City Methodist Church (Eric Allix Rogers/Chicago Patterns)

Mark your calendar for June 17! You’ll want to be in Gary, Indiana for the first-ever Gary Preservation Tour Open House. After beating their crowdfunding goal by 20%, the organizers have been hard at work lining up sites to open to the public from 10am to 4pm.

It’s a unique opportunity to see a cross-section of Downtown Gary’s most notable buildings, both abandoned and in-use:

• Gary State Bank Building
• Gary Land Company Building
• Lake County Courthouse
• Union Station (abandoned)
• Gary City Hall
• Genesis Towers (originally the Hotel Gary)
• Old Post Office (abandoned)
• City Methodist Church (exterior views only during open house)

All will be within walking distance of the Gary Metro Center stop on the South Shore Line, and there will be other things happening in town to check out when you visit. So why not make a day of it?

Genesis Towers (Eric Allix Rogers/Chicago Patterns)

Full details are up on this Facebook event, and you should follow the Gary Preservation Tour Facebook page for regular updates and historic photos of Gary.

Gary Post Office (Eric Allix Rogers/Chicago Patterns)

If you’re looking to get more involved, volunteers are still needed to assist in greeting visitors to the sites. You can sign up online. I’ll be there!

Further Reading

• Help Crowdfund Gary Preservation Tours
• Gary Preservation Tour (Facebook)