Name/Title
Cynthia McKean and Bill Porter interviewEntry/Object ID
2024.41.328Scope and Content
SAUGATUCK’S HEXAGON HOUSE
BILL PORTER & CYNTHIA MCKEAN
MAY 26, 2009
In drizzle and swarming mosquitos Bill Porter and Cynthia McKean graciously took an evening to show and explain their fascinating structural insulated panel (SIPS) hexagon home. On the corner of Maple and Mason in Saugatuck, the gentle land contours and gardens surrounding the home belie the fact that the property was reclaimed from what had previously been a construction material dump.
Bill, the founder and owner of Porter Corp., a manufacturer of advanced versions of the material used to build their home, described the ecological benefits of the design and material used to build the passive solar wall system. Cynthia, an architect and metal sculptor, designed much of the house and provided much of its art objects. The interior design is warm, comfortable and visually engrossing. No real corners in the hexagon rooms maximizes the use of space and traffic flow. Heating and cooling is minimized by the natural convection of sun-produced heat energy conducted from a traum wall on the south side of the house.
Our tour ended in the “barn” at the back of the property which now houses Bill’s large general workshop, Cynthia’s metal working studio, and an upstairs design studio used by them both.Context
Cynthia McKean and Bill Porter interview about the panelized construction of their Hexagon House. The panels are manufactured by Porter Corp that also makes park shelters and gazebos. Also a tour of the house and gardens.Collection
Buildings: Homes, cottages and private residencesCataloged By
Winthers, SallyAcquisition
Accession
2024.41Acquisition Method
Found in CollectionCredit Line
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This video was created by Saugatuck-Douglas History Center volunteers or was donated to the Center in a good faith effort to preserve local history. If you feel this content should not be available to the public — or have additional information that will add context to this interview — please contact the SDHC Archives at [email protected].Oral History Details
Interviewee
McKean, Cynthia, Porter, William H. "Bill" c1927-2009Interviewer
Shack, JohnInterview Date
May 26, 2009Length of Interview
20Dimensions
Dimension Description
DVD versionWidth
5 inDepth
5 inLocation
Box
AWS/VidArch SSD/DVD originalsCreate Date
May 2, 2025Update Date
May 25, 2026