Good Fellow Lodge has reopened at Indiana Dunes National Park with a planned role in education and community gatherings. U.S. Steel built the lodge in 1941 as a camp for employees’ children; it served thousands of Northwest Indiana young people before closing in 1975. Visitors have now entered the building for the first time since 1976, Lakeshore Public Media reports. The lodge is expected to serve students and community groups in partnership with the Dunes Learning Center.
Outdoor learning at the park
According to the National Park Service, Indiana Dunes field trips use place-based learning, with rangers helping students connect with the park’s natural and cultural resources. The park describes these opportunities for students; the lodge’s planned partnership with the Dunes Learning Center will also serve community groups.
A public and educational role
The lodge is also slated to host public events and park staff meetings, according to the Chicago Tribune. The restoration included new building systems and an elevator serving the basement and main floor. The elevator does not reach the second-floor balcony or third-floor meeting room.
The Tribune reports that the restoration cost $13 million and took about four and a half years, including roughly two years of design work and two years of construction.
Two time capsules, from different eras
Workers found an original capsule during the rehabilitation. Berglund Construction, whose crew carried out restoration work, says it was placed by the original construction team in January 1941 and held a 48-star U.S. flag and documents. The recovered capsule is distinct from a new one later added inside the lodge fireplace, as the Tribune reports. Berglund says the park plans to display the recovered artifacts. Berglund Construction’s account provides the capsule’s date and contents.
The lodge’s planned education and community uses give the former company camp a new public role while preserving a site tied to generations of local children. Acting Superintendent Leo Lestino described the lodge’s connection to young people discovering the outdoors in remarks reported by Lakeshore Public Media.
