Octave Chanute statue and memorial - Gary, IN - Statues of Historic Figures on Waymarking.com

What is now known as the Gary Bathing Beach Aquatorium was designed by the firm of Maher and Sons (George W. Maher, architect) and was built as a shower/bathroom/changing facility in 1921. It was dubbed the Lakefront Park Bathhouse. A major focal point of the Miller Beach community for decades, by the 1960s the facility was falling into major disrepair. In 1971 the building was closed to the public and boarded up. The Aquatorium was rescued from demolition by the Chanute Aquatorium Society in 1991. The Society invented the word Aquatorium meaning "place to view the water" in order to disassociate the structure with the word bathhouse.

No longer a place to change or shower, the building has been restored as a museum honoring Octave Chanute, the father of flight. Chanute conducted some of the first heavier-than-air glider flights in human history in the high dunes just yards from the structure. His successful experiments and glider designs paved the way for the Wright brothers' powered flight at Kitty Hawk. A replica of Chanute's hang glider celebrates his experiments.

From Wikipedia: Octave Chanute (February 18, 1832 – November 23, 1910) was a French-American civil engineer and aviation pioneer. He provided many budding enthusiasts, including the Wright brothers, with help and advice, and helped to publicize their flying experiments. At his death he was hailed as the father of aviation and the initial concepts of the heavier-than-air flying machine.

The building also honors the Tuskegee Airmen, aeronautic pioneers who spearheaded the integration of the armed forces.

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