Rookery Building
Rookery Building | |
Chicago Landmark | |
Location | 209 South LaSalle Street Chicago, Illinois |
---|---|
Coordinates | 41°52′44.7″N 87°37′55.6″W / 41.879083°N 87.632111°W |
Built | 1888 |
Architect | Burnham & Root; Frank Lloyd Wright; William Drummond; et al. |
Architectural style | Chicago school with Moorish, Byzantine, Venetian and Romanesque motifs |
NRHP reference No. | 70000238 [1] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | April 17, 1970 |
Designated NHL | May 15, 1975 |
Designated CL | July 5, 1972 |
The Rookery Building is a historic office building located at 209 South LaSalle Street in the
The building was designated a
Name
The name is a reference to the temporary
Construction
Burnham & Root
The Rookery was built in 1886 by the architectural partnership of
As the master artisan, Root drew upon a variety of influences in designing the interior and exterior spaces, including
Light court
Making prodigious use of light and ornamentation, Root and Burnham designed a central light court to serve as the focal point for the entire building and provide daylight to interior offices. Rising two stories, the light court received immediate critical acclaim. "There is nothing bolder, more original, or more inspiring in modern civic architecture than its glass-covered court", wrote Eastern critic Henry Van Brunt.[5] At a time when Chicago's bold experiment in architecture was looking eastward for affirmation, this was welcome praise.[5] The light court provides natural illumination for the interior offices.[7][8]
Among Wright's most significant alterations was the addition of white
Load bearing walls and steel structure
The red
Renovations
While much of the Loop's 19th-century architecture has been lost to demolition and redevelopment, the Rookery has been spared this fate through a series of well executed renovations. The building remains a commercially successful rental office building, as it was when it was first built.[5]
Beginning in the early 20th century, the building underwent three major renovations. In the first, from 1905 to 1907, Frank Lloyd Wright was retained to remake the interior spaces. In keeping with contemporary tastes, Wright's design covered Root's elaborate wrought iron finishes with white carved Carrara marble surfaces. Wright was highly regarded by the public at this point, and his changes brought enhanced status to the building, making the Rookery one of the most sought after buildings of Chicago.[5] Some of Wright's other changes included incorporating simplified ironwork and adding his trademark style planters and light fixtures.[2]
The second renovation, completed August 24, 1931, by former Wright assistant William Drummond, modernized many of the interior elements, including new elevators, and brought period touches to the building, such as Art Deco detailing.[10] The third renovation, in 1992 by Daprato Rigali Studios, brought the building back to much of its original splendor, reopening the light court ceiling after it had been covered over to protect against leaks.[5]
After their purchase of the Rookery in October 2007, the new owners announced plans for an extensive renovation of the building's common areas.
Tenants
Burnham & Root had their offices at the Rookery for a while upon its completion, and at one time Frank Lloyd Wright had an office in the building as well.
Current ownership
The building was purchased in October 2007 for $73 million by an investment group controlled by a European family, and advised by Zeb Bradford of Metzler North America Corp. The seller was Broadway Real Estate Partners of New York, which had bought the Rookery for $56 million in April 2006. BREP was reported to have increased occupancy of the building's 281,000 sq ft (26,100 m2) from 80% in January 2007 to 96% at the time of the sale.[13]
Visiting
The Frank Lloyd Wright Trust offers tours inside Mondays through Fridays.[15] Inside Chicago Walking Tours offers daily walking tours that explore the interior of the Rookery in addition to many other historic Chicago buildings.[16] The Chicago Architecture Foundation also provides tours twice a month.[17]
In popular culture
- The Rookery Building was featured in the film Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, in which the exterior and one of the lower levels were modeled as the toy store Duncan's Toy Chest.[18]
- The Rookery was used by Frank Norris in his novel The Pit as the site of the office of fictional financial speculator Curtis Jadwin.[2]
- The Rookery was featured prominently in the 1987 film The Untouchables as the police headquarters of Eliot Ness.[19]
See also
- Early skyscrapers
- J.H.C. Petersen's Sons' Store, a small-scale version of the building located in Davenport, Iowa.
- List of Frank Lloyd Wright works
References
Notes
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 15, 2006.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "The Rookery, Chicago". Emporis Buildings. 2007. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved May 15, 2007.
- ^ a b "Rookery Building". City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Landmarks Division. 2003. Archived from the original on September 25, 2007. Retrieved May 15, 2007.
- ^ "Rookery Building". National Park Service. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved July 4, 2007.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7649-2306-7.
- ^ "Rookery Building". Explore Chicago. City of Chicago. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2011.
- ^ a b c "The Rookery". Pat Sabin. Archived from the original on July 1, 2007. Retrieved May 24, 2007.
- ^ a b c "Chicago: The Rookery". PlanetWare Inc. 2007. Retrieved May 24, 2007.
- ^ "Dictionary of Interior Designing". Serene Interiors. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2007.
- ^ ISBN 1592231276).
- ^ "Architecture: The First Chicago School". Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago. Chicago Historical Society. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2007.
- ^ "Rookery Building, 1905". Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago. Chicago Historical Society. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2007.
- ^ a b Diesenhouse, Susan (October 17, 2007). "Rookery bought by European investors". Chicago Tribune. pp. 2.1–2.2. Retrieved November 1, 2007.
- ^ Sudo, Chuck (November 21, 2017). "Behind The Scenes of The Rookery's New Features". Bisnow.com. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
- ^ "Free Tours of Chicago's Rookery Building" on the Free Things to Do in Chicago website (March 28, 2011)
- ^ "The World Within: Inside the Dazzling Interiors of the Loop"
- ^ "Rookery Building" Archived September 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine on the Chicago Architecture Foundation website
- ^ "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York Filming Locations". Movie Locations Guide.
- ^ Kerch, Steve (March 28, 1993). "Leasing Goes Gangbusters At Historic Rookery, A Set For 'Untouchables'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 7, 2013.
- Storrer, William Allin. The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion. University Of Chicago Press, 2006, ISBN 0-226-77621-2(S.113)
External links
- Official Rookery Building website
- Rookery Building — City of Chicago Dept. of Planning and Development webpage on the building.
- Emporis Buildings: The Rookery
- A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary of Chicago
- Tour the Rookery with Inside Chicago Walking Tours
- Chicago Architecture Foundation's webpage about the building
- Picture of the "Old Rookery" Water Tower and City Hall after the Great Chicago Fire