23 Jul final chapter: theodore karl’s 1872 conrad seipp post-fire chicago three-story commercial building lives on in images and fragments
last installment.
latest image of the post-fire chicago italianate style three-story masonry mixed-use commercial building (1872), located at the southwest corner of wells and superior streets, chicago, ills.
the three-story brick building (the superior side has four floors with the top floor likely added in the mid to late-1870s), with a largely intact original and distinctive street level cast iron arched and fluted colonnade, accentuated with unadorned faceted keystones between the spandrels, and lemont or joliet limestone window hoods and sills on the upper floors, was constructed in the early months of 1872 for brewer conrad siepp where it was likely built on the pre-fire foundation using recycled or salvaged brick from the fire.
the building had storefronts on the first floor (including a saloon), offices on the second, and a spacious hall on the third floor catering to various clubs and lodges.
after reviewing several of my building catalogs of the period, i suspect the union foundry works executed the cast iron storefront and interior load-bearing fluted columns with heavily ornamented corinthian style capitals.
Why document historic buildings digitally?
Digital documentation of historic buildings is crucial for accurately capturing their essence, enabling efficient preservation, and facilitating access to detailed information for future generations. It employs advanced technologies like 3D LiDAR scanning and GIS platforms.
