BLDG51. News and Events |

02 Jan bldg. 51 archive acquires sizable private collection of important richard nickel photographs

Posted at 15:39h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

the bldg. 51 museum and archive recently purchased a critical mass of early richard nickel prints, with the majority dating to the 1950s, when nickel was a student at the institute of design (ID). the body of work includes, but not limited to, adler and...

30 Dec amazingly intact 19th century chicago workers cottage set to be demolished in january of 2023

Posted at 16:35h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Press, Salvages by Eric

demolition permit issued for bell avenue chicago 19th century brick workers cottage with completely intact bracketed pine wood cornice, lemont limestone keystones, and double arch attic window accentuated with fret-sawn spandrel. images courtesy of eric j. nordstrom, bldg. 51 archive, and chicago...

30 Dec highlights from the work of eric j. nordstrom, urban remains and the bldg. 51 archive in 2022

Posted at 16:02h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Press by Eric

note: the following links represent only a fraction of work accomplished in 2022. HENRY J. SCHLACKS ABADONED ST. MARTIN OF TOURS CHURCH (1895) IN NEED OF MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR HIGHLIGHTS AND RECENT AQUSISTIONS FROM BLDG. 51 COLLECTION 1880S FIVE-STORY COMMERICAL BUILDING WITH COMBINATION LEMONT AND BEDFORD LIMESTONE FACADE...

27 Dec revisiting frank lloyd wright’s a.d. german warehouse in december of 2022

Posted at 17:07h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Travel by Eric

claude and starck structures in baraboo, frank lloyd wright's a.d. german warehouse, and 19th century commerical buildings in la crosse, wisc. among the highlights of december 2022 road trip. ...

24 Dec well-maintained post-fire 1874-76 chicago wood-framed italianate houses threatened with demolition

Posted at 16:41h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

a demolition permit has been issued for the senseless eradication of an amazingly intact mid-1870's wood-framed chicago italianate style house located at 2240 n. burling. the two-story house retains the original dentiled wood cornice accentuated with oversized fret-sawn cornice brackets, window hoods with lightly incised...

20 Dec documenting driehaus museum’s “capture louis sullivan: what richard nickel saw” exhibit

Posted at 16:39h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

a partial documentation of the "what richard nickel saw" exhibit on display at the driehaus museum. further information and images will be added when time permits. exhibit photos: ...

15 Dec photographic images from chicago architectural ornament survey (caos) fall of 2022

Posted at 16:47h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

latest photographic images from bldg. 51 archive's chicago architectural ornament survey (caos) are provided below. the ever-expanding photo-documentation project focuses on systematically recording any and all architectural ornament located on historically important 19th and early 20th century extant buildings located in downtown chicago and surrounding...

09 Dec detailed survey of the sullivanesque style tomah public library designed in 1915 by architectural firm of claude and starck

Posted at 21:40h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

recent photographic survey of claude and starck's prairie style public library located in tomah, wisc. completed in 1915, the two story low-hipped roof building features sullivanesque style ornament executed in carved limestone and painted staff. ...

06 Dec historically important doorknob and window sash pull from the office of adler and sullivan join bldg. 51 museum archive

Posted at 17:18h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

the bldg. 51 museum recently acquired a historically important and well-documented original doorknob and window sash pull salvaged from the office of architectural firm adler and sullivan, located on the 16th floor of the auditorium building (adler and sullivan, 1889) office tower. ...

02 Dec two seldom found late 19th century electric light and supply hardbound catalogs added to bldg. 51 musuem archive.

Posted at 16:49h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

two amazingly intact and exceptionally rare early electric product catalogs were recently acquired by the bldg. 51 museum archive. the 1892 chicago electric light and power supply product catalog is especially interesting, showcasing a wide range of incandscent light bulbs for use in early skyscrapers....

28 Nov claude and starck’s island woolen company office building (1917)

Posted at 17:00h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Travel by Eric

recent photographic survey of claude and starck’s island woolen company office building (1917) located in baraboo, wisc. the prairie style office building was built in 1917 and housed offices for the island woolen company. mcfetridge the owner of the company, who had worked with and consulted...

27 Nov New Urban Remains Chicago Newsletter Launched This Week

Posted at 16:38h in Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

View this email in your browser Urban Remains has been dealing exclusively in the reclamation and recycling of American antique architectural artifacts and other oddities found among commercial and industrial buildings or residential structures for over the past 20 years. FROM OUR BLOG the schiller building explore our gallery...

22 Nov bldg. 51 acquires original “to the tower” chicago tribune tower (howells and hood, 1925) dedication book

Posted at 20:54h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

"to the tower." original hardbound tribune tower building (howells and hood, 1925) dedication book with illustrations and floorplan. images courtesy of eric j. nordstrom and the building 51 archive. all rights reserved. 2022. ...

16 Nov photographic survey of louis h. sullivan’s holy trinity orthodox cathedral (1903)

Posted at 16:18h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

partially completed exterior photogrpahic survey and/or study of louis h. sullivan's trinity orthodox cathedral (1903). additional images of the exterior and visual survey of interior will follow in subsequent posts. the founders of the church were immigrants from carpathian rus', galicia, and the balkans. it remains...

16 Nov revisiting louis h. sullivan’s bayard-condict building (1899) in 2022

Posted at 15:23h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Travel by Eric

photographic study of louis h. sullivan-designed white speckle glazed terra cotta ornament adorning the bayard building. the 13-story new york city skyscraper was completed in 1899, with louis h. sullivan and lyndon p. smith as architects. the perth amboy terra...

15 Nov ambassador hotel, cream city brick facades, and s.s. beman’s mutual life insurance building documented in milwaukee over weekend

Posted at 18:57h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Travel by Eric

the following images were taken from an aftertoon documenting 19th and early 20th century architectural buildings and ornament in milwaukee in early fall, 2022. highlighted structures recorded include northwestern mutual life insurance company building (1886), ambassador hotel (1928), cream city brick commericial/warehouse facades, and kalvelage...

14 Nov photographic survey of post-fire chicago building facade bedecked with white-body terra cotta

Posted at 19:30h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

the post-fire edward k. rogers commercial block, designed in 1872 by architect wm. w. boyington, is perhaps the only extant chciago building that showcases widespread use of ornamental "gray body" terra cotta on its facade. the custom-designed ornament was executed by the chicago terra cotta company,...

12 Nov new york art deco: general electric building, chanin, chrysler, and graybar buildings

Posted at 14:55h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Travel by Eric

general electric building (cross and cross, 1931): chanin building, sloan and robertson (1929): chrysler building (william van alen 1930): graybar building (sloan and robertson, 1927): ...

10 Nov rare chicago building books and catalogs, 19th century architectural ornament, and figural majolica tiles added in november

Posted at 16:01h in Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

the following image gallery offers a glimpse at the latest american architectural artifacts added to the ever-expanding urban remains virtual catalog (over 75,000 items digitized/cataloged over the past 16 years). the newly acquired items for the month of november, 2022, have been documented, cleaned/refinished (if need...

09 Nov another post-fire downtown chicago building with archtop windows and lemont keystones undergoing demolition

Posted at 02:34h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages by Eric

a modest downtown chicago post-fire masonry structure built between 1873-1874 for the rubber paint company will be destroyed by end of the week. the two-story brick building retains the original distinctive archtop windows punctuated with unornamented lemont limestone keystones. the original pressed metal or wood projecting...