post-fire osborne & adams commerical loft building coming down - facade and all

just before christmas i had spoken to mike, son of national wrecking's head honcho, to determine whether the historically important "artificial stone" facade of this post-fire building was going to be saved.  i was taken aback when he responded with a "yes", but only two complete window headers or arches (with centrally located keystones) will be reinstalled into the new building, thanks to the developers and clark construction. i then asked if i could get a fragment, if time permits, and he was receptive to my request. i soon finished photographing the building - again - and moved on to the next jobsite in need of documentation.

when i returned on the 30th of december, the adjoining parking ramp was long gone and the machines were now focused on pulling down the 1870's lake street loft building, of which only a handful are left. several holes had been punched into the side and rear walls, and the topmost portion of the cast "stone" facade had been knocked off. after taking several pictures, i waited for mike to come down for lunch so i could ask to grab a fragment. size or condition didn't matter to me, as i really just wanted something to take back to the shop for conducting research. my aim was to analyze its composition and compare it to some other cut stone keystones that adorned non-extant post-fire chicago loft buildings, once located on lake street as well.

John C.W. Bailey's Business Directory of Chicago (1867)

i was very grateful that mike brought me onsite to see a small pile where the topmost section of the facade had been dumped. i found a small piece that contained enough of a profile to identify exactly where it had been located in relation to the other cast components.

what i really wanted was to get on that scaffolding and photograph the facade in much greater detail, to determine exactly how the "stones" were anchored against the brick. i didn't want to push my luck too far though, so i ended my visit by asking instead to purchase a single keystone for the bldg. 51 museum. i was so determined to acquire one that i offered five hundred dollars, but i could see money was not moving any wheels. mike said he didn't need money, and that he would set a keystone aside for me to come pick up at a later time. i thanked him emphatically again and as i walked away he told me - off the cuff - to write "something nice" about national wrecking, with a subtle smirk on his face. i didn't even need that request, however, since i would have anyway based on his willingness to help my cause. when i relayed this to tim, he chuckled and said not to offer money, and instead, come with "a box of rolls".

that is exactly what i will do when i return next week. it appears national is wrecking the building floor by floor, with partial hand demolition performed by a crew seen on the topmost floor. 

in the meantime, i have a lot of research to do, which i hope to include in an upcoming blog post that will cover the bustling activity on lake street before and after the chicago fire, with special attention to the use of "artificial stone" in rebuilding -- how it was made and advertised during the 1870's and beyond.

update: photos in the filmstrip below were taken on 1-2-2015.