The Manhattan Building is a 16-story building at 431 South Dearborn Street in

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

. It was designed by architect

William Le Baron Jenney William Le Baron Jenney (September 25, 1832 – June 14, 1907) was an American architect and engineer who is known for building the first skyscraper in 1884. In 1998, Jenney was ranked number 89 in the book ''1,000 Years, 1,000 People: Ran ...

and constructed from 1889 to 1891. It is the oldest surviving

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

in the world to use a purely skeletal supporting structure.
Manhattan Building, Chicago.
' Emporis Buildings (URL accessed 9 July 2006
Manhattan Building, 431 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, Cook County, IL.
' American Memory from the Library of Congress (URL accessed 9 July 2006). The building was the first home of the Paymaster Corporation, and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on March 16, 1976, and designated 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 ...

on July 7, 1978.

Architecture

The distinctive bow windows provide light into the building's interior spaces, and the combination of a granite facade for the lower floors and brick facade for the upper stories helps lighten the load placed on the internal steel framework. The north and south walls of tile are supported on steel cantilevers that carry the load back to the internal supporting structure. The versatility and strength of metal frame construction made the skyscraper possible, as evidenced by this structure, which reached the then-astounding height of 16 stories in 1891. Its architect was a pioneer in the development of tall buildings. Manhattan Building, Chicago, IL, USA, window detail

Manhattan Building, Chicago, IL, USA, window detail

Architecture

References

See also