Former Gordon's Department Store (Gary, Indiana)

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The former H. Gordon and Sons Department Store is an abandoned four-story brick building that was originally constructed for the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks to serve as a lodge. In 1923, architecture firm George W. Maher & Son was commissioned to design a new temple of the Order as they had outgrown their original location on West 6th Avenue and Washington Street. The building was designed in the Prairie School style with the first floor containing commercial storefronts while the upper floors contained lodge rooms, offices, bars, and banquet halls.

The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks moved out of the building in 1934, which was then remodeled for H. Gordon and Sons department store. On July 14, 1939, H. Gordon and Sons announced that it would close its store in nearby Whiting and consolidate it with its downtown Gary location. As part of the consolidation, a $75,000 renovation was planned for its Gary location involving the addition of a fourth floor, and new departments throughout the store.

In September 1971, the Lake County Welfare Department signed a lease agreement to relocate from the county courthouse to the H. Gordon and Sons department store building. H. Gordon and Sons planned to continue operating at the location until January 1, 1973, but just a year later, in September 1972, it was announced that H. Gordon and Sons was closing due to the declining downtown area and a lack of sales.

In January 1973, the food stamp offices moved into the main floor and basement of the H. Gordon and Sons building and the county welfare department followed by moving into the second, third, and fourth floors. In the early-1990s, the welfare department, renamed Division of Family and Children, began looking for larger offices due to a lack of space for its computers. The adjoining Sears, Roebuck & Company building, abandoned in 1974, was chosen and in early-1993, work began on a $6 million renovation of the new site with construction estimated to be completed by July 1993. The project was delayed by over a year due to supplier and financial issues and was completed in late-1995. Shortly after, the Division of Family and Children move out of the former H. Gordon and Sons building into its new location

In 1994, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing structure of the Gary City Center Historic District. Since its vacancy, the building’s interior wooden framework is beyond repair as large portions of the floors have collapsed due to water damage throughout the entire building.

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