1956: First Commercial Office Building Using Solar Energy Constructed in New Mexico

Architect Frank Bridgers and his partner, mechanical engineer Don Paxton, design and oversee the construction of the Bridgers-Paxton Building, the world’s first commercial office building using solar water heating and passive-solar design. The building, located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, still exists as of 2013, though it is no longer functional. It will be commemorated in the National Historic Register. Life magazine devotes a multi-page spread to the building in a December 1956 issue, calling it an odd-looking office building that “has one wall sheathed in glass and tilted to face the sun.” That south-facing wall is slanted 30 degrees to best capture the intense New Mexico sunlight, the “passive solar” aspect of the design. The building also employs active mechanical components that comprise a five-phase system controlled by a set of pneumatic controls. The building will be featured in dozens of consumer and engineering magazines throughout the world. [US Department of Energy, 2002 ; Earth Alert!, 2006]