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documenting the dismantlement of adler & sullivan's chicago stock exchange building ornament iron staircase

i can't reiterate how fulfilling it is to travel back in time and immerse myself in a seemingly endless cache of richard nickel contact prints documenting the death of first chicago school buildings, including many built by the firm of adler & sullivan. as an architectural documentary photographer and salvager i immediately identify with the wrecking sites, extraction of ornament, and the importance of capturing a building's portals to the past through its demolition.

i feel an undeniable obligation - more so than ever as i dig deeper into the archive -  to carefully select, digitize, and disseminate these long-forgotten images through any and all social platforms. with nickel's tragic death salvaging ornament  from the chicago stock exchange in 1972, he never had a chance to revisit his negatives and/or contact prints to build narratives tied to his salvaging efforts. i will most certainly take a shot at it, much the same way i create my own narratives around the buildings i document/salvage undergoing demolition in my time. 

long-forgotten richard nickel images - pulled from contact sheets - document the removal of a louis h. sullivan's copper-plated cast iron staircase (one of two, floors 3-13) from the chicago stock exchange building (1894, adler & sullivan, architects) during the building's demolition in january of 1971. 

the salvaged staircase ornament was sold off to museums, institutions, and the public. in fact, three oaks wrecking set up a makeshift shop within the building to sell ornament including, but not limited to, doorknobs and escutcheons, elevator grilles, newel posts, etc. 


the staircases and elevator enclosures were fabricated by the winslow brothers. the door hardware was executed by yale & towne. sullivan designed the building's exterior and interior ornament. 


images courtesy of the richard nickel archive, ryerson and burnham archives, art institute of chicago, bldg. 51 museum archive, and tim samuelson collection.

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