$1500 Tangipahoa House

In the late 1950s, New Orleans architects Mary and John Mykolyk designed a family retreat on the Tangipahoa River, north of Lake Pontchartrain. LIFE photographer Nina Leen (1909-1995) visited the young family in 1959, producing a series of playful and contemplative images, some of which were incorporated into a feature article titled "Second Homes for Family Vacations" (3 August 1959).*

The raised structure -- accessible via collapsible stairs -- was roofed with corrugated plastic panels and protected from flood-time driftwood by tension wires at the gable ends. The expansive roof was designed to shield the walls from heavy rains, and was surrounded by a deck which could be used as a fishing perch.

See some of Leen's photographs at GettyImages.

*Available in the Southeastern Architectural Archive, Special Collections Division, Tulane University Libraries.