08 Oct a photographic summation of an 1876 chicago commercial building
a few photographs taken while examining the interior of this post-fire chicago (1876) commercial building is "gutted" during preparation for a new use as loft apartments. ...
01 Oct recovering the remnants of a post-chicago fire walnut wood staircase with an exceptional octagonal newel post
Posted at 01:12h
in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages
it appears after repeated (failed) attempts to reach out and connect with the contractor, i'm embarrassingly relegated back to the dumpster behind the commercial building constructed in 1876 (see earlier posts on this building). it's abundantly clear that money and/or avoiding crossing paths with the construction...
30 Sep michael reese hospital reduced to a small collection of fragments
reese was bitter from the beginning. nearly 30 buildings being vacated, or had been abandoned for years. an awful salvage experience were everything that could go wrong, went wrong. my relationship with the wrecker i had worked with for years grew tumultuous. it was hard to...
28 Sep mid-1870’s commercial building undergoing a complete gut/rehab
Posted at 23:56h
in Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Miscellaneous, New Acquisitions, New Products, Salvages
i've been watching this post-fire chicago commercial building located on west of downtown chicago for the past few weeks. in fact, i spent an afternoon (with consent from the contractor) photodocmenting the interior from the basement to the top floor. the building is in an ideal...
23 Sep finding artifacts long after john kent russell’s house was hauled away to the landfill
it has been several weeks since the pre-fire chicago john kent russell frame dwelling was brought down and sent off to a nearby landfill. now, the site of the former house is yet another empty lot containing dirt and residual debris strewn about. i thought for sure...
10 Sep a quick friday afternoon visit to the chicago athletic association building
slowly but surely, any and all historic or architectural detailing original to the time of the chicago athletic association building's construction (1893), is carefully being reinstalled after a seemingly minor restoration and/or repair was completed months ago. remarkably, the second floor "reading room," with its gargantuan...
03 Sep concurrent demolitions taking place along lake street in chicago
a late 19th century warehouse and a turn of the century hardware store along lake street (west of downtown chicago) are quickly being decimated by backhoes operated by two of the city's larger wrecking firms. the presence of protests and/or picketing was absent when the steel...
18 Aug most recent updates at the chicago athletic association building
i didn't have much time to photodocument the chicago athletic association building this afternoon after spending a great deal of time "excavating" the russell house site in the morning, and having to hastily find my way to wicker park to document the recently exposed wood...
10 Aug the final hours before the john kent russell house is reduced to rubble
today marked the last day that the john kent russell house remained standing for nearly a century and a half. i'm amazed at all the changes that have occurred to the residence since the initial phases of construction sometime in the 1840's. despite the additions, upgrades...
06 Aug demolition of the john kent russell residence in photographs
for over 7 hours i systematically documented the slow and painful death of the pre-fire john kent russell house, which in its earliest form may have begun as a frame cottage that dates back to 1845-50 based on newly found evidence. several yellow pine or douglas...
04 Aug the uptown theater, “sullivanesque” terra cotta and a brief visit to the russell house over the weekend
i spent saturday and sunday photographing the uptown theater facade and its dilapidated horizontal marquee, a "sullivanesque" style building with terra cotta ornament (fabricated by the midland terra cotta company) and finally, a few hours investigating and/or documenting structural components at the russell house. [gallery ids="2991,2989,2986,2987,2988,2992"] ...
29 Jul more “gardenesque” discovered in the chicago athletic club association building’s cherry circle bar
despite numerous trips to photodocument the chicago athletic association building (1893), i never paid much attention to the sleek and streamlined cherry circle bar, located in the building annex (designed by schmidt, garden and martin in 1907). the other week, i poked my head inside the...
25 Jul salvage work at the john kent russell house drawing to a close: wrecking ball to follow
demolition of the historically important pre-fire chicago john kent russell house is now on the horizon. after a very long life, i was very fortunate to document its last days before it is reduced to splintered wood and rubble. we were told it was to...
11 Jul urban remains acquires salvage rights to the historic c. 1855 john kent russell house
urban remains began salvaging the historically important c. 1855 john kent russell house yesterday afternoon. any and all interior architectural components were thoroughly documented and carefully removed. but before i begin what will likely be a series of posts revolving around the salvage of this pre-fire...
07 Jul c. 1902 division street north branch canal bridge photographed by eric j. nordstrom
shortly before the historic division street riveted plate steel bascule bridge (constructed in 1902-03) was fenced off in preparation for demolition, i spent an afternoon photodocumenting it from what felt like every conceivable angle to satisfy my mind's eye. accessing the hydraulic machinery below or underside of...
02 Jul the hidden rooms at boylston offered great finds for creating repurposed furnishings
years after the boylston factory salvage was completed, we are still actively incorporating boylston industrial objects into a variety of repurposed furniture and furnishings that can be used in a multitude of design settings or spaces. when we first arrived, the two "hidden" floors where a...
01 Jul Lincoln Park Doctors From 1962 Left Message Predicting the Future
By Tanveer Ali on July 1, 2014 5:22am CHICAGO — In 1962, doctors at Grant Hospital at Webster and Lincoln avenues left a letter for those who would work in their place 50 years later. "In this day of possible nuclear destruction and biological suicide we doctors of 1962...
08 Jun urban remains salvages interior elements from the historically significant gethsemane missionary baptist church
interior elements from the historically significant gethsemane missionary baptist church were salvaged earlier this week. during the process, i experienced a bit of a freak accident, when i fell off a ladder, bruising ribs and spraining my left arm. having been in the dark and intensely...