a photographic study of louis h. sullivan-designed building hardware

the following images provide an extensive photographic survey of 19th century building hardware designed by louis h. sullivan during his time at the architectural firm of adler and sullivan. the majority of the hardware was fabricated by the yale & towne mfg. company of stamford, ct. nearly every design became a "stock pattern" mass-produced by yale & towne through product catalogs at the time.

the customized commercial building hardware was comprised of cast iron with a bower-barff finish (click here to read about the process), but in some cases, bronze and nickel-plated bronze was used (i.e., the first floor of the guaranty building was outfitted with cast bronze hardware, while the upper floors contained cast iron with bower-barff finish.

the two commissions where very little sullivan-hardware survives is the schiller building (later known as the garrick theater) and st. nicholas hotel (hardware from the latter is virtually impossible to find on the public market today). thankfully, the majority of sullivan's hardware, both in type, size and finish, are well-represented here, through the collections of chicago's cultural historian tim samuelson and bldg. 51 museum owner, eric j. nordstrom.

a section identifying hardware from adler and sullivan commissions where sullivan did not contribute designs will be added when time permits. hardware from both commercial and residential commissions (e.g., albert sullivan house, 1892) known as "stock patterns" will be included from any and all jobs completed during the firm's existence between 1883-1896.

schiller building (later garrick theater, demolished), 1891:

wainwright building, 1891:

union trust building, 1892:

st. nicholas hotel (demolished), 1893:

chicago stock exchange (demolished), 1894:

guaranty building, 1896: