BEVERLY SHORES — A preservation group is offering a lease for a futuristic home along Lake Michigan that was featured at Chicago's 1933 World's Fair.
Indiana Landmarks says any party willing to restore the famed House of Tomorrow will be offered a 50-year lease to the residence in a partnership with Indiana Dunes National Park.
The unique home near Beverly Shores, Indiana, on the lake's southern tip needs nearly $3 million in work to preserve and repair its unusual architecture.
The home debuted at the 1933 World's Fair and was among the first residential buildings to employ a glass curtain-wall structure.
After the Chicago fair closed, it was one of five "Century of Progress" homes moved by barge and truck to an Indiana plot that's now part of the national park.
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Gallery: House of Tomorrow
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A view of the House of Tomorrow in Beverly Shores, which featured an airplane hangar as well as an attached garage.
House of Tomorrow
The structure for the House of Tomorrow, not seen since 1933, will be bared next spring as renovation of the building begins.
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Approximately 1.2 million visitors to the 1933 Century of Progress in Chicago paid a dime each to tour the House of Tomorrow.
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Interior view of the living room in the House of Tomorrow, designed by George Keck for the Home and Industrial Arts exhibit at the Century of Progress world's fair, Chicago, 1933.
House of Tomorrow
The Rostone House is moved by barge to Beverly Shores after the 1933 Century of Progress world's fair in Chicago.
Chicago History Museum
The large garage door is actually a hangar door for a private airplane inside the House of Tomorrow, designed by Chicago architect George Fred Keck.
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Marsh Davis, president of Indiana Landmarks, talks about the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s.
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Jennifer Sandy, senior field officer for The National Trust for Historic Preservation, and Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks' northern regional office, ascend the circular stairway of the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s.
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Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks' northern regional office, gives a tour of the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s. These turnbuckles helped protect the structure of the glass home from winds.
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Several homes are part of the Century of Progress Historic District in Beverly Shores.
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Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks' northern regional office, gives visitors a tour of the kitchen in the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s. The automatic dishwasher was a novelty.
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The House of Tomorrow was originally built in the 1930s and will soon be renovated.
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Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks' northern regional office, gives visitors a tour of the kitchen in the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s. The kitchen originally had metal cabinetry.
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Jennifer Sandy, senior field officer for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, admires the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s. A $2 million restoration effort for the Beverly Shores home will get underway next spring.
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Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks' northern regional office, gives a tour of the House of Tomorrow that was originally built in the 1930s. Here, he holds a piece of the parquet floor to show how it was put together.
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The House of Tomorrow was originally built in the 1930s and will soon be renovated.
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Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks, northern regional office, gives a tour of the House of Tomorrow that was originally built for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. Here, he stands in what was intended to be the biplane hangar. The Beverly Shores home has been designated a national treasure, the first in Indiana.
EDITORIAL: Save landmarks before they're history
The House of Tomorrow, a home built for the 1933 Century of Progress World's Fair hosted by Chicago, is considered an endangered place by Indiana Landmarks. The Beverly Shores home is one of many region landmarks that need to be preserved before it's too late.
