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Several weeks ago I stumbled across a list of endangered places the Foundation for Historical Louisiana is focusing its efforts on. The first one on that list made me squeal like a schoolgirl: R. Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome on Scenic Highway. Finally!

I’m unfortunately not exposed to a lot of the culture that is taught in the required (and sometimes excruciating) art history courses I took at LSU. But this gem of a building is one huge exception. And no matter who brings it up, Fuller’s industrial geodesic dome is soon forgotten and ignored.

I’ll spare you most of the historical details (although you can read a nifty synopsis here). The Cliff’s Notes version is that Fuller patented and developed the design of geodesic domes – an elegant and incredibly strong array of triangles used to form domes, or spheres. And lucky for us, Fuller, considered one of the most influential designers and inventors of the 20th century, built one of the first ones here in little ole Baton Rouge, for the Union Tank Car Co. They used it as an enormous shop with a giant rotating railroad turnaround, allowing the company to easily move rail cars in and out of the giant structure to service and repair them. Fuller stayed with a local family for several months while he worked on it.

Unlucky for us, the company stopped using the dome years ago, and now it sits empty and slowly rusting in a field. It’s an architectural gem that used to make my professors insanely giddy. In some of their eyes that building was about the only redeeming thing about living in Baton Rouge. I’ve tried to visit the dome, but it was a bust. It is currently owned by Kansas City Southern, and the perimeter is surrounded by fences covered in razor and barbed wires (you can see some photos here). While I probably could have gotten in if I had tried harder, I don’t have enough money to post bail for trespassing for art’s sake. Bottom line: few people realize that Baton Rouge’s most important industrial building is rusting away, and even fewer people ever get to see it.

Of all the art I’ve gone to visit, I can’t think of even one instance where it was locked up like Fort Knox. Seeing Fuller’s dome out there left to rust gave me a helpless, depressed feeling. It was the first industrial building on the planet to utilize Fuller’s geodesic design—I can’t help but wonder how many design and architectural enthusiasts would visit Baton Rouge if we, as a city, committed to restoring, preserving and making it accessible as a landmark. Even allowing Baton Rougeans to visit it surely would expand our city’s appreciation of modern art.

I interned at the Foundation for Historic Louisiana one summer while in college, and have been a member since, so I know the impact they can make in preserving our history. With the FHL on board, there’s a real opportunity here to save and showcase this remarkable building. It deserves a tremendous effort to acknowledge its importance, not only in Baton Rouge history, but in art and architectural history.

I know I’ll be one of the first in line doing whatever it takes to restore this landmark to what it deserves to be, and finally putting that art history degree of mine to some good use.

Fuller's Baton Rouge historic landmark is doomed unless enough people speak out and get involved, so here's your chance. Contact the Foundation for Historical Louisiana via e-mail and tell FHL you support the effort to save Fuller's dome.

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