Miller Beach Arts and Creative District
Encyclopedia
Located in the community of Miller Beach
, Indiana
, the Miller Beach Arts and Creative District is a demarcated area positioned on Lake Michigan
's southern beaches and the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore
Park. The district includes much of the historically significant downtown Miller area. Miller's downtown first developed in 1851 when a train stop, eventually called "Miller's Junction", was constructed by a predecessor of Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad. The first real settlement occurred as Swedish immigrants, many fleeing Chicago after The Great Fire, moved to the area in the early 1870s. They founded a church, eventually building a frame church in 1894 that still stands in the District.
The most important experiments in aeronautics prior to the Wright brothers were conducted within the area now included in the District. Octave Chanute, the scientist who coined the word "Aviation" performed glider experiments at Miller Beach which developed the basic bi-plane design which was adopted by the Wright brothers.
The area now contained within the Arts District was also frequented by several notable artists, authors, bohemians and eclectic figures. "Diana of the Dunes" one of the first female faculty members of the University of Chicago rebelled against what she saw as "the competitive, materialistic world of Chicago" fled to the dunes of Miller in 1915 and became a hermit. She often frequented the local library and shops within the district.
Notable authors Nelson Algren and Simone de Beauvoir lived and worked out of in a cottage within the district. Algren wrote several novels including "the Man with the Golden Arm." Simone de Beuvoir, a French existentialist philosopher, public intellectual, and social theorist, wrote novels, essays, biographies, an autobiography in several volumes, and monographs on philosophy, politics, and social issues. She is now best known for her metaphysical novels, including "She Came to Stay" and "The Mandarins", and for her 1949 treatise The Second Sex. Written partially within Algren's Miller Beach cottage, Beuvoir's book is a detailed analysis of women's oppression and is considered the foundational tract of contemporary feminism.
The Miller Beach Arts and Cultural District was created as a catalyst for urban regeneration providing a mass of places of cultural production and consumption - such as art galleries, dance studios, theaters, art cinemas, music venues, retail establishments, restaurants as well as public spaces for live performances, artistic expression and cultural exhibits in a Downtown Miller's historic setting. The District was established specifically to revitalize downtown Miller Beach
into a cultural destination for the visual, performing and culinary arts and serve as a catalyst for community regeneration, sustainability and livability in Northwest Indiana. The district is slated to include several Live/Work spaces for artists and other individuals involved in various creative industries.
Miller Beach
Miller Beach is a community on the southernmost shore of Lake Michigan. Originally an independent town first settled in 1851, Miller was annexed by the city of Gary, Indiana in 1918...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, the Miller Beach Arts and Creative District is a demarcated area positioned on Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
's southern beaches and the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore
Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore
Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is a U.S. National Lakeshore located in northwest Indiana and managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966. The national lakeshore runs for nearly along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, from Gary, Indiana, on the west to Michigan...
Park. The district includes much of the historically significant downtown Miller area. Miller's downtown first developed in 1851 when a train stop, eventually called "Miller's Junction", was constructed by a predecessor of Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad. The first real settlement occurred as Swedish immigrants, many fleeing Chicago after The Great Fire, moved to the area in the early 1870s. They founded a church, eventually building a frame church in 1894 that still stands in the District.
The most important experiments in aeronautics prior to the Wright brothers were conducted within the area now included in the District. Octave Chanute, the scientist who coined the word "Aviation" performed glider experiments at Miller Beach which developed the basic bi-plane design which was adopted by the Wright brothers.
The area now contained within the Arts District was also frequented by several notable artists, authors, bohemians and eclectic figures. "Diana of the Dunes" one of the first female faculty members of the University of Chicago rebelled against what she saw as "the competitive, materialistic world of Chicago" fled to the dunes of Miller in 1915 and became a hermit. She often frequented the local library and shops within the district.
Notable authors Nelson Algren and Simone de Beauvoir lived and worked out of in a cottage within the district. Algren wrote several novels including "the Man with the Golden Arm." Simone de Beuvoir, a French existentialist philosopher, public intellectual, and social theorist, wrote novels, essays, biographies, an autobiography in several volumes, and monographs on philosophy, politics, and social issues. She is now best known for her metaphysical novels, including "She Came to Stay" and "The Mandarins", and for her 1949 treatise The Second Sex. Written partially within Algren's Miller Beach cottage, Beuvoir's book is a detailed analysis of women's oppression and is considered the foundational tract of contemporary feminism.
The Miller Beach Arts and Cultural District was created as a catalyst for urban regeneration providing a mass of places of cultural production and consumption - such as art galleries, dance studios, theaters, art cinemas, music venues, retail establishments, restaurants as well as public spaces for live performances, artistic expression and cultural exhibits in a Downtown Miller's historic setting. The District was established specifically to revitalize downtown Miller Beach
Miller Beach
Miller Beach is a community on the southernmost shore of Lake Michigan. Originally an independent town first settled in 1851, Miller was annexed by the city of Gary, Indiana in 1918...
into a cultural destination for the visual, performing and culinary arts and serve as a catalyst for community regeneration, sustainability and livability in Northwest Indiana. The district is slated to include several Live/Work spaces for artists and other individuals involved in various creative industries.
See also
- Urban regeneration
- Creative industriesCreative industriesThe creative industries refers to a range of economic activities which are concerned with the generation or exploitation of knowledge and information...
- Cultural industries
- Entertainment districtEntertainment districtAn entertainment district is used to describe an area that offers several forms of entertainment or many entertainment venues.Specific entertainment districts include:* Calgary Entertainment District, Canada* Granville Entertainment District, Canada...
- Creative classCreative classThe Creative Class is a socioeconomic class that economist and social scientist Richard Florida, a professor and head of the Martin Prosperity Institute at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, identifies as a key driving force for economic development of post-industrial...
- Miller BeachMiller BeachMiller Beach is a community on the southernmost shore of Lake Michigan. Originally an independent town first settled in 1851, Miller was annexed by the city of Gary, Indiana in 1918...
- Marquette Park (Gary)Marquette Park (Gary)Marquette Park, originally called Lake Front Park, is a municipal park completely surrounded by the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Its primary elements include 1.4 miles of white sand Lake Michigan beaches, inland ponds, impressively high sand dunes, wetlands, a lagoon and indigenous oak...
- Indiana Dunes National LakeshoreIndiana Dunes National LakeshoreIndiana Dunes National Lakeshore is a U.S. National Lakeshore located in northwest Indiana and managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966. The national lakeshore runs for nearly along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, from Gary, Indiana, on the west to Michigan...
- Lake MichiganLake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...