The Dexter Building was a landmark building located at 630 South Wabash Avenue, in the South Loop area of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. The building was designed by the firm of

Dankmar Adler Dankmar Adler (July 3, 1844 – April 16, 1900) was a German-born American architect and civil engineer. He is best known for his fifteen-year partnership with Louis Sullivan, during which they designed influential skyscrapers that boldly addr ...

and

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...

, and built in 1887.Dexter Building
Chicago Landmarks, City of Chicago, retrieved October 4, 2011.Ron Grossman, Michelle Keller and Tony C. Yang
"Fire guts historic building: 2nd Louis Sullivan structure destroyed this year in Chicago,"
''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' October 25, 2006. Prior to its destruction in 2006 it was one of the earliest surviving Louis Sullivan buildings, and was considered a precursor of the nearby

Auditorium Building The Auditorium Building in Chicago is one of the best-known designs of Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler. Completed in 1889, the building is located at the northwest corner of South Michigan Avenue and Ida B. Wells Drive. The building was des ...

. It was designated as a

Chicago Landmark Chicago Landmark is a designation by the Mayor and the City Council of Chicago for historic sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, archite ...

in 1996 and was described by the Landmarks Division of the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development as an "irreplaceable link in the chain of work of one of the nation's most important architectural partnerships". It was distinctive in its use of exterior perforated girders, prefiguring designs of seven decades later.

History

Architects

and

designed the Wirt Dexter Building as a warehouse and a furniture store for

Wirt Dexter Walker Wirt Dexter Walker (September 1, 1860 – April 24, 1899) was a Chicago lawyer. He was the son of successful Chicago attorney James M. Walker and Eliza M. Walker, and was named after Wirt Dexter, the junior partner at his father's firm, Walte ...

, a prestigious lawyer in 1887, twelve years before his death. This building housed many businesses all around the years, from 1967 it was the home of the George Diamond Steak House, and the upper floors later housed the Sawyer Secretarial College.

Fire

On October 24, 2006, workmen were cutting up a

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, central h ...

in the basement for scrapping with acetylene torches that sparked a large fire. The fire was allowed to get out of control and gutted the building.Ron Grossman and Josh Noel
"Woman's dream now lies in ruins,"
''Chicago Tribune'' October 26, 2006. At its peak, the fire, which started in the basement at around 3 pm, was a

five-alarm fire One-alarm fires, two-alarm fires, three-alarm fires, etc., are categories classifying the seriousness of fires, commonly used in the United States and in Canada, particularly indicating the level of response by local authorities. The term multip ...

, the

Chicago Fire Department The Chicago Fire Department (CFD) provides fire suppression, rescue services, Hazardous Materials Response services and emergency medical response services to the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, under the jurisdiction of the Mayor of Chi ...

's highest level of alert, with over 250 firefighters responding. Following the fire, the surviving shell of the building was too unstable to save and was demolished. At the time of the fire there was no insurance on the building.

In popular culture

The Wirt Dexter Building can be seen in the near background of one scene in the 2001 movie ''Just Visiting''.

References

External links

Article about the fire
by Lynn Becker

Landmarks Illinois: Article about the fire and use of acetylene torches in rehabilitating historic buildings, with pictures {{Louis Sullivan Industrial buildings completed in 1887 Former buildings and structures in Chicago Chicago Landmarks Louis Sullivan buildings Burned buildings and structures in the United States Demolished buildings and structures in Chicago