Atomitat

{{Short description|Underground home}} {{Infobox building | name = Atomitat | native_name = | image = | image_size = | image_alt =  | image_caption = | pushpin_map = | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_mark = | pushpin_label = | pushpin_relief = | map_caption = | pushpin_mapsize = | coordinates = {{coord|34.201667|-101.739722|type:_region:|display=inline,title}} | building_type = Underground | architectural_style = | classification = | location = | address = 2906 W. 20th | location_city = Plainview, Texas | location_country = U.S. | groundbreaking_date = 1961 | completion_date = 1962 | cost = $135,000 | client = Jay Swayze | owner = | landlord =  | top_floor = 2 car garage | other_dimensions = {{convert|13|ft|m|abbr=on}} underground | structural_system = | material = Concrete and steel | size = | floor_count = | floor_area = {{convert|2800|sqft|m2|abbr=on}} | architect = Jay Swayze | designations = | website =  | embed = | embedded = | references = | footnotes = }} '''Atomitat''' (1962) was an underground bunker-home in Plainview, Texas, designed by architect Jay Swayze. The name of the home came from the combination of the words "atomic" and "habitat". It was the first home in the U.S. to meet civil defense specifications for a nuclear shelter.<ref name="Castillo">{{cite journal |url=http://www.roomonethousand.com/underground-dream-world |title=Underground Dream World|journal=UC Berkeley's Graduate Architectural Journal|issue=8|author=Greg Castillo|date=|access-date=2023-06-07}}</ref>

== History == Architect Jay Swayze stated that the idea for the Atomitat was born when he attended a civil defense discussion on fallout shelters.<ref name="Press"/> The home completed in 1962 and it was designed during the cold war when Americans feared nuclear war. Swayze said that the Atomitat was designed to be an atomic habitat which met the civil defense specifications.<ref name="KCBD"/> The cost of the furnished Atomitat with two vehicles was estimated to be $135,000.<ref name="Comforts"/> The Swayze's also stated that because the Atomitat home was secure against damaging weather, their home insurance rate was about 87.5% less than the rate of an above ground home.<ref name="Press"/>

In 1967 the Atomitat was featured in a U.S. Information Agency propaganda film. The film was part of a series showing scenes of American life, and it would be shown in Arab countries.<ref name="McDonough"/>

==Design== Architect Jay Swayze compared his design to a "ship in a bottle". There was a reinforced steel and concrete shell and it was {{convert|13|ft|m|abbr=on}} underground and it is under {{convert|3|ft|m|abbr=on}} of soil.<ref name="Comforts"/> It is {{convert|2800|sqft|m2|abbr=on}} in size.<ref name="KCBD"/><ref name="Comforts"/> The bunker had 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms and windows throughout which were meant to mimic outdoor scenes and outdoor lighting.<ref name="KCBD"/> The home was outfitted with an emergency generator and sewage system. The above ground structure was a garage with a door between two large garage doors. The door led to the shelter which had 2 large steel lined things with lead to protect against radiation.<ref name="Comforts"/><ref name="Living"/>

The house was designed to make the occupant feel as if they were above ground. Lights could be made to mimic the different parts of the day and there was an {{convert|18|in|cm|abbr=on}} space between the living space and the outer wall which had a flow of air. This allowed an occupant to open a window and feel a breeze.<ref name="Comforts"/>

The house was occupied by the same family for 35 years. The couple who owned it decided to sell it in 2002 because it was too large now that their family had grown up.<ref name="KCBD"/>

== References == <references>

<ref name="KCBD">{{cite news |title=Whatever Happened to the Atomitat? |url=https://www.kcbd.com/story/884442/whatever-happened-to-the-atomitat/ |access-date=26 April 2022 |agency=KCBD |publisher=A Gray Media Group, Inc |date=6 August 2002 |archive-date=9 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210909100106/https://www.kcbd.com/story/884442/whatever-happened-to-the-atomitat/ |url-status=live }}</ref> <ref name="McDonough">{{cite news |last1=McDonough |first1=Doug |title=Atomitat House used in 1966 propaganda film |url=https://www.myplainview.com/news/article/Atomitat-House-used-in-1966-propaganda-film-8414795.php#photo-10645855 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=Plainview Herald |date=27 April 2012 |archive-date=10 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310202028/https://www.myplainview.com/news/article/Atomitat-House-used-in-1966-propaganda-film-8414795.php#photo-10645855 |url-status=live }}</ref> <ref name="Comforts">{{cite news |title='Atomitat' Boasts Comforts Of Home |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=MT19620926.2.31&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 |access-date=26 April 2022 |work=Volume 71 |issue=95 |publisher=Madera Tribune |date=26 September 1962 |archive-date=26 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220426162825/https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=MT19620926.2.31&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 |url-status=live }}</ref> <ref name="Press">{{cite news |title=Living in Atomitat Like Any Home, Almost... |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100520041/living-in-atomitat-like-any-home/ |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=Press and Sun-Bulletin |date=23 May 1966 |archive-date=26 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220426214012/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100520041/living-in-atomitat-like-any-home/ |url-status=live }}</ref> <ref name="Living">{{cite book |title=Living It Up Way Down |date=24 April 1964 |publisher=Life Magazine |location=New York, New York |page=56 |edition=Vol. 56, No. 17 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-UcEAAAAMBAJ&dq=Jay+Swayze&pg=PA56 |access-date=26 April 2022}}</ref>

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== External links == *{{Commons category inline}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Atomitat}} Category:1962 introductions Category:Air raid shelters in the United States Category:Cold War sites Category:Survivalism Category:Radiation protection Category:Nuclear fallout