DIRT TO DWELLING

More recently, are developments in American Foundational Architecture during the Westward Expansion. Sod homes in the Great Plains have a legacy based in Scandinavian and North American indigenous construction. Some early precedents for the Westward expansion soddies are the Igluryaq of the Siglit Inuvialuit near the Mackenzie River in the Canadian boreal forest.009 Sod houses or soddies, which developed in the American Prairies in the mid 1800s010, were developed for temporary shelter as homesteaders constructed more permanent dwellings.011 These dwelling units were economically constructed with directly local and available materials: sod, thatch, straw, and wood. Sod, which is grass with the soil underneath connected via root system, was ploughed and cut into 24” lengths, was layered and overlapped with grass face down, to create a type of building block. The interior of the walls were often upholstered with cloth or paper to reduce leakage in the rainy season. The roof was constructed with rudimentary cut sticks, overlaid with sod blocks, thatch, or straw.012 Specific grasses are required to construct a well-made sod house, these species include Buffalo grass (Bouteloua dactyloides), wire grass (Eleusine indica), prairie cordgrass (Spartina pectinata), Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans), and wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium).013 008 | Soddy Style House, Nebraska, U.S.A.

010 | Soddy Style House, U.S.A.

Sod has the ability to be transformed into a modern building block for sustainable, humble, and economical structures and dwellings in the Great Plains of North America. This building system obviously has its flaws, such as leakage, but with modern technology, these issues can be resolved. Further developments in sod structures can bring Americans back to their humble roots and emphasize a philosophy of environmental stewardship and create a new era of modern homesteading.

011 | Basgo Fort in Ladakh, India