the final hours before the john kent russell house is reduced to rubble

today marked the last day that the john kent russell house remained standing for nearly a century and a half. i'm amazed at all the changes that have occurred to the residence since the initial phases of construction sometime in the 1840's.

despite the additions, upgrades and remuddlings, coupled with an ever-changing neighborhood surrounding this modest dwelling, key architectural features that indicate the building's age were largely intact - both on the outside and from within.

in the late morning however, any and all traces of its existence were erased with the swift actions of the backhoe. the last, and perhaps the most distinctive or distinguishing architectural features - the east elevation - with perfectly intact corbels and soffit and fascia, were brought down in less than ten minutes.

it is incredibly frustrating and equally heartbreaking that all i could do was document this destruction. the salvage rights i formerly had with the owner, were transferred to the wrecker, who did not want anything to do rescuing ornament. so with the exception of a camera to document the final moments, i was unable to save the east elevation.

i do want to thank the developer (i.e., property owner) who was sympathetic to my cause and gave my the opportunity to rescue some of the key architectural components (and other building materials currently being prepared for an exhibition on the russell house) that i have been so overly obsessed over for nearly a month.

the house is now long gone, but thousands of photographs and numerous remnants were collected to provide researchers, history enthusiasts, architects, etc., additional material to examine while exploring some of chicago's earliest methods of building construction and the materials used to construct pre-fire dwellings at a time when the balloon frame was still in its infancy and "old world" techniques were still being used to create "hybrid" that contained characteristics of both, as clearly demonstrated or revealed during the salvage and demolition of the russell house.