30 Oct joseph Bbagnuolo’s mid-century modern santa maria addolorata catholic church reduced to rubble
October 30, 2026
in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages, Uncategorized
Going, going…
Demolition photographs of Santa Maria Addolorata Catholic Church at 528/598 N. Ada Street and 1315 W. Ohio Street in Chicago’s Noble Square/East Village neighborhood.
Completed in 1960 and designed by noted midcentury architect Joseph Bagnuolo, the church was celebrated as a masterpiece of modern religious architecture. Its defining feature was a series of remarkable dalle de verre (chunk-glass) stained-glass walls.
Scabby the Rat appeared the other day. While I was in Boston, I asked the wrecker to watch for a time capsule I believed was tucked inside the cornerstone.
To my dismay, the photos I received showed the limestone panel removed and no capsule in the exposed cavity. I don’t know whether it was removed during later alterations to the building or grounds—or never installed—but the notch at the bottom was clearly intended to hold one. In three decades of salvaging buildings, this was a first for me.
