BLDG51. News and Events |

16 Dec partially uncovered early 1880’s chicago night scavenger dumpsite yields several artifacts

Posted at 11:34h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages by Eric

in 1912 an apartment complex was built above a small land fill, one that night scavengers (i.e., privy vault cleaners) likely dumped their wagons filled with refuse in, beginning around 1878 up until the 1890's. according to an 1886 sanborn insurance map, this large tract of...

15 Dec revisiting the montgomery ward building weathervane’s severed head through postcards from the past

Posted at 21:20h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

earlier this year i purchased a massive copper severed head from the 19th century "spirit of progress" thirty foot gargantuan weathervane (built by sculptor john massey rhind) that sat atop the montgomery ward building, designed in 1898 by the notable architectural firm of schmidt, garden & martin. as the...

14 Dec nothing but destruction for 19th century buildings along wells street

Posted at 17:02h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages by Eric

as the year comes to a close i look back in amazement at the amount of disruption and damage done by demolitions of late 19th and early 20th century structures in downtown chicago and its surrounding neighborhoods. according to the daily demolition permit notifications i receive, the urban...

11 Dec 19th and early 20th century building trade ephemera enriches narratives of bldg. 51 museum artifacts

Posted at 15:41h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

for the past ten years, i've invested thousands of dollars in building trade catalogs, with builders' hardware, millwork, architectural house plans, and stained glass window makers comprising the bulk of my research library. in recent years i've eagerly latched onto "google books" as a resource -- as...

10 Dec salvage or no salvage, i’m compelled to document the death of old chicago buildings

Posted at 11:35h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages by Eric

despite leaving the jobsite of a mostly non-nondescript building with no "salvageable" artifacts of significance, i still felt the need, or perhaps "duty", to document the building before its remains are trucked off to the dumpsite. i'm especially saddened when i witness the demolition of buildings...

08 Dec bldg. 51 museum acquires frank lloyd wright-designed robert p. parker “bootleg house” window

Posted at 22:00h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

after days of negotiating between multiple parties, the bldg. 51 museum secured an early strongly geometric leaded glass window designed by frank lloyd wright for the queen anne style robert p. parker house completed in 1892. the historically important parker house was one of three "bootleg...

08 Dec copper skylight, uhl art steel stools, industrial lighting, chicago ephemera, and unearthed chicago artifacts

Posted at 11:25h in Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Sales and Promotions by Eric

the photo gallery below offers a glimpse of some of the newest artifacts recently acquired from last week's listings (15 new items are added daily in their respective categories) on the urban remains website. as of this writing, we have 26,800+ meticulously documented and well-organized artifacts in the...

07 Dec skinning the cedar hotel’s facade is nearly complete – building to be demolished soon after

Posted at 13:34h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

nearly a month ago, i basically dropped what i was doing after notification that the two iconic downtown chicago cedar hotel neon signs were about to be removed and tossed into an awaiting dumpster -- slated to be hauled to the scrapyard and destroyed. the work was...

03 Dec post-chicago fire osborne and adams leather company building demolition imminent

Posted at 18:20h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages by Eric

after the demolition delay hold was lifted for 209 west lake street, i knew that within a week the wreckers would be onsite to rapidly tear apart the former osborne and adams leather company building -- a shame since it was constructed shortly after the great...

30 Nov artifacts left by 19th century chicagoans unearthed from the site of a recently demolished building

Posted at 16:58h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages by Eric

long after a heavily modified 1870's-era two-story building was demolished last month, the excavators rolled in to begin laying the foundation for yet another new structure that is devoid of character. sure enough, shortly after the backhoe began digging, pockets of artifacts left long ago by...

28 Nov classic chicago brick two-flat constructed in 1909 salvaged shortly before wrecking machine arrives

Posted at 14:54h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages by Eric

with only two days before demolition of an early 20th century two-story brick residence began, we had very limited time to salvage an interior outfitted in pristine golden oak wood millwork on both the first and second floors. from door headers to built-in cabinets, and...

27 Nov simmons metal furniture, “barley twist” fretwork, industrial carts, pre-fire doors and stained glass windows

Posted at 16:10h in Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Sales and Promotions, Salvages by Eric

the photo gallery below offers a glimpse of some of the newest artifacts recently acquired from last week's listings (15 new items are added daily in their respective categories) on the urban remains website. as of this writing, we have 26,700+ meticulously documented and well-organized artifacts in the...

27 Nov visiting the sullivan-designed harold c. bradley house (1909) during a weekend trip to madison, wisc.

Posted at 16:09h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Travel by Eric

while on a brief weekend vacation to madison some time ago, i was determined to visit the harold c. bradley residence (1909), designed by notable architect louis h. sullivan and his chief draftsman, george grant elmslie. this would be elmslie's last commission with sullivan - shortly...

24 Nov a 19th century red brick italianate style residence awaits the arrival of the wrecking ball

Posted at 23:37h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous by Eric

while scrolling through the daily chicago demolition permits my heart quickly sank when i discovered that the fate of a 19th century italianate style red brick two-story residence had been sealed, with the city signing off on its destruction. the house was constructed sometime between 1879-1885. it...

24 Nov hidden and largely abandoned chicago wood-framed workers gablefront cottage faces demolition

Posted at 14:29h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages by Eric

i normally don't salvage in this area of chicago, but when i received an email notification that a largely unaltered chicago workers cottage was set for demolition, i had to make the journey to see it, tucked away on a block where several working class...

18 Nov latest bldg. 51 museum acquisition: ornamental cast iron gage building facade stringer fragment

Posted at 01:07h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Sales and Promotions, Salvages by Eric

yesterday i received good news that my "bid" to secure a historically important ornamental cast iron louis sullivan-designed gage building exterior facade stringer was accepted. shortly thereafter, i had a staff member secure the piece and bring it to the studio to photodocument, before making it...

16 Nov a most unusual discovery during the excavation of a residential lot on artesian avenue

Posted at 18:47h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, Salvages by Eric

as of late i've been giving my body - especially my back - a break from the latest wave of incredibly draining and time-consuming demolitions and excavations.. these have been bombarding my phone and email inbox on a daily basis. during this less strenuous time, i decided...

12 Nov 1893 time capsule with contents recovered from german zion’s evangelical society church building

Posted at 16:34h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages by Eric

the bldg. 51 museum just acquired the historically important and virtually untouched c. 1893 time capsule in the form of a diminutive corrugated copper metal box containing several newspapers, typed letters, a bible and other pertinent artifacts stowed away in the former german zion's evangelical...

12 Nov persistence pays off after recent discovery of an original dawson brothers catalog

Posted at 15:49h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products by Eric

after nearly ten years of searching, i've finally acquired an original and very well-maintained softbound dawson brothers catalog, profusely illustrated with their product line from 1887. over the years i've salvaged, from houses all across the city of chicago, a few hundred dawson brothers fireplace...

10 Nov unusual ornamental fret-sawn sill course salvaged from a chicago commercial building shortly before demolition

Posted at 15:36h in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Featured Posts, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages by Eric

for years i would drive to work along grand avenue, and i always paid special attention to a heavily modified commercial building, which contained a remarkably intact fret-sawn ornamental pine wood sill or belt course panel that likely would have fallen to pieces if it...