proof" house, if you will, after seeing the dome homes, only she and her husband built it several miles inland. I was still young when my dad died in '99, but he had some great stories about being out there, even after they posted the big "no trespassing" signs out there after the property was sold. He became friends with the caretaker for the guy who bought the place. Yea, he had that type of personality - he could make anyone comfortable enough to let down their guard and chat. He says he was shot at first before becoming friends with the caretaker, but said the guy was only shooting to scare, not shooting to hit. Different times. I remember after Wilma, you could still walk out on some sand to the dome homes, and that was just in 2005. It's remarkable to me to compare the post-Wilma images to that of the post-Irma ones. Thank you for the perspective vid. Really brought back some great memories, but also makes ya sad to realize that the water always wins.
That's some amazing and interesting stories you posted. Just like so many others I seem drawn to the mystic of these unique buildings in such a unusual place and the history of them.
I usually NEVER read anything online this long but I read and enjoyed every word of your comment! Thanks for sharing those great stories from your Father! Ik it’s been awhile but I still send much love and my condolences. God Bless !
Usually I’m so upset when I read long comments like this cuz they end up being negative and bashing the OP. But wow I glad I read thru these buildings have always intrigued me. I’m a contractor and I build homes for a living so anytime I see something like this I know there’s got to be a great story behind it and I want to learn all I can about. Thanks to all who have contributed.
This is so beautiful, I mean, it's such a good idea in terms of architecture and concept... It makes me quite sad though knowing that it ended up like that. I'm sure whoever lived there was very happy for a while!
It is surreal and I dare to add: mystical as well. I wish I could see it with my own eyes. I can foresee in a few years from now people making underwater videos while diving and saying: "these used to be the once famous dome houses, now completely covered by water and surrounded by fish" and that thought makes me quite sad. Greetings from Brazil :)
We were! It was just a vacation home for my family, but made a lasting impact. I sat in the hot tub with my cousins on the 2nd floor balcony which is no longer there. We were not the original builders... unfortunately, this island was hit a lot by hurricanes. Grandpa bought it when it was the only structure there, at one point there were others but when we got them they were just wood piles
Those structures took the full brunt of Hurricane Andrew. Every structure in Andrew's path was completely destroyed. it's amazing that these domes still had a functioning shell. If they were built inland a mile or so, they would have easily survived.
Peeping Tom Turkey w/X-Ray Eyes As in water or wind damage or both? Thought they were hurricane proof? *Realize you can’t stop water surge if it came above pilings.
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam Windows they put in were of poor quality Windows are really important to keep water out...thise flap kind were a water invitation Anyone who wants to build a house bear water..needs there head examined It I s really building your house on Sand Sinking Sand.. There are no indestructible homes Yes, you can take human knowledge to build stronger homes 🏡 but not indestructible !!
So true on both accounts. Another piece of the puzzle would be the seawalls/breakers they put in at South Marco Island about the same time the accelerated erosion started happening along Morgan Island?Dome home.
This is due to rising water levels causing beach erosion and the pilings slowly rotting and sinking into the sand. In some of those photos, the water level is up to the bottom of the domes. At one point in time, the bottom of the domes were 10-12 feet above the ocean. In SW Florida the water level has risen about 8-12" since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Current prediction is rising another 12" within the next 10-15 years. We've owned a home on a local creek that feeds into Naples Bay, for 50 years. During the highest tides, the water now rises about 15' into the yard - which is relatively flat and protected only by rip rap. During Irma, there was 3' of water inside the house. During Andrew, a few inches.
Yes you are right but the dome homes would also be higher in the water than they are today if the pilling under the house went all the way down to limestone/bedrock, instead of just sunk in the sand a few feet. So some, if not most, of their lowering has to do with the sand being eroded out from around and under them.
Right after they put in some man made wave barriers at the south end of Marco Island the beach south of there, where this and two other houses were, started to erode away very rapidly. Washing the beach right out from under them.
Educate yourself, or do you plan on broadcasting blatant ignorance? www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide
"Near-Impossible to get flood insurance". Even in the 80s, it seems most knew the house was doomed to be subsumed. I think Bob even told the knew owner to build a seawall. With the corrosive nature of seawater and erosion you can bet the remnants won't last much longer. F to this neat home way before it's time.
Correlation doesn't always mean causation but I'll mention that it was shortly after Marco Island/condominiums installed seawalls/breakers at the s.w corner of Marco that Morgan Key, where the dome home, pyramid house, and stilt home where, started rapidly eroding away...
They're GONE???? Crap!!! I was planning on coming down from Tampa this weekend (Oct 28-29), or next, to finally get a look at them. Have been researching boat ramps in the area
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam For years I kept saying I wanted to go down to see them, but never made an honest attempt. That's what I get for procrastinating.
Or with a better foundation, pilings that went deeper, as they might still be out in the middle of the water, they would still be standing high and dry.
Definitivamente desde el principio no fueron bien construidos. Las paredes y los soportes son muy delgados. Aún así no seden,y han resistido la furia de varios huracanes. A pesar de que están en una área de extremo riesgo han podido demostrar su alta resistencia, cumpliendo los requisitos para lo que fueron construidos. Los nuevos domos monoliticos son más fuertes y estéticamente más hermosos. DOMO MONOLÍTICO DE PENSACOLA y muchos otros más. REALIZEN BÚSQUEDA EN UA-cam y los verán. P.D. buen video
Probably more like man vs man as the erosion can be blamed on seawalls on south end of Marco Island, and rising water levels by climate change, both caused by man.
The carbon man creates with the combustion of fossil fuels does. www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide
The one who built or designed these dome houses knows only aesthetic design but knew nothing on structural design or engineering. He could be an artist who is a do it yourself builder. That's the difference between a do it yourselfer and an architect.
He didn't put the footers in deep enough. Had he done so the houses would still be standing although out in the water. They wouldn't let him put in a sea wall.
Made of cement. They say if he had put in deeper footers/pillings for the fopundation, the whole thing would still be there, albeit standing in the water.
I have a water resistant watch, made the mistake of thinking it was water-proof while swimming. I bet a stick frame home would have succumb to these elements sooner.
Hurricane Andrew was a category 5 hurricane. One of the strongest hurricanes in history (no hyperbole) it's amazing that the structures are even standing. My girlfriend was in Andrew, she lost everything she had. No buildings were left.
very beautiful very sad.. it was built with water and beach surrounding it on all sides..this was bound to happen..hopefully they had flood insurance and made a killing
If somebody paid $1,000,000+ for that thing, they kissed that investment goodbye. Rising ocean levels are going to unfortunately create more and more scenes like this.
ThisAccountIsNeverUsed rising sea levels, the oceans are rising due to the ice caps melting because of global warming and climate change due to animal agriculture, if people would pull their heads out of their asses we would be able to prevent this
So glad this video exists. The last remnants of this unique structure were finally destroyed by Hurricane Ian on September 28, 2022.
It was an amazing place to live at one time, the dream everyone often wants at least once in their life. Thanks for putting the montage together.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Thanks for the comment.
I am glad I watched this so I can visualize the beauty and vision of a family's dream idea. Now the ocean and mother nature have reclaimed it all.
Thank you for this great video. These are the only photos I've seen of the project before its demise.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I love that someone built this, come what may.
Sweet! lol
It was so beautiful in the day.
My dad knew the Innes family, and the story is really amusing how he met the man. My dad was out there and said he was looking at what he thought was an ostrich and said to his buddy, "Tell me. . . do you see. . . an ostrich?" His buddy looked and started laughing and asked how they were sharing a hallucination when they hadn't been using anything to make them see things. They also said it was an overcast day and not one where the top of the pyramid was shining in their eyes to make them see things that weren't there. Well, his buddy started to jog toward the bird. That's when the bird decided it was going to RUN toward them. It was an emu, and it scared the daylights out of them because they just were so shocked and not sure what to do other than my dad yelling, "STOP! STOP RUNNING!" to his buddy (not the bird, although who knows, maybe he was hoping the bird would stop, too). As soon as his buddy stopped running, the emu started to just walk and then a man came running up to get it, then apologized if the bird scared them. It was Mr. Innes. They raised all kinds of birds on the pyramid house property. Mr. Innes was apparently afraid to build "all the way out" where the domes ended up being built because they actually were thinking about erosion and thought that they'd be safe where they were. This was in the '70s. The pyramid home is rumored to have been destroyed by a waterspout that came onshore in the late '80s. My father also knew Bob Lee. He was from Gatlinburg, TN area and had made his $ in oil. I think Dad said he was a geologist. Anyway, Mr. Lee built a similar dome home in TN that he replicated out on Cape Romano. The first storm that really did a number on it was Andrew, and the picture that you show of the flooded interior (Mrs. Lee holding the baby) was after Andrew, I believe. But they had begun experiencing a lot of erosion in the years before Andrew and had lost a lot of frontage before that storm. I would imagine that the previous beach erosion followed by Andrew might have been the end of it out there. One of my cousins was inspired to build a geodesic home over on the east coast. . . a "hurricane proof" house, if you will, after seeing the dome homes, only she and her husband built it several miles inland. I was still young when my dad died in '99, but he had some great stories about being out there, even after they posted the big "no trespassing" signs out there after the property was sold. He became friends with the caretaker for the guy who bought the place. Yea, he had that type of personality - he could make anyone comfortable enough to let down their guard and chat. He says he was shot at first before becoming friends with the caretaker, but said the guy was only shooting to scare, not shooting to hit. Different times. I remember after Wilma, you could still walk out on some sand to the dome homes, and that was just in 2005. It's remarkable to me to compare the post-Wilma images to that of the post-Irma ones. Thank you for the perspective vid. Really brought back some great memories, but also makes ya sad to realize that the water always wins.
That's some amazing and interesting stories you posted. Just like so many others I seem drawn to the mystic of these unique buildings in such a unusual place and the history of them.
What an interesting story. Thank you for sharing it with all of us who are so curious about this place.
I usually NEVER read anything online this long but I read and enjoyed every word of your comment! Thanks for sharing those great stories from your Father!
Ik it’s been awhile but I still send much love and my condolences. God Bless !
Usually I’m so upset when I read long comments like this cuz they end up being negative and bashing the OP. But wow I glad I read thru these buildings have always intrigued me. I’m a contractor and I build homes for a living so anytime I see something like this I know there’s got to be a great story behind it and I want to learn all I can about. Thanks to all who have contributed.
Mankind can never outdo Mother Nature
This is so beautiful, I mean, it's such a good idea in terms of architecture and concept... It makes me quite sad though knowing that it ended up like that. I'm sure whoever lived there was very happy for a while!
There is something about them that's so surreal.
It is surreal and I dare to add: mystical as well. I wish I could see it with my own eyes. I can foresee in a few years from now people making underwater videos while diving and saying: "these used to be the once famous dome houses, now completely covered by water and surrounded by fish" and that thought makes me quite sad. Greetings from Brazil :)
@@holandesa1924 supposedly they will demolish them soon😢
@@madalinaflo Really? Wow that's sad :(
We were! It was just a vacation home for my family, but made a lasting impact. I sat in the hot tub with my cousins on the 2nd floor balcony which is no longer there. We were not the original builders... unfortunately, this island was hit a lot by hurricanes. Grandpa bought it when it was the only structure there, at one point there were others but when we got them they were just wood piles
Hundreds upon hundreds of feet of the island just washed away..amazing..
Surreal
It’s completely under water now. Will hopefully make a nice artificial reef.
Damn good fishing out there
They were much nicer, more glamorous than I figured. I had only seen the remains before this.
They were already surrounded by water the first time I saw them. There is a ghostly attraction to them, something surreal, maybe post apocalyptic.
And so castles made of sand slip into the sea......eventually.-Jimi Hendrix
Wow! Jimi was so much more than a junkie musician.
He closed out Woodstock on Moday, the festival ended on Sunday.
Those structures took the full brunt of Hurricane Andrew. Every structure in Andrew's path was completely destroyed. it's amazing that these domes still had a functioning shell. If they were built inland a mile or so, they would have easily survived.
Hurricane Irma in 2017 also hit them head on, the center passed right over them. Knocked down 2 of the 6 domes.
A few days ago hurricane Ian finally took it down, Cape Romano Dome home is history
A fantastic vid, that place was awesome for a time, but they knew the storms would come sooner or later, well put together my friends, take care.
Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it. That place rests in the memories of a very large number of people.
I was in Collier County, Florida BEFORE they built dome homes in Collier County, Florida from 1979 to 1981 !
Me too!
Sadly they are all gone now. Resting peacefully at the bottom. It will be a great home for all the fish.
They are now an artificial reef, ironically what they wanted to do with them, just not there.
MIND BLOWING !
Yes, very surreal!
It's so sad to see a marvel of design die such an agonizing death
It's surreal really.
I'm thinking it was probably a hurricane that relocated the beach.
Actually it was at least a couple of them.
Photo credit partially goes to Judy Innes, owner of the Pyramid home of Cape Romano.
Yes her and the owner.
I sailed by there once and thought it was a movie set for some James Bond villain.
They do have such a surreal feel to them.
I really like the domes! So sad tho : (
There is something so surreal about them, apocalyptic, symbolic of our human condition. .
this is amazing
There is just something so mesmerizing and surreal about them.
How long was it standing fully functional? How long did people live in it? I’m so curious
It was built in 1980 but was abandoned in 1992 after sustaining interior damage from Hurricane Andrew.
Peeping Tom Turkey w/X-Ray Eyes As in water or wind damage or both? Thought they were hurricane proof? *Realize you can’t stop water surge if it came above pilings.
Water damage caused by the rain that blew in through the wind destroyed windows.
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam
Windows they put in were of poor quality
Windows are really important to keep water out...thise flap kind were a water invitation
Anyone who wants to build a house bear water..needs there head examined
It I s really building your house on Sand
Sinking Sand..
There are no indestructible homes
Yes, you can take human knowledge to build stronger homes 🏡 but not indestructible !!
tragic really. beautiful dwelling
A Dream Home
Kind of sad to how this interesting house ended its days, but I think it is a bellwether for coastal real estate.
So true on both accounts. Another piece of the puzzle would be the seawalls/breakers they put in at South Marco Island about the same time the accelerated erosion started happening along Morgan Island?Dome home.
This is due to rising water levels causing beach erosion and the pilings slowly rotting and sinking into the sand. In some of those photos, the water level is up to the bottom of the domes. At one point in time, the bottom of the domes were 10-12 feet above the ocean. In SW Florida the water level has risen about 8-12" since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Current prediction is rising another 12" within the next 10-15 years. We've owned a home on a local creek that feeds into Naples Bay, for 50 years. During the highest tides, the water now rises about 15' into the yard - which is relatively flat and protected only by rip rap. During Irma, there was 3' of water inside the house. During Andrew, a few inches.
Yes you are right but the dome homes would also be higher in the water than they are today if the pilling under the house went all the way down to limestone/bedrock, instead of just sunk in the sand a few feet. So some, if not most, of their lowering has to do with the sand being eroded out from around and under them.
Can’t imagine how your place is looking like now after ian. Please give an update hope y’all are doing okay.
@@soysticky141 complete loss of everything on the first floor. Storm surge was 8' to 10'. Water was up to the top of the doors. Irma was half that.
Haunting.
September 29, 2022 - Hurricane Ian claimed the last remnants of the Dome House.
Ian brought me here anyone else 🤔
RIP Domes. Hurricane Ian took them out
What caused the water to rise so much to flood it out?
Right after they put in some man made wave barriers at the south end of Marco Island the beach south of there, where this and two other houses were, started to erode away very rapidly. Washing the beach right out from under them.
So sad their homes just eroded away. I am sure it was very beautiful at one time.
Mother nature can be brutal.
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam I thought you said it was from "man-made" climate change.
Educate yourself, or do you plan on broadcasting blatant ignorance? www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam No thanks. I'll just let you continue making a fool of yourself at my pleasure. Any other ignorant things you wish to spew?
Climate change caused by humans is a fact. You're the one making a total ass out of yourself. you obviously didn't read the article or can't read.
great vid :)
Thank you for the comment!
"Near-Impossible to get flood insurance". Even in the 80s, it seems most knew the house was doomed to be subsumed. I think Bob even told the knew owner to build a seawall. With the corrosive nature of seawater and erosion you can bet the remnants won't last much longer. F to this neat home way before it's time.
Correlation doesn't always mean causation but I'll mention that it was shortly after Marco Island/condominiums installed seawalls/breakers at the s.w corner of Marco that Morgan Key, where the dome home, pyramid house, and stilt home where, started rapidly eroding away...
They're GONE???? Crap!!! I was planning on coming down from Tampa this weekend (Oct 28-29), or next, to finally get a look at them. Have been researching boat ramps in the area
You could say, Deep Dark Depression Sets In.
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam For years I kept saying I wanted to go down to see them, but never made an honest attempt. That's what I get for procrastinating.
i feel for you!
I've seen this in my dreams somehow I'm scared and calm at the same time
There is definitely something very surreal about them.
So to concrete dome work for long term housing - multiple decades ?
Yeah, just don't put it along the coast. lol
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam If these structures were a mile inland, they would have easily survived.
Or with a better foundation, pilings that went deeper, as they might still be out in the middle of the water, they would still be standing high and dry.
I was just there today on my jetski
Awesome!
Sadly they are completely gone now!! Thanks to hurricane Ian.........
Yes, they are, so sad.
So the island has went under. Everything has been rotted out of there and only the shells are left.
Something like that.
And now they are gone thanks to Ian.
What is the black pyramid? 01:21 and 01:44.
That is a glass pyramid house next door. A third still house was also there.
It's a shame it's a loss.
Surreal comes to mind.
Definitivamente desde el principio no fueron bien construidos. Las paredes y los soportes son muy delgados. Aún así no seden,y han resistido la furia de varios huracanes. A pesar de que están en una área de extremo riesgo han podido demostrar su alta resistencia, cumpliendo los requisitos para lo que fueron construidos. Los nuevos domos monoliticos son más fuertes y estéticamente más hermosos. DOMO MONOLÍTICO DE PENSACOLA y muchos otros más. REALIZEN BÚSQUEDA EN UA-cam y los verán. P.D. buen video
He lacked a proper foundation and they wouldn't let him build a seawall, which I'm glad.
Did the ocean devour the island or something? Poseidon vs Man.
Probably more like man vs man as the erosion can be blamed on seawalls on south end of Marco Island, and rising water levels by climate change, both caused by man.
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam Man doesn't cause climate change
The carbon man creates with the combustion of fossil fuels does. www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide
Wow I never knew this... a guy told me it was either aliens or Atlantians? I was like 😂
alpha Centauri
Designer/Architect never realized mother nature's reprecussions
That's why, I believe, that no one should be allowed to build on coastal property. It should be for everyone.
Nature 12,000,000,000,000 Mankind 0
She may be detained but never beaten.
Yes sir
Location, Location, Location.
lol, so true!
The one who built or designed these dome houses knows only aesthetic design but knew nothing on structural design or engineering. He could be an artist who is a do it yourself builder. That's the difference between a do it yourselfer and an architect.
He didn't put the footers in deep enough. Had he done so the houses would still be standing although out in the water. They wouldn't let him put in a sea wall.
mechanicmike69 - Obviously it was water damage but did wind play a part as well? Looking into building one but it’ll be a good 20 miles inland.
Maybe scuba divers will find them interesting.
The fish already do.
Do anyone still search for this?
Yes, as it is still there, well 4 of the domes are still standing after hurricane Irma.
@@mechanicmike69onUA-cam wow, is it that strong?
Made of cement. They say if he had put in deeper footers/pillings for the fopundation, the whole thing would still be there, albeit standing in the water.
Sadly these sunk completely thanks to Ian a couple days ago :c
And now they are gone!
Unfortunately gone after Ian😞
wait, what? i thot they were storm resistant
+TheJesusBusBand But the beach wasn't storm resistant. lol
Hmm i seem to remember a verse about not building your house on sand... I do dig those domes, i hope to build one someday
TheJesusBusBand let us know how it goes cause I do too
I have a water resistant watch, made the mistake of thinking it was water-proof while swimming.
I bet a stick frame home would have succumb to these elements sooner.
Hurricane Andrew was a category 5 hurricane. One of the strongest hurricanes in history (no hyperbole) it's amazing that the structures are even standing. My girlfriend was in Andrew, she lost everything she had. No buildings were left.
very beautiful very sad.. it was built with water and beach surrounding it on all sides..this was bound to happen..hopefully they had flood insurance and made a killing
Flood insurance wasn't available because of its location and that was known going into it.
Then I don't think there would be a bank that would make a loan for it either. It would have to be all owner financed.
We're currently building dome houses in northern Thailand, check it out: ua-cam.com/video/BZGqMwMO194/v-deo.html
That's awesome!
what music is this ?
Morning mood from Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt suite.
video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=mcafee&p=Edvard+Grieg%27s+Peer+Gynt+suite#id=54&vid=740178766c47c75a73573ea9257bd444&action=click
If somebody paid $1,000,000+ for that thing, they kissed that investment goodbye. Rising ocean levels are going to unfortunately create more and more scenes like this.
ThisAccountIsNeverUsed rising sea levels, the oceans are rising due to the ice caps melting because of global warming and climate change due to animal agriculture, if people would pull their heads out of their asses we would be able to prevent this
Wow, they have thoroughly brainwashed you.
I would say the hurricanes plus poor planning (on a sand bar?). Many more fools like this though.
I'm for making all coastline real estate public property.
It’s now known as the backrooms
Never heard that before.
Song
use "sound hound"