Urban Remains Chicago News and Events

after dismantling the false or "drop" ceiling installed during a classic remuddle, the original cast plaster "drooping tip" ceiling was exposed for the first time in decades. unfortunately, the installation of the drop ceiling caused considerable damage to the ornament. i'm glad i was able to capture the moment during this unusual "unveiling." the ceiling was installed in 1892-93 in...

after a month or so of historic research, photodocumenation and salvage preparation, we have been incredibly busy over the course of the last week meticulously removing significant interior and exterior artifacts from a sprawling late 1920's georgian style mansion set to be demolished in the next few weeks. due to the sensitive nature of this project, further information will be...

i'm incredibly excited (and equally relieved) after some rather nerve-wracking auction bidding as of recent. i participated in a local auction that offered an amazingly large collection of louis sullivan-designed artifacts from various notable building commissions (e.g., stock exchange, guaranty building, etc.).  i managed to win a copper-plated cast iron elevator medallion from the schlesinger & mayer department store, along...

i was pleasantly surprised when i discovered this "gardenesque" plaster ornament while photodocumenting the interior of the chicago athletic association annex (commonly referred to as the "madison building" by club members). the cast plaster corbels were revealed recently during renovations, after being hidden for years from senseless alterations. unfortunately, there is considerable damage evident, so whether or not they will...

completely and utterly exhausted. worked 13 hours straight. removed several truckloads of salvaged items from the chicago athletic club. fortunately, nearly all of the historically significant architectural elements from the original 1893 building (henry ives cobb, architect) and the 1907 "michigan building" addition (schmidt, garden & martin, architects) will be carefully restored and reincorporated into the final design as a...

ACTIVE DISCUSSIONS/NEWEST POSTS WRIGHT STUFF  An Architectural blog struck gold with photos and intel from a reader that suggest Frank Lloyd Wright's William Winslow House is being prepped for sale in River Forest for around $2M. The tipster, Anthony Thompson, befriended the owner and wound up inside the large 1893 home— one of Wright's earliest independent projects. Thompson's photos are thumbnailed at right and catalogued on Flickr...

product arrangement photographed by eric j. nordstrom

we just acquired a large lot on very rare and highly sought after "expanded metal type" freestanding lockers designed and fabricated by the federal steel fixture company (chicago, il.). the thoroughly ventilated locker system was often assembled with no. 13 gauge diamond mesh expanded metal and reinforced with riveted and oxy-acetylene welded single piece frames used ensure absolute rigidity and free...

the urban remains showroom will undergo a mild overhaul during the fall of 2013. additional retired or decommissioned artifacts from my personal collection will be brought over to complement or enhance the existing items already available for sale at the showroom. the core of my collection, consisting primarily of commercial and residential artifacts from notable chicago commissions, will remain permanent...

i was returning from a demolition site the other day when i decided to make a detour to revisit the old abandoned cooky county hospital, which is considered to be one of the best remaining examples of beaux arts-style architecture in the city of chicago. sadly, the ornamental terra cotta facade, which stretches two city blocks in length, continues to...

a mostly random assemblage of photographic prints taken by eric j. nordstrom will go on display in the urban remains showroom beginning in fall of 2013. the majority of the prints will be matted and framed. some will be for sale, while others will be for display only. a few carefully selected photographs will be enlarged with the hopes of...

we recently acquired multiple early 20th century factory lunchroom swing-out seat tables fabricated by the chicago hardware foundry company, chicago, il. the large assemblage of unrestored components provide us with greater flexibility to reconfigure the tables into any number of multi-seat arrangements (i.e., 4, 8, 12, 16, etc.). the salvaged tables were fabricated around 1926 for a factory located outside...

urban remains owner eric j. nordstrom and anthony baus work together on the roofline of the richman brothers building on a balmy saturday afternoon. the polychrome terra cotta ornament was carefully removed and preserved. two of the figural birds reside in the bldg. 51 museum. the richman brothers clothing store (formerly known as the bee hive dry goods store was...

i just recently discovered that this well-maintained and fully functional chicago advertising neon "can" sign  (see above) has been taken down and hauled off to the scrapyard. why not contact us? so incredibly frustrating. the art deco streamlined style "exterminators" sign still retained a vibrant color scheme in the form of baked porcelain enamel over cold-rolled steel. such a tragic...

over the past few days urban remains has been consumed in removing a large load of mobile industrial carts or "floor trucks" from the burhop paper company factory complex, located west of downtown chicago. the incredibly robust, shopworn carts were designed and fabricated by the j.t. towsley mfg. co., cincinnati, oh. nearly a hundred matching carts were originally purchased by...

the 2009-2010 Emerging Media Innovation Grant team Michele Chiuini (architecture) and John Fillwalk (IDIA) launched the Digital Chicago Stock Exchange website, the result of their work to virtually reconstruct portions of the 1894 Chicago Stock Exchange building, designed by the famous duo Adler and Sullivan. The stock exchange was demolished in 1972, but a number of structural elements were salvaged and...

the long-term collaboration involving the creative brilliance of architect louis h. sullivan (with assistance from chief draftsman george grant elmslie) and execution by the notable winslow brothers ornamental iron foundry culminated in 1899 with the fabrication (and generally well-maintained) enameled ornament adorning the schlesinger & mayer building street level facade.

in other news, i'm dangerously close to pulling the trigger on securing the lease for this 38,000 square-foot factory building that would house the new urban remains warehouse, showroom and museum. urban remains outgrew the existing warehouse two years ago, so this seems to be the next logical step towards expansion. the satellite showrooms will remain open until further notice.

we are currently in the process of salvaging a recently shuttered chicago funeral home that will ultimately be demolished in the coming weeks. the morgue is always a fine place to contemplate one's mortality. however, i believe i was more preoccupied or perhaps sickened by the appalling stench, coupled with the incredibly hot weather (inside and out) on that particular...

the hartwell houses will be facing the wrecking ball within the next few weeks. the adjoining victorian era three-flats were built for lumber baron edwin s. hartwell’s two children in 1885 by architect julius h. huber. each unit contains a large red slip-glaze terra cotta bust, depicting both son and daughter in costume, surrounded by intricate floral motifs. i’ve reached...