The Printing House Row District is a

National Historic Landmark District National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

encompassing four architecturally important buildings on the 300 through 500 blocks of South Dearborn, South Federal and South Plymouth streets in the

Loop Loop or LOOP may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live * Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets * Loop Mobile, an ...

community area of

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 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 ...

as South Dearborn Street – Printing House Row Historic District and listed as a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

as South Dearborn Street – Printing House Row North Historic District on January 7, 1976. The district was 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 May 9, 1996. The district includes the

Monadnock Building The Monadnock Building (historically the Monadnock Block; pronounced ) is a 16-story skyscraper located at 53 West Jackson Boulevard in the south Loop area of Chicago. The north half of the building was designed by the firm of Burnham & Root ...

, the Manhattan Building, the

Fisher Building The Fisher Building is a landmark skyscraper located at 3011 West Grand Boulevard in the heart of the New Center area of Detroit, Michigan. The ornate 30-story building, completed in 1928, is one of the major works of architect Albert Kahn, an ...

, and the Old Colony Building. The district overlaps significantly with the Printers Row

neighborhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area, ...

, and is not the same as

South Loop Printing House District South Loop Printing House District is a historic district in the downtown Chicago Loop area of Chicago, Illinois. The district is roughly bounded by Congress, Polk, State, Taylor, and Wells Streets and includes 28 contributing buildings. The dis ...

Description

The Printing House Row District includes four buildings that present facades onto South Dearborn Street, between West Jackson Boulevard and West Ida B. Wells Drive. At the northern end stands the

, occupying the entire block of South Dearborn and South Federal between Jackson and Van Buren. Opposite the southern portion of the Monadnock stands the

, fronting on South Dearborn and Van Buren. Across Van Buren on the east side of South Dearborn is the Old Colony Building, with the Manhattan Building to its south. Each of these buildings is significant for its architecture and/or for advances in skyscraper construction methods in the 1880s and 1890s. The Manhattan Building, built in 1889–91 to a design by

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 ...

, was the first skyscraper supported entirely by an internal metal skeleton, and was the tallest building in the world at its completion. The Old Colony Building, built in 1893–94 to a design by

Holabird & Roche The architectural firm now known as Holabird & Root was founded in Chicago in 1880. Over the years, the firm has changed its name several times and adapted to the architectural style then current — from Chicago School to Art Deco to Modern ...

, demonstrated a means to build skyscrapers on narrow lots, yet provide sufficient strength to its floors to withstand the operational stresses of printing equipment. The Fisher Building, built in 1895–96 to a design by Daniel H. Burnham, is one of the first buildings to use curtain wall construction. Lastly, the Monadnock, built in two stages, one designed by

Burnham & Root Burnham and Root was one of Chicago's most famous architectural companies of the nineteenth century. It was established by Daniel Hudson Burnham and John Wellborn Root. During their eighteen years of partnership, Burnham and Root designed and b ...

and the other by Holabird & Roche, is one of the largest commercial buildings with load-bearing masonry walls ever built.

Notes

External links

Official City of Chicago Loop Community Map
{{National Register of Historic Places Historic districts in Chicago Central Chicago National Historic Landmarks in Chicago Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Chicago Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Chicago Landmarks

Description

See also

Notes

External links