The Florida Tropical House is a

beach house Beach House is an American musical duo formed in Baltimore, Maryland in 2004. The band consists of Victoria Legrand (vocals, keyboards) and Alex Scally (guitar, keyboard, backing vocals). Their self-titled debut album was released in 2006 t ...

located on Lake Michigan's shoreline in Beverly Shores, Indiana. It was built in 1933 as part of the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition at the 1933 World's Fair in nearby

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. Today it is part of the Century of Progress Architectural District, a historic district. After years of disrepair, the house is being renovated and is

sublease A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industrial ...

d to a private renter who has agreed to cover the restoration costs. The house was designed so its inside and outside environments can be continuous. Its exterior was designed in the

Modernist Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

style by architect

Robert Law Weed Robert Law Weed (1897–1961) was an architect from Miami, Florida. He designed many Modernist buildings in Miami and abroad. Some of his projects * Florida Tropical House, built for the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition during the 1933 World's Fair ...

and painted a Floridian pink. The house, with four other 1933 exhibition homes nearby, were added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1986. They are collectively known as the World's Fair Houses.

Construction

The Florida House (as it was called originally) was built in 1933 for the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition of the 1933 World's Fair by the

State of Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to th ...

to showcase itself and to entice tourism to the state. The construction was carried out by the Deigaard & Preston construction firm for a total of approx. $15,000. The house was moved to its current location by real estate developer Robert Bartlett. Bartlett, who wanted to establish a resort community in the area complete with a

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...

, hotel, and

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

, was responsible for moving six of the exhibition's homes to the area, brought to Beverly Shores by

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

in 1935.

Architecture

The Florida Tropical House's design was inspired by Florida's

tropical climate Tropical climate is the first of the five major climate groups in the Köppen climate classification identified with the letter A. Tropical climates are defined by a monthly average temperature of 18 °C (64.4 °F) or higher in the cool ...

and blends both the indoor and outdoor environments together with its use of an outdoor terrace. The building was designed in the

style by

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

architect

with the needs of a Florida resident in mind. This is represented by the fact that some of the original amenities had to be replaced for them to survive the area's continental climate, with near constant warm temperatures and rainy seasons. The house itself sits atop a concrete slab, which was placed onto a basement foundation when it was moved here in 1935. The exterior is covered with a light-weight concrete stucco painted in pink. Materials used for the building included

travertine Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and even rusty varieties. It is formed by a p ...

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

Portland cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th ...

and

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

tile—all of which are native to Florida. Although it was planned to be built with poured concrete walls, the house was framed in wood in order to save money. The house's interior was carried out by architects James S. Kuhne and Percival H. Goodman from

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and New York respectively. The interior, painted in shades of yellow, coral, and blue, was designed in the Modernist style—as was the rest of the house. The central part of the interior features a living and dining room connected via an aluminum staircase to an overhanging balcony with access to the terrace. The house's two bedrooms and the only bathroom, were located on the ground floor. Beverly Shores 03

The building's

flat roof A flat roof is a roof which is almost level in contrast to the many types of sloped roofs. The slope of a roof is properly known as its pitch and flat roofs have up to approximately 10°. Flat roofs are an ancient form mostly used in arid c ...

was modeled from that of a storm-proof deck from an ocean liner and included a

loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...

, deck, and recreation room. Once covered with

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

tiles, the flooring had to be replaced and covered with roofing for it to endure the harsh mid-western winters. At some point in time, a

dumbwaiter A dumbwaiter is a small freight elevator or lift intended to carry food. Dumbwaiters found within modern structures, including both commercial, public and private buildings, are often connected between multiple floors. When installed in restau ...

was also located on the terrace; however, it was removed shortly after the move to Beverly Shores.Historic American Buildings Survey, pg. 3.

Restoration

Restoration efforts on the Florida Tropical House were started in 1997, with the

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Indiana Dunes National Park is a United States national park located in northwestern Indiana managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966 as the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and was redesignated as the nation ...

and the

Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana Indiana Landmarks is America's largest private statewide historic preservation organization. Founded in 1960 as Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana by a volunteer group of civic and business leaders led by Indianapolis pharmaceutical execu ...

searching for potential lessees to restore the building. Under the agreement, the private owner would receive a 30-year

, providing that they would cover all of the restoration costs, and open the home to the public at least once a year. Restoration on the home is estimated at approx. $450,000 by the current lessee William Beatty, who signed the lease agreement in 2000.

References

External links

* {{National Register of Historic Places in Indiana 1933 establishments in Indiana Houses in Porter County, Indiana National Register of Historic Places in Porter County, Indiana Modernist architecture in Indiana World's fair architecture in the United States Indiana Dunes National Park Century of Progress Houses completed in 1933 Historic district contributing properties in Indiana Tourist attractions in Porter County, Indiana

Construction

Architecture

Restoration

See also

References

External links