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September ‘03

Northwest Indiana has by far one of the mostdiverse histories of all of Indiana. Born of steelat the beginning of the last century, the citiesof East Chicago and Gary would become theMecca of industry and the buckle on the great

Iron Belt of the Calumet Region. In 1913, Chicago industri-alist and social reformer Clayton Mark purchased a tract ofland on the south shore of Lake Michigan in what was thenknown as the North Harbor sector of East Chicago. The pri-mary purpose was to build a fully integrated steel mill so thathis steel starved Mark Manufacturing Company could have aprime place in the continuous butt weld pipe market, anindustry made possible through Mr. Mark’s innovations in theindustry.

The problem at hand, as detailed in a 1916 reporttitled “Industrial Housing Problems” was quite simply a lackof proper and adequate housing for the skilled craftsmen andworkers that would be needed not only to build the new steelmill but more importantly the workers and their families whowould eventually man themighty machinery of the steelindustry. In the prior three yearsindustries throughout the mid-west and the nation had experi-enced a 400-1100% turnover ofemployees, all of which could beattributed primarily to a lack ofquality and affordable housing.

Clayton Mark turned toChicago architect Howard VanDoren Shaw for the solution tothe problem at hand. Mr. Shawhad built Cyrus Mark’s Evanstonhome (father to Clayton) severalyears earlier and in 1913 wascommissioned to design theMark Estate in Lake Forest,Illinois. While the vast majorityof the residential work by Mr.Shaw was for the makers andshakers of industry, Shaw toowas of the social reformer mindset having served with JaneAdam’s Hull House, the InfantWelfare Society, the Arts andCrafts movement in Chicagoand most importantly theMunicipal Museum of Chicago,whose purpose it was to findsuitable housing solutions forthe ever growing industries ofthe nation.

Mr. Shaw set to work todesign a community that wouldmeet the needs of a broad baseof workers, most of which were

immigrating to the United States and the Midwest from east-ern and western Europe. His plan was set in the EnglishGarden City Model with quaint narrow streets lined withstucco Tudor Revival homes with open front porches lookingout over the street so that residents could converse freelywith neighbors passing by. The plan also called for a mostunique design which eliminated alleys and provided for thedining room windows of one home to overlook the garden ofthe adjacent property on the next street.

The construction of the homes was begun as theUnited States entered into World War I. While 30 sectionsof homes were designed to serve approximately 8,000 work-ers and their families, only four of the sections were complet-ed, and remarkably are totally intact today. The plan fellshort of its goal due primarily to market condition immedi-ately following the end of the war.

Paul Myers, the resident architectural historian andpreservationist noted: “What is most unique about theMarktown Historic District is that all of the original 200

buildings are still standing andare fully restorable. In 1974when the City of East Chicagoplaced Marktown on theNational Register of HistoricPlaces they not only stoppedCline Avenue from going downwhat is now Dickey Road andrazing approximately one-thirdof the community, they alsobegan an extensive infrastruc-ture improvement plan thatcontinues to this day.

In 1983 Federal funds wereprovided to improve andupgrade the 13.5 acreMarktown Parks, giving thistiny enclave of homes more citypark per home that any otherarea of the Calumet Region.

In 1990 plans were set inmotion to fully restore and ren-ovate the cast concrete street,sidewalks and lighting to thetune of approximately$3,000,000.

Again in 1999 approximate-ly $250,000 was invested in theupgrading of the sewage pumpstation which is critical in keep-ing the basements dry. Todaywe are in the process of biddinga 15,000 square foot $3,000,000community center which willserve the residents of Marktownboth young and old.”

So, what is next for thisEnglish Garden CityCommunity amidst the mills?For this, we again turn to Mr.Myers. “The city of EastChicago has brought us a long,long way. But unfortunately weare only half way to changingour status from a NationalHistoric District to that ofNational Historic LAND-MARK. We are currently work-ing on a comprehensive plan tonot only bring each of theapproximately 240 residentialproperties up to the currentbuilding code requirements, butmore importantly to do sowithin the Department of

MARKTOWN: An architectural diamond in the rough Staff Report

How to find Marktown: The best way is to start with the internet at www.marktown.orgor by contacting Mr. Myers at pmyers@eastchiago.com. Tour maps are available at theLake County Welcome Center at Kennedy Avenue and I80/94. If you are a bit moreadventurous, Marktown is located 1/4 mile north of the Riley Road Exit of Cline Avenue.Group and individual tours are available if scheduled in advance.

MARKTOWN continued B3

Industrialhousing

problems werequite simply alack of proper

and adequate

housing for theskilled

craftsmen andworkers that

would be needed not only

to build thenew steel mill

but moreimportantly the

workers andtheir

families whowould

eventually manthe mightymachinery of the steelindustry.

Interior Guidelines forHistoric Preservation. Ifdone properly we can notonly increase the propertyvalues, but actually freeze orlower the property tax in theprocess. One of the factors thatmakes this community sorestorable is the fact that itis of solid masonry construc-tion. The buildings in thisneighborhood must be con-sidered renewable assets asopposed to disposable hous-ing. The fact that we areonly twenty minutes fromdowntown Chicago is alsoan asset in the redevelopment of the neighborhood.”

The plan, when completed will not only addresswhat needs to be improved upon from a housing standpoint,but will also address the restoration and renovation of thethree original commercial properties and the development ofa Steel Museum in the immediate area.

While the plans are ambitious they are long overdueand with the availability of gaming funds and their restrictionto be used for brick and mortar projects such as this, they arequite doable.

About Mr. Myers: Paul is the fifth of six generations of his familyto have lived in the Marktown Historic District, the first genera-tion of which is believed to have located there between 1918-1920.He serves as the Executive Director of the Howard Van DorenShaw Society and the President of the Marktown PreservationSociety. While his educational background is extensive, he prefers toleave his resume in his desk. He has been instrumental in promot-ing the neighborhood both from within and without and can oftenbe seen either conducting tours of the community or maintainingproperties in the district. It should also be noted that he is a nation-ally recognized artist working in the area of Japanese Calligraphyknown a Shodô and is quite accomplished in the area of custom andhand book binding. A true Renaissance Man for the 21st Century.

From the 1974 National Register Nomination:“We all learn from the past. One way to do this is through

books, but a better way is to learn from real objects and places thatcome down to us relatively intact from another time. Marktownpresents a living lesson in history and culture from the pioneergrowth period of the Calumet Region. Thisregion, which is America’s industrial heartland, is quite young com-pared to other great regions of the country. Sometimes in such areasthe concern for history is lost. But here there is the opportunity topreserve as a living and useful landmark of genuine architectural andcultural significance for the Calumet Region, the state and thecountry. The Marktown area is an important cultural resourcewhich should be preserved and as necessary, restored to accuratelypresent the intentions of the original design.”

THEDIASPORA AWARD

- snatching defeat from the jaws of victory -☺

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2B two SouthShoreMETROPOLITAN

THEDIASPORAAWARD nomination4

You have heard of the Golden Fleece Award created 20 years ago by former US SenatorWilliam Proxmire to focus on waste in the United States Government. And then there is theGolden Leash Award, which focuses on members of the United States Congress who do egre-

gious favors for their “cash constituents.”Of course who can forget the “Flying Fickle Finger of Fate” award created by the 1970s tele-

vision comedy series, “Laugh-In,” which gave awards to the “dumbest news item of the week.” Now,Northwest Indiana has its own award, The Diaspora Award, which is to call attention to those whowould divide the area and stifle its growth.The noun Diaspora was coined in 1881 and has its roots inthe etymology of the Greek language dispersion, (from diaspeirein to scatter, from dia- + speirein tosow).

The Miriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word as a : the settling of scattered colonies ofJews outside Palestine after the Babylonian exile b : the area outside Palestine settled by Jews c : theJews living outside Palestine or modern Israel 2 a : the breaking up and scattering of a people : theblack Diaspora to northern cities b : people settled far from their ancestral homelands.

For our purpose, the SouthShore Metropolitan is drawing from second definition; subset “a” -“the breaking up and scattering of a people” to create the Diaspora Award.

This award will be offered routinely to the person or organization who has contributed tothe scattering of people in northwest Indiana, and to the division of hopes and dreams that couldhave made the area an even better place to live, work, play and worship.

“The devil made me do it...!”Katie Hall, veteran Gary Community School Corporation teacher could be

instructing senior students in government while sporting an electronic monitoring device.Hall, who is a convicted felon and former Gary City Clerk, has asked the city tax-

payers to give her %0 million for cutting her office’s budget and making her break the law.In the meantime, a simple theme for her government classes may be “The devil

made me do it.”Students could learn that the government is responsible for the actions of every

felon.For instance, if the tax burden is too high, rob a store. If you don’t like road con-

struction, slash tires. If a politician offends you , _______________________ (fill in theblank).

What fun you could have and nothing is your fault because you learned in Mrs.Hall’s government class that “the devil made me do it!”

The Devil.

MARKTOWN continued