Salvages

by eric j. nordstrom and ornament chicago i finally made time to edit more images of chicago's south side masonic temple (1921) demolition. the six-story structural steel and reinforced concrete frame structure with red face brick and carved bedford limestone facade was designed by chicago architect clarence hatzfeld at a cost of $300,000.  New York Stadler Photo Co. Chicago  ...

by eric j. nordstrom and ornament chicago the south side masonic temple (1921) is presently under demolition.  it has been less than six months since I documented the demolition of the logan square masonic temple, also by clarence hatzfeld, architect, and more can be read about his prolific career and special emphasis on masonic temples in that post driving to englewood...

the humboldt garage & auto service company building, erected in 1911 by f.w. ries, is undergoing demolition. i'm sure i will be back to document its final moments.

by eric j. nordstrom and ornament chicago  i was notified the other day that the ingleside community church of the nazarene (1905) located at the corner of 72nd and ingleside will be wrecked in the coming weeks. naturally, i struggled with internal resistance since i had to abruptly abandon prior engagements in order meet with the wrecker, document the building...

a look back at 2017, beginning with a summation of 2016 and ending with the publication of "lost and found." the links to 43 out of 450 blog entries posted in 2017 are listed below.  https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/12/26/lost-and-found-a-bldg-51-publication-is-now-available-for-sale/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/12/20/demolished-james-higgie-building-lives-on-through-salvaged-ornament-and-images/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/11/30/3-days-in-nyc-documenting-historic-architecture-and-preservation-efforts/   https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/10/19/documenting-restoration-of-chicagos-historic-buildings-this-fall/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/09/30/chicago-fragments-from-john-vincis-past/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/09/27/installation-of-gage-buildings-recreated-terra-cotta-cartouche-completed/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/09/23/louis-h-sullivans-farmers-and-merchants-union-bank-1919-in-photographs/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/08/28/tradesmans-beer-bottle-discovered-in-the-wall-of-a-19th-century-chicago-cottage-undergoing-demolition/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/08/24/2017-the-year-of-documenting-downtown-chicagos-19th-early-20th-century-architectural-ornament-at-feverish-pace/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/08/17/minnesota-roadtrip-merchants-national-bank-foshay-tower-masonic-temple-and-beyond/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/08/16/documenting-historic-chicago-movie-palaces-remains-top-priority-for-2017/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/08/04/bldg-51-museum-acquires-lost-records-of-architectural-firm-graven-and-mayger/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/07/31/vast-assortment-of-ephemera-photographs-drawings-and-books-from-the-architectural-offices-of-jenney-mundie-acquired-by-bldg-51-museum/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/07/18/documenting-a-post-fire-chicago-italianate-row-house-staircase-during-its-deconstruction/ 17/a-photographic-study-of-historic-commercial-building-ornament-in-la-crosse-wisc/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/07/07/high-noon-entertainment-collaborating-with-eric-j-nordstrom-on-documenting-the-death-of-buildings/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/06/29/documenting-a-post-fire-chicago-row-house-where-time-stood-still/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/06/29/a-closer-look-at-george-frears-patented-pre-chicago-fire-artificial-italianate-row-house-keystones/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/06/21/nortown-theater-taught-me-how-to-thoroughly-document-and-deconstruct/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/06/08/the-frank-lloyd-wright-windows-of-the-bldg-51-architectural-artifact-museum/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/05/25/photographic-study-of-19th-century-objects-discovered-in-stud-cavity-of-post-fire-chicago-cottage-during-its-demolition/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/05/25/bldg-51-museum-collaborates-with-decorators-supply-company-in-making-limited-run-of-recast-auditorium-theater-proscenium-vault-ventilation-domes/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/05/22/gage-building-facade-restoration-leads-to-boston-valley-terra-cotta-company-visit/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/05/16/the-chicago-terra-cotta-company-and-william-lebaron-jenneys-starkweather-building/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/05/15/a-very-special-artifact-salvaged-by-richard-nickel-offers-inspiration-and-motivation-to-carry-on/ https://www.urbanremainschicago.com/news-and-events/2017/05/10/behind-the-lovers-playground-a-frank-lloyd-wright-designed-architectural-detail-that-survived-the-wrecking-ball...

by eric j. nordstrom and ornament chicago  By the 1940s onward  the J.L. Higgie building had begun a protracted period of what could be considered gradual decline.  In this postcard from the 1940s one notes the classic bell shaped roofs from the earlier 1920s photo are now missing, and by the time of the black and white photo circa 1946...

ogen avenue facade with terra cotta name plaque in place.   by Eric J. Nordstrom and Ornament Chicago: As another exhausting week continues additional details of the family behind the curious wedge-shaped J. L. Higgie building continue to emerge.    After some more research it was discovered that James Lyle Higgie sired nine children, of which five were sons. ...

after a much-needed break from the bowels of congress theater, i spent the remainder of my time there traversing the auditorium's upper balcony plenum chambers hoping to discover more objects discarded by moviegoers beginning around the time the theater opened in 1926. thankfully, i was in a very relaxed state of mind and used it to my advantage. i was...

an extensive photographic record of congress theater's basement level mechanical equipment was completed late last week. the utilization of multiple camera lenses was required to accurately capture both surface details and systems found throughout the subterranean space, located directly beneath the lobby floor. additionally, images were taken using the theater basement's existing lighting - for better or for worse...

a largely intact circular pine wood privy pit or "vault" floor was discovered during excavation of a site where a pre-fire chicago residence succumbed to the wrecking ball. i was busy documenting the sill plate configuration of a nearby wood frame house when i got wind that this (see below) brick cottage had been reduced to rubble.   the floor was...

a late 19th or early 20th century chicago tugboat. facing its impending destruction, the wedge-shaped j.l. higgie building has piqued my interests; perhaps moreso because of the lack of information out there surrounding the building itself, and the plethora of accolades following mr. higgie and his illustrious career. relatively famed in the maritime circuit, captain james l. higgie was...

it never ceases to surprise that the smallest artifacts can hold the most expansive histories. this week a simple object --a brass key ring from the reliance building-- unveiled an iconic narrative from an era when chicago served as territory to some of the most notorious gangsters. even hotel burnham, in the historic reliance building, acknowledges that it houses a strange history...

i had a single day to salvage what i could from a pre-fire chicago italianate style residence retaining many of the interior elements dating from the time of construction. when i arrived onsite, the excavator had already flattened the garage. soon thereafter, the unmistakable sound of the machine's treads or tracks, burned into my brain from years of salvaging, crawled over...

when i find time, i'm carefully extracting fragments from the piles of "insulation" discovered behind the walls of a pre-chicago fire worker's cottage i salvaged a few days ago. my research strongly indicates that the house was constructed around 1867, possibly earlier. the materials at the very bottom (found on the yellow pine wood sill plate) date to the 1860's and...

although it may be redundant to preface a post pertaining to 19th century chicago cottages with my continued disappointment and despair, i will probably continue to express my lament, as long as there is still a constant stream of exceptional buildings being permanently erased from the urban landscape. the loss is felt deeply at each site, especially so, as i've spent a considerable...

urban remains received a call last week over the removal of long-forgotten artifacts and building elements buried in the recesses of logan square’s armitage baptist church building as they begin clearing out remnants of its original occupant - the logan square masonic lodge. we spent nearly a week carefully removing these “lost and found” masonic artifacts which were strewn, and...

urban remains recently secured several pallets worth of american vintage industrial furniture (dating to the 1940's-1950's), removed from the zim manufacturing company factory building. founded in 1919, the zim manufacturing company specialized in the manufacture of automobile specialty tools and gauges, housewares, and other hand tools. the extant factory is located on the far west side of chicago. we are currently...

i didn't have much time to shoot congress theater's interior after spending the afternoon out on the facade. before leaving for the day, i decided to lug my camera equipment up to the attic where i could capture additional images of the methods and materials used to build the multi-tiered plaster dome around the "iron tent." marbro theater's (demolished) "iron...

the oscar heinemann silk factory began its construction in 1918. a four building complex, underground tunnels were built to allow workers to travel from building to building.  this specific sprawling addition, at the time, was commissioned for $100,000 - four stories, 125 x 125 ft, and enough room for 1,500 employees. with this expansion, oscar heinemann became the largest manufacturer...

the primary reason for ending nearly every post with "to be continued" or "i will revisit at a later time" is lack of time. i feel weighted down by the stress of chasing deadlines everyday. i've reached a state of mind where i calculate my actions based on minutes in a given day. i feel manically obsessed with this world of...