Metamorphosis of Chicago's Architecture from Pre-Post Industrial Revolution

 What were the Main Architectural Changes in Chicago after the Industrial Revolution?

• 1) The use of steel in modern buildings
• The buildings no longer used stone to form the walls of the buildings but instead used steel; mainly, because of its efficiency and low cost.
• Building structures changed from the bearing wall structure to a free standing facade structure.
• An analogy to explain the free standing facade structure can be explained by using a table with four legs at each corner, like the analogy for the bearing wall structure. Instead of using stone to fill up the gaps between the legs, steel will; but as a cover. The steel can be represented by a table cloth that hangs over the table entirely to cover the open spacing between the legs, so the collumns of the building are on the inside. The steel basically acts like a skin for the building.
• 2) The use of glass in modern buildings
• Now that glass could be massed produced, thanks to Schott and Seimen, its use in buildings was now prevelent.
• The glass is attached to the buildings like a grid to the skeleton of the buildings. It was a faster and more efficient way to enclose a buildings skeleton.

What did the New Use of Steel and Glass Inspire People to Create?

• 1) Elevators
• The first structurally efficient elevators were designed by Elisha Otis in New York, but were later carried over to Chicago due to the fact that it was the birthplace of skyscrapers.
• The Home Insurance Building designed by William Le Baron Jenney from 1884-1885 was the first skyscraper recorded to date. It wavered at a groundbreaking nine floors.
• With this enormously tall building, at the time, Otis brought over his invention of the elevator and used it as a guinea pig in the Home Insurance Building. The elevators became very popular and were then used for the skyscrapers to come.
• 2) Mixed Room Buildings
• From 1886-1890 Louis Sullivan built the Chicago Auditorium Building which was the first building in history to mix rooms with theatres.
• Before this, buildings were all one style of rooms, such as a building with all office space.
• With the new structure of a steel skeleton, various styles of building designs were possible. Sullivan was innovative enough to use the steel skeleton to his advantage to create a mixed room building; which ended up becoming very poplular within Chicago and around the country.

What are some Famous Buildings from Chicago and how were they Influenced by the Industrial Revolution?

• The Home Insurance Building - by William Le Baron Jenney; built from 1884-1885.
• This building is very important due to the fact that is credited as being the first skyscraper ever! It was built at a staggering nine stories tall.
• Jenney was able to produce such a building because of the new advancements that recently took place during the industrial revolution.
• Steel was being mass produced and Jenney was able to use that steel to create a sturdy steel skeleton for the Home Insurance Building.
• Also, to increase the practicality of the building, Jenney teamed up with Otis to install one of the first elevators. This took the building to a completely different level of architecture.
• The Monadnock Building - by Daniel Burnham and the Holabird & Roche Company; built from 1884-1892
• This building is so important because it was defining moment of transition in the development of structural methods.
• The Monadnock consists of two seperate parts: the north side, built by Burnham, and the south side, built by Holabird & Roche. The north side is known as the "foutainhead of modern architecture" because of its lack of exterior ornament. The south side is known for its classic architectural design that was crafted to fit a tall building.
• The north side of the building is primarily built on the structure of brick where as the southside of the building is primarily built on the structure of steel. The north side is the tallest building ever built with the foundation of brick stone and that is another reason why the Monadnock Building is so important to Chicago.
• This building is the transition moment in the development of structural methods due to the fact that it consists of both methods!
• The Sears Tower - by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill Company; built from 1970-1973
• The Sears Tower is the third tallest building in the world, but at the time it was built, it was the tallest building. The heighth of the tower is 1,454 feet.
• The tower was only made possible by the innovations in architecture that took place during the time of the industrial revolution.
• The Sears Tower is made up of nine columns which are all put together to form the great tower. However this would have not been possible without the use of steel. Each column is made with a steel skeleton, because it is very sturdy and it can withstand in many kinds of conditions.
• Glass was also a major contributor in the construction of the Sears Tower. Since glass was being produced in mass amounts, the construction company was able to use glass as a skin for the steel skeleton.
• The glass was attached to the skeleton like a grid of glass; it was a cheaper, faster, and more aesthetic way to enclose the building.