Florida Tropical House
| Florida Tropical House | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| National Register of Historic Places | |||
| Historic District Contributing Property | |||
 Florida Tropical House, back side, from the beach (1994) |
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| location | Beverly Shores , Porter County , Indiana | ||
| Coordinates | 41 ° 41 ′ 3 " N , 87 ° 0 ′ 4" W | ||
| Built | 1933 | ||
| architect | Robert Law Weed , James S. Kuhne, Percival H. Goodman | ||
| Architectural style | Modern | ||
| NRHP number | 86001472 | ||
| The NRHP added | June 30, 1986 | ||
The Florida Tropical House is a beach house on the shores of Lake Michigan in Beverly Shores , Indiana . The house was built in 1933 as part of the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition as part of the 1933 World's Fair , which was held in nearby Chicago . The house is part of the Century of Progress Architectural District .
After years of neglect, the house is under renovation. It is leased to a private owner who pays the renovation costs. The Florida Tropical House was originally designed so that the inside and the outside environment would fit together. The exterior was designed by the architect Robert Law Weed in a modern style and painted in a typical Florida pink.
The Florida Tropical House was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 30, 1986 along with four other 1933 exhibition houses, commonly known as the "World's Fair Houses", as a Contributing Property of the Historic District Century of Progress Architectural . The other houses are scattered across Beverly Shores; however, some of them are in the immediate vicinity.
history
The Florida House, as it was originally called, was built in 1933 for the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition as part of the Florida World's Fair to introduce this state and attract tourists to Florida. The construction was carried out by the construction company Deigaard & Preston and cost about 15,000 US dollars (in today's prices around 295,000 US dollars).
Two years after the world exhibition, the house was moved to its current location by the land developer Robert Bartlett. Bartlett wanted to build a vacation estate that would include a golf course , hotel, and botanical garden . As a result, six of the exhibition houses were brought to Beverly Shores by water.
Architecture and design
The design of the Florida Tropical House was inspired by the tropical climate of Florida and connects the interior and surroundings harmoniously with one another thanks to the outdoor terrace. The building was designed in a modern architectural style by the Miami , Florida-born architect Robert Law Weed with the needs of a Florida resident in mind. This is reflected by the fact that some of the original amenities had to be replaced in order to survive Indiana's continental climate .
The house itself sits on a concrete baseplate that was placed on a foundation when the house was moved to its current location in 1935. The facade of the house is covered with a light plaster made of concrete, which is painted pink. Materials used for construction include travertine , limestone , portland cement, and mud brick , all building materials found in Florida.
Although the plan was to use cast concrete walls for the building, it was eventually built using timber frame construction to save money.
The interior of the house was designed by the architects James S. Kuhne from Chicago and Percival H. Goodman from New York City . It is painted in shades of yellow, coral, and blue and, like the rest of the house, was in keeping with the modernist style. The central part of the interior includes living and dining rooms connected by an aluminum staircase to a balcony , from which there is access to the terrace. The house also has two bedrooms and a bathroom, all on the ground floor.
The flat roof of the building was modeled on the storm-proof deck of an ocean liner and includes a loggia , a sun terrace and a lounge. The roof floor, which was originally covered with ceramic tiles, needed to be replaced to withstand the harsh winters of the Midwest . An initially existing dumbwaiter was also on the terrace; however, it was removed shortly after it was moved to Beverly Shores.
Individual evidence
- ^ Beverly Shores - Century of Progress Architectural District in the National Register Information System. National Park Service , accessed August 13, 2017.
- ↑ a b c Alexandra Newman: 67 years later World's Fair Homes still a draw (English) . In: Chesterton Tribune , 2000. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ↑ a b c Porter County Views: Beverly Shores . In: Northwest Indiana Genealogical Society . rootsweb.com. 2007. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
- ↑ Elizabeth A. Patterson: Beverly Shores, IN ( English ) In: Encyclopedia of Chicago . Chicago Historical Society . Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ↑ a b Florida Tropical House ( English ) In: Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore . National Park Service . Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ↑ Historic American Buildings Survey : Florida Tropical House, 250 Lakefront Drive (moved from Chicago, IL), Beverly Shores, Porter County, IN ( english ) Library of Congress . Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ↑ a b State of Indiana (Ed.): Entertainment & Recreation in Indiana ( English , PDF) (Retrieved October 26, 2008).
- ↑ a b Laura Putre: Five handpicked tenants are restoring forward-looking houses from the 1933 World's Fair in the Indiana Dunes. (English) . In: Chicago Reader , July 7, 2006.
- ↑ Samantha Gleisten: Chicago's 1933-34 World's Fair: A Century of Progress . Arcadia Publishing , 2002, ISBN 0-7385-1984-7 , p. 77.
- ↑ 1933 World's Fair Homes at Beverly Shores, Indiana ( English ) In: Northwest Indiana Traveler . June 18, 2001. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
- ↑ Historic American Buildings Survey, p. 3.
Web links
- Robert Law Weed: Structural Design in the Florida Tropical House ( English ) JSS Virtual Gallery. 1933. Retrieved October 2, 2010.