Chicago Buildings
I really needed to do a special post on the buildings and architecture in Chicago. The buildings are nothing short of amazing. Everyplace you turn there is some kind of detail. Sunday night, coming in from the Train Station, I just was trying to look everywhere at once. On the Hop on Hop off bus, I learned a lot about the buildings, and got lots of pictures. Some I wasn’t able to get and found on the internet.
Chicago history seems to be in two parts. Before the great Chicago fire of October 1871 and after the fire. The fire killed about 300 people and destroyed 17,000 buildings over 3.3 square miles. It left more than 100,000 residents homeless. After the fire, buildings were required to be built of fireproof materials such as brick and stone. Most of the building’s pre-fire had been wood. In addition, I learned yesterday at the Frank Lloyd Wright house that vaults had to be part of business buildings. Since most fire policies went up in the fire, that makes sense!
The Carbide and Carbon Building
The rebuilding of Chicago found business showing their wealth in buildings. One of most amazing buildings I saw, the Carbide and Carbon Building, was the epitome of this. The company, maker of the first dry cell battery, wanted to make a statement, and they really did!
The building was completed in 1929 and constructed of polished black granite, green and gold terra cotta, and real gold leaf. The cap is ornamented with 24 karat gold, although it is only 1/5000 of an inch thick! Definitely a building from the gilded age. The building is now a boutique hotel.
The Harold Washington Library Center
Sunday night, coming in on the taxi from the train station, I spotted an incredible building. It took me awhile to track it down, but I finally did today. We went right by it to the station this morning and I was able to look it up. It was the Harold Washington Library. I had just caught sight of the exaggerated roof sculptures, and they are hard to miss! The building was constructed in 1991, and really surprises me with the amount of ornamentation on it. It seems more gilded age than modern! I never did get any pictures, so those below were taken from the internet.
The Marina Center
The first thing I noticed about the Marina Center was the parking area. All of the cars looked like they were hanging out the back, and there didn’t appear to be any kind of barrier. The tour commented that they had only ever lost 2 cars off of it! The center was created in 1967 to be a city within a city. Think ‘The Jetson’s’ cartoon from the 1970s. The architect, Betrand Goldberg, really thought that there would be flying cars in the future, and they could just fly in and park. In 1967, the building contained not only apartments, but a theater, gym, swimming pool, ice rink bowling alley, and marina as well as restaurants and shopping. The design was well ahead of its time.
The Metropolitan Tower
The Metropolitan Tower, or the Straus Building as it was known when it was completed in 1924, was Chicago’s first building with 30 or more floors. Although originally a business building, it is now condos. It’s biggest feature is it’s ‘beehive’ peak. This contains a box of blue glass, filled with bright lightbulbs which gives it the blue glow it’s known for. It’s also sometimes called the ‘Beehive Building’. Below the beehive peak, there are 4 large bells. They were restored in 1979, and weigh between 1,500-7,000 pounds! (Picture from the internet).
The Wrigly Building
This building was built in the early 1920s, and was the first office building on the North Side. It was built as the headquarters for the Wrigley Chewing Gum company. It was Chicago’s first air-conditioned building, and it made from white terra cotta. Over the years, as the building has been sold, a condition is that it keeps the Wrigly name.
The Water Tower and Pumping Station
I was never able to get a good picture of the WaterTower, so 2 od these pictures are from Wikipedia and the two at odd angles are mine. I wanted to see more of this building, but we ran out of time and energy. It’s fascinating to me that this is the water tower and pumping station! The tower was built in 1869 and housed a 138-foot-tall pipe and water pump. It was built for firefighting, and is famous for actually surviving the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. This is such a unique structure for such a utilitarian use.
The Gleacher Center
The Gleacher Center was build in 1994, and is a great example of a modern building reflecting the historic buildings of the past. It was built by architect Dirk Lohan and is a note to the Chicago School of Architecture. It currently houses the University of Chicago MBA program.
Chicago Tribune Tower
The Tribune Tower was built in 1925, and the design was the result of an internation design competition. It’s a 36 floor neo-gothic style skyscraper. It’s now luxury condos since 2018. The detail on this building is incredible.
The Aqua
The Aqua is a modern building made to be enviornmentally friendly. Each white concrete balcony is unique in size and shape, with the thought of allowing neighbors to visit with one another. I’m not quite sure how this is supposed to work as it’s a skyscraper, but I guess it could happen! The balconies are supposed to break up wind vortices, minimize wind shear and prevent birds from striking the windows. The rippling effect of the balconies and colored glass is supposed to mimick water flowing. It’s definately striking.
The Jewelers Building
The Jewelers Building, 35 East Wacker Drive, was completed in 1927. Lee and I were really taken with the clock on the corner with the reaper on top, and the work ‘Time’ on the bottom. The tour commented that the building was known for it’s unique car elevator that transported cars directly to the tennants upper floor offices. This mean that the valuable cargo didn’t have to be unloaded on the street. In addition, the 40 foot glass done on the top of the building once housed an observatory. I just think the whole building looks amazing!
There are many, many more buildings in this city. These are only a few that struck me. I really need to come back and go on the architecture cruise. I hear it’s marvelous, but there was just so much to see! What a great city to wander around in.