The Golf Club House located in Riverside Park was designed by George W. Maher in 1921. The Chicago Architectural Exhibition Catalog for this year lists the project and states that a rendering was published. I have unfortunately not been able to locate a complete copy of this publication. The Ryerson and Burnham Libraries' copy is missing the page which is noted having Maher's rendering. Riverside Park later became Gleason Park and Golf Course inmemoriam to William P. Gleason, superintendent of the Indiana Steel Corporation, Gary Works. The Club House, which was completed in 1926 in a Tudor Revival style, contained locker rooms, showers, restrooms, a restaurant, and a golf shop. Numerous modifications have been made on both the exterior and interior of the building. Modifications include: the removal of a centrally located roof lantern, the replacement of the original green slate roof with red and gray colored asphalt shingles, the alteration of the main entry, the removal and successive replacement with cinder block of the main elevation's windows, and a drastic reworking of the interior spaces.

 

The Bathing Beach Pavilion was completed in the winter of 1921. The structure officially opened the following summer for the 1922 bathing season. George W. Maher and Son specified Hydro-Stone, a form of cast concrete block, for the pavilion. Hydro-Stone, see historic advertisement below, attempted to mimic white Georgian marble; thereby being a cost-effective alternative to natural stone. Cast stone materials had been widely used in building construction since 1868. Gary's first cast stone building was the 1906 Gary State Bank , located on the southwest corner of 5th Avenue and Broadway.

The Bathing Beach Pavilion is a hybrid of modified Greek and Prairie School architecture. This facility represents the first commission in the city by Maher and Son. Garyites would have originally come here to "bathe." The building had two wings: the west for the men's department and the east for the women's. The second level was utilized as a belle plane or promenade: an area to take in the picturesque view of the lake.

The building, now renamed to the "Aquatorium," is currently undergoing rehabilitation for use as a museum to honor Octave Chanute, French aviation pioneer, and the Tuskegee Airmen. The Gary Common Council recently earmarked $1 million for this rehabilitation project. In reference to other Maher restoration projects, this literally maybe the largest dollar amount devoted to date to the work of G. Maher. If you are interested in seeing recent photographs illustrating the commencement of work to modify the structure's beach elevation, please click here. Below is an historic photograph, courtesy of the Calumet Regional Archives, circa 1921, in which I have confirmed the following individuals being photographed: Philip and George W. Maher (project architects, far left and second from far left), along with Ingwald Moe (project contractor, far right), and representatives from the Gary Land Company and the City of Gary.

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January 31, 2009: The Gary Bathing Beach Pavilion "Aquatorium" was recently included in a funding request, The Marquette Park Lakefront East Project, submitted by the City of Gary, Department of Planning & Development (Director Meyers) to the Northwest Indiana Redevelopment Authority. In this request, $1,000,000 worth of funding is being requested to assist the Society for the Preservation of the Aquatorium and Octave Chanute's Place in History, Inc. to build a museum, bathrooms, kitchen, and outdoor patio and special events space. In order to restore the exterior facade, Hydro-Stone block and ornament, clay tile roof, and hardscapes, $850,000 in funding is being requested by the Department of Planning to perform these restoration activities.

June 23, 2009: The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority awarded $28,190,000 to the Department of Planning & Development, City of Gary, to implement the Marquette Park Lakefront East Project. This project will restore, revitalize, and re-facet "the jewel that is Marquette Park."

Spring/Summer 2010: Much activity has taken place since June 2009. A series of public meetings have occurred to discuss the Marquette Park Lakefront East Project and to develop a Master Plan. The Master Plan has been developed through a public participation process. The Public was able to comment and provide feedback through seven public sessions. The Gary Plan Commission is set to hear the Master Plan for inclusion into the recently completed Municipal Comprehensive Plan.

Summer 2010: The Gary Plan Commission heard a petition request and presentation by Planning Director Meyers for the Marquette Park Lakefront East Master Plan. The Plan Commission unanimously approved the plan. The Plan will now be sent to the Common Council for review and consideration.

Late Summer 2010: The Gary Common Council heard a petition request and presentation by Planning Director Meyers. The Council elected to accept the petition and to take the Plan through its normal procedure of a first reading, assignment to committee as a public hearing, and then presented at third and final reading / hearing. The Plan was unanimously approved by the Common Council.

Winter 2010: With the approved plan, the Board of Public Works & Safety has issued a bid set for Bid #2: the Gary Bathing Beach Pavilion.

Spring/Summer 2011: After a municipal bid process, work has also commenced at the Gary Bathing Beach "Aquatorium." Work includes demolition, pouring of new concrete, repair and restoration of cast-stone block, reconfiguring interior walls for the museum, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical.

 

The Recreation Pavilion was constructed in 1924. This building completes the two pavilion aspect of Marquette Park. The park system has unfortunately been noted as a design of Jens Jensen. It appears in several guidebooks and in a major volume on the work of Jens Jensen. Specific design elements allude that George W. Maher and Son are highly probable to be responsible for the park's overall layout and final design. Maher & Son are noted as being commissioned for several civic and park designs in the cities of Gary, Glencoe, and Hinsdale, and Kenilworth. Of these projects, only the work in Gary (Gateway Park and Marquette Park) and in Kenilworth were ever truly realized.

George W. Maher & Son designed a pavilion that is a mix of Italian Renaissance Revival and Prairie School design ideologies. The pavilion is low to the ground so that the building does not overpower its natural surroundings of sand hills, forested areas, and a rear lagoon. Garyites could either go bathing at the Bathing Pavilion or chose to simply take in the dunes, picnic, or launch a canoe in the natural lagoon behind the Recreation Pavilion. In addition, this pavilion was used for special events such as dances and political affairs. The open-air dance pavilion on the southside of the building was constructed two years after the pavilion in 1926.

In the early 1980s, the Recreation Pavilion had unfortunately undergone extensive interior and exterior renovations. Attempts have recently been made to reverse the alterations on the exterior. The pavilion is currently used for official City of Gary functions or can be rented out for private parties.

January 31, 2009: The Recreation Pavilion was recently included in a funding request submitted by the City of Gary, Department of Planning & Development (Director Meyers) to the Northwest Indiana Redevelopment Authority. In this request, $6,000,000 worth of funding is being requested to restore the pavilion, hardscapes, and surrounding site.

June 23, 2009: The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority awarded $28,190,000 to the Department of Planning & Development, City of Gary, to implement the Marquette Park Lakefront East Project.

Spring/Summer 2010: Much activity has taken place since June 2009. A series of public meetings have occurred to discuss the Marquette Park Lakefront East Project and to develop a Master Plan. The Master Plan has been developed through a public participation process. The Public was able to comment and provide feedback through seven public sessions. The Gary Plan Commission is set to hear the Master Plan for inclusion into the recently completed Municipal Comprehensive Plan.

Summer 2010: The Gary Plan Commission heard a petition request and presentation by Planning Director Meyers for the Marquette Park Lakefront East Master Plan. The Plan Commission unanimously approved the plan. The Plan will now be sent to the Common Council for review and consideration.

Late Summer 2010: The Gary Common Council heard a petition request and presentation by Planning Director Meyers. The Council elected to accept the petition and to take the Plan through its normal procedure of a first reading, assignment to committee as a public hearing, and then presented at third and final reading / hearing. The Plan was unanimously approved by the Common Council.

Fall 2010: With the approved plan, the Board of Public Works & Safety has issued a bid set for Bid#1. Bid #1 is composed of three projects: the Recreation Pavilion, the Restoration of the Oak Savanna, and the Rehabilitation of the Father Marquette Statue.

Spring/Summer 2011: After a municipal bid process, work on the Recreation Pavilion, Father Marquette Monument and the Oak Savanna has begun. Scope of work for these three projects include masonry and natural stone restoration, new windows, replication of historic lighting fixtures, new sidewalks, a reconfigured "green" parking lot, new landscaping, and new site lighting.

 

George W. Maher & Son were commissioned by the Gary Commercial Club for the creation of a civic entryway and transportation improvement plan. Beforehand the area now known as Gateway Park was a muddy, billboard strip that immediately greeted visitors arriving via Union Station. The Gary Commercial Club knew that this muddy entryway had to be improved into a design that best represented the booming municipality. Maher & Son additionally devised civic and transportation improvement plans for the cities of Glencoe and Hinsdale. The Gateway Improvement Plan was a three million dollar project which created Gateway Park and the sister governmental buildings: City Hall and the Lake County Superior Courts Building. The 1924 rendering, click on the image to the right, is the first in a series of two drawings for this project. The second rendering, dated 1927 by Philip Maher, shows the existing designs that one will find for Gary City Hall and the Lake County Superior Courts Building. Additional information for this project can be found on the Philip Maher page.

Cited in The Yearbook of the Chicago Architectural Exhibition and Catalogue of the 37th Exhibition: no drawing published therein. This drawing was thought to have been lost. In the fall of 1995, I met a former member of the Gary Plan Commission. This former member saved numerous documents from throughout his career as well as items slated to be sent out for disposal. He granted me permission to go through his files and to keep whatever "I found interesting." Acting out of respect for both this former commission member and for the city, I accepted the responsibility to thereby preserve these important documents for posterity. I was amazed to have found a lithograph of the 1924 presentation drawing.

 

Maher and Son were commissioned in 1923 for the design of a new Elk's Temple. The Elk's first temple, located at 6th and Washington, quickly outgrew the organization's needs. Of all Maher buildings located within the city, this structure is truly the most Prairie School oriented. The second and third floor windows are punched into the building's envelope. A cresting element originally adorned the building. This element was removed sometime in the late 1940s. The original water lilly capitals remain in situ. Other alterations from this time period include the modification of the ground floor and an addition of half a story. Originally the main lodge entry had a set of rectilinear wall sconces that were typical of Maher's hand. The ground floor was composed of commercial storefronts while the first and second floors housed banquet halls, bars, lodge rooms, and the organization's offices. When the Elks left this structure, it became the H.Gordon and Son Department Store. In the early 1940s, a fire gutted the building destroying all interior elements as designed by Maher and Son. A third story was added during this time period. After the H. Gordon and Son Department Store closed for business, the Lake County Welfare Department took up residency in the building. In 1996, the Lake County Welfare Department moved out of the Elks Temple and into the neighboring Sears Roebuck and Co. building. The Elks Temple is currently vacant and up for sale for $350,000.

Previously unknown commission: I authenticated this design in the spring of 1996.

Fall 2012 Update: The building's interior wooden framing and structural members are nearly beyond repair. The interior is continually wet as the roof system has failed due to the lack of maintenance. The building's windows have been broken out and not properly secured. If there is no immediate action to stabilize this structure, only the brick shell of the building will soon remain.

With the influx of urban restoration and adaptive reuse throughout our country, the former Elk's Temple could serve as an example of downtown reinvestment through a potential affordable housing project, establishment of city-owned and ran gallery space, artist lofts / live space, or a mixture of these potential concepts. As seen in the downtown, the former Hotel Gary, Ambassador Apartments, and Knights of Columbus Building are examples of structures being converted over to residential uses. If it was not for such past reinvestment activities, these buildings would not exist today.

 

 

Early in 1926, George W. Maher & Son were commissioned by the Gary Heat, Light, and Water Company to design a warehouse building. Earlier in the winter of 1925, George Maher was released from a Wisconsin hospital after a year long stay. George suffered from depression and had recently experienced a reoccurrence of this condition. The Gary Heat, Light, and Water Company Warehouse is the last set of drawings to hold his name and architectural registration. In the fall of 1926, George W. Maher took his own life. The G.H.L.W. Warehouse reflects design archetypes that can be see in Maher's Watkins Administration Building in Winona, Minnesota and in his Watkins Medical Warehouse in Memphis, Tennessee. The use of punched-in windows, accentuated piers, ornamental capitals, and a concrete bracketed flagpole harking back to various design elements found throughout his career.

Previously unknown commission: I authenticated this design in the spring of 1996.

February 2, 2012: The Warehouse is sitting abandoned by the City of Gary. This important structure is simply left open to the elements. The original casement windows have been broken out and some are simply left open allowing the weather to enter the interior. This building has great potential for re-use as affordable housing such as lofts, work-live units, an artist colony / studio space, vertical farming complex, or multi-generational housing.

Fall 2012: A public hearing was held on September 27, 2012 to consider a declaratory resolution to demolish this last ever designed and built G.Maher building. Redevelopment Director Valda D. Staton issued a Public Notice to fund the demolition "of this long-vacant building (that is) in need of repairs beyond the scope of the City's finances." The notice further states, " this demolition will serve the citizens of Gary with neighborhood upgrades, extensive cleaning out of a congested trash and dumping site, vastly improve accessibility for persons with disabilities, and improve the overall safety of the area."

As being the last-constructed example by Maher and a building made up of a concrete and skeletal steel frame, this former warehouse should be saved and reused to "improve the overall safety" and economic value of the area. Instead of using the requested grant of $500,000 from the Office of Rural and Community Development to demolish this noteworthy example, funding should be used for basic maintenance, repair of the roof system, and environmental abatement that the City has neglected to perform for over 20 years.

The interior warehouse space contains various late 1960s internal office build outs and other non-historic improvements. The City left this building behind in the late 1990s by simply abandoning it, boarding it up, and leaving it to sit in this condition ever since.

Click below to view various interior pictures including the original half-elliptical main staircase, original entry vestibule, circular staircase to the basement, warehouse floor configurations, and construction details. Please be patient as the image files are large so that architectural details and construction methodology can be readily viewed:

1st Floor Entry

Entry Vestibule

2nd Floor Staircase

Third Floor Main Hallway

Third Floor Warehouse Area

Skeletal Frame and Column Detail

Basement Staircase

Basement Storage Area

The Gary Heat, Light, & Water Warehouse cannot be allowed to become another victim of the lack of historic resource management and sustainable building policy in the City of Gary. With recent improvements in Marquette Park, it is shown that the adaptive reuse of Gary's noteworthy and significant architectural stock is doable, realistic, and an example of needed economic (re)development.

 

 

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