Michigan City in Porter County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

The Armco-Ferro House: Mass Produced And Affordable

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

— National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior —

The Armco-Ferro House Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Doda, June 14, 2019

1. The Armco-Ferro House Marker

Inscription.

The Armco-Ferro House: Mass Produced And Affordable. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. , The Armco-Ferro House, designed by Robert Smith, Jr., of Cleveland, Ohio, was an ode to the virtues of porcelain enamel and steel-expressed in the form of a prefabricated home., It is the only remaining Century of Progress home that met the Exposition Design Committee's criteria, in that it "could be mass-produced and was affordable for an American family of modest means.", Manufactured for $4,500 by Insulated Steel, Inc., for the American Rolling Mill Company (Armco) and the Ferro Enamel Corporation, this was the first house produced using frameless steel construction and an exterior sheathing of vitreous enamel. Bob Weaver, Ferro's president, came up with the idea of using porcelain and enamel for residential construction. It only took five days for the 2,400 square-foot structure to be erected from prefabricated panels., Touted as having a revolutionary construction system, the frameless house was comprised of "no-thicker-than-a-dime” corrugated steel panels connected by steel clips. The innovative system of construction provided the inspiration for post-World War II prefabricated housing for returning GI's developed by the Lustron Corporation. Looking similar to a cardboard box finished with a shiny porcelain-coated metal exterior, the Armco-Ferro House was probably an astonishing sight for Fair visitors, most of whom resided in traditional bungalows and wood frame houses from the Victorian era., Once they stepped inside it, visitors found a comfortable house finished with plasterboard, modern furniture, and rooms laid out in a familiar waw. The Armco-Fero House looked much like the four-square houses popular at the time, with four bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs and a living room, kitchen, den, and dining room downstairs., This contrast of the modern exterior and traditional interior set the Armco-Ferro House apart from some of the other Century of Progress homes, which pushed the design and finishes on both the interior and exterior.,

Your automobile has a strong, compact metal chassis, which supports the body…Your FRAMELESS STEEL HOUSE will also have a metal chassis replaces the conventional studding, sheathing and joist structures,…FRAMELESS STEEL HOUSE

The Armco-Ferro House, designed by Robert Smith, Jr., of Cleveland, Ohio, was an ode to the virtues of porcelain enamel and steel-expressed in the form of a prefabricated home.

It is the only remaining Century of Progress home that met the Exposition Design Committee's criteria, in that it "could be mass-produced and was affordable for an American family of modest means."

Manufactured for $4,500 by Insulated Steel, Inc., for the American Rolling Mill Company (Armco) and the Ferro Enamel Corporation, this was the first house produced using frameless steel construction and an exterior sheathing of vitreous enamel. Bob Weaver, Ferro's president, came up with the idea of using porcelain and enamel for residential construction. It only took five days for the 2,400 square-foot structure to be erected from prefabricated panels.

Touted as having a revolutionary construction system, the frameless house was comprised of "no-thicker-than-a-dime” corrugated steel panels connected by steel clips. The innovative system of construction provided the inspiration for post-World War II prefabricated housing for returning

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GI's developed by the Lustron Corporation. Looking similar to a cardboard box finished with a shiny porcelain-coated metal exterior, the Armco-Ferro House was probably an astonishing sight for Fair visitors, most of whom resided in traditional bungalows and wood frame houses from the Victorian era.

Once they stepped inside it, visitors found a comfortable house finished with plasterboard, modern furniture, and rooms laid out in a familiar waw. The Armco-Fero House looked much like the four-square houses popular at the time, with four bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs and a living room, kitchen, den, and dining room downstairs.

This contrast of the modern exterior and traditional interior set the Armco-Ferro House apart from some of the other Century of Progress homes, which pushed the design and finishes on both the interior and exterior.

Your automobile has a strong, compact metal chassis, which supports the body…Your FRAMELESS STEEL HOUSE will also have a metal chassis replaces the conventional studding, sheathing and joist structures,…FRAMELESS STEEL HOUSE

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of

Photographed by Craig Doda, June 14, 2019

2. The Armco-Ferro House Marker

the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Parks & Recreational Areas.

Location. 41° 41.05′ N, 87° 0.05′ W. Marker is in Michigan City, Indiana, in Porter County. It is on West Lake Front Drive 0.2 miles Dunbar Avenue, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 231 W Lake Front Dr, Michigan City IN 46360, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Northwest Indiana,

specifically on the Indiana Dunes and Lake Michigan Shore,

and in the Calumet Region.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Great Lakes,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Century of Progress Homes (a few steps from this marker); Century Of Progress Homes: Historic District

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(within shouting distance of this marker); House Of Tomorrow: 'America's First Glass House' (within shouting distance of this marker); A Showcase For Cypress (within shouting distance of this marker); The Florida House: Home, Cruise Ship, and More (within shouting distance of this marker); Made In Lafayette: An Experiment in Home Building (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Stephen Tyng Mather (approx. 0.3 miles away); Hostas on a Grand Scale (approx. 1.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Michigan City.

Other markers no longer nearby. Recipe for a Sand Dune (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been confirmed missing); Whose Home Is It? (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been confirmed missing); Is This an Ocean or a Lake? (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been confirmed missing).

Credits. This page was last revised on December 1, 2020. It was originally submitted on December 1, 2020, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. This page has been viewed 756 times since then and 60 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 1, 2020, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.