Stephen Mather Memorial Plaque

Stephen Mather Memorial Plaque is a bronze memorial on the right-hand stairway from Lake View picnic area down to the beach. It is a worthwhile pause if you are already stopping for the lake or beach, rather than a destination that needs a separate trip. Reaching the plaque means using the stairway.

The plaque honors Stephen Tyng Mather, a Chicago conservationist who helped build support for protecting the Indiana Dunes and later became the National Park Service's first director. Its story connects the dunes campaign with the creation of the agency that now manages this shoreline.

The plaque was first displayed at Indiana Dunes State Park in 1932, transferred to the National Park Service after the national lakeshore was established in 1966, and installed at Lake View in 1989.

The paved Lake View lot has 40 spaces and can fill quickly on summer weekends. Year-round restrooms and potable water are available in the area; picnic tables and shelters make it easy to combine the stop with a break by the lake. Use the Lake View lot; the separate Beverly Shores town beach lot immediately east is ticketed.

The plaque is on stairs, so it is not a step-free stop. Picnic shelters and restrooms are accessible, and Lake Michigan can be seen from the lot and shelters even without going down to the beach.