Chicago Federal Building
Encyclopedia
The Chicago Federal Building in Chicago
, Illinois
was constructed between 1898 and 1905 for the purpose of housing the midwest
's federal court
s, main post office
, and other government bureaus. It stood in The Loop
neighborhood on a block bounded by Dearborn, Adams and Clark Streets and Jackson Boulevard. The site held an 1880 post office, courthouse and customhouse which was cleared to make way for the new building.
The push for a new building was spearheaded by postmaster Washington Hesing with backing by civic leaders and the Illinois' members of Congress. The explosion of Chicago's population, especially after the World's Columbian Exposition
of 1893, strained the earlier facility beyond capacity. When the Exposition began, the Post Office Department in Chicago employed 998 clerks and 935 carriers. By the time Congress approved funding for a new building, the post office had expanded to 1,319 clerks and 1,096 carriers. Other agencies housed in the building complained of poor planning and shoddy construction which resulted in crumbling plaster, broken plumbing and flooding.
The building was designed in the Beaux-Arts style by architect Henry Ives Cobb
. The floorplan was a six-story Greek cross
atop a two-story base with a raised basement. The building was capped by a dome at the crossing that held an additional eight floors of office space in its drum for a total of 16 floors. The gilt dome extended 100 ft (30.5 m) above the drum.
signed on February 13, 1895 appropriating $
4 million to demolish the existing structure on the site and erect a new one. The 1880 building was considered dangerous and it was inadequate to house all the federal agencies in the city whose offices consequently were spread among several buildings.
On January 20, 1896, Congress approved an additional $25,000 to employ a special architect. The Chicago Federal Building was the first government structure constructed with the purpose of housing the post office.
Demolition began on the old building in June 1896 after the post office relocated to a temporary building on the site now occupied by the 333 North Michigan Avenue Building. Foundation work began in August 1897 and was completed in September 1898 at a cost of $208,000. The foundation was supported by wooden piles driven 72 feet (21.9 m) below street level. The basement and first two floors covered the entire site and measured 321 ft (97.8 m) by 361 ft (110 m).
On April 30, 1898, work for the superstructure was awarded to John Pierce, a New York contractor, who submitted a bid of $1,897,000. The building took seven years to construct because government policy at the time was to appropriate only enough funds for each contract as it was awarded. There was no general contractor
and over 100 separate contracts were awarded during construction.
The completed building reached a height of 297 ft (90.5 m) and was dedicated by President William McKinley
on October 9, 1899, the twenty-eighth anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire
. The areas for the post office were completed in 1904 and other agencies occupied their spaces in 1905.
The Federal Building was constructed over a steel frame with exterior walls of brick sheathed with 500000 sq ft (46,451.5 m²) of gray granite from Mount Waldo, Maine. The roofs were covered vitrified tile
over book tile while the dome was covered with gilt glass tiles. The plan called for the post office to occupy the basement and two lower floors. The sixth, seventh and eighth floors of one wing held the courts, judges, clerks and US Marshal. The floors in the dome were reserved for the Civil Service Commission
, Railway Mail Service
and weather bureau with other agencies occupying the remaining space.
The base consisted of a central entry on each facade flanked by eight bays of windows. The bays were separated by Corinthian
pilasters with arches over the windows of the second floor. A cornice and balustrade
topped the base on all four facades. Four Corinthian columns extending from the third to sixth floor supported a pediment at on the face of each arm of the cross. The wings on the north-south axis held seven bays long while the wings on the east-west axis held five bays as the building was situated on a rectangular lot. The bays each held two windows grouped vertically and were separated by Corinthian pilasters. The eighth floor was housed in a shed dormer
s extending from the gabled roof. The dome was octagonal with a buttress at each corner of the drum. The buttresses were topped by corbels supporting a large double cornice encircling the sixteenth floor with a large eagle perched atop the corbels. The windows of the ninth through twelfth floors were set into three arches supported by more Corinthian columns. Between the eagles, were three circular windows with elaborately carved frames and above, another circular window pierced the mid-point of each face of the dome.
After construction was complete, more than $2,000,000 remained for interior decoration of the Chicago Federal Building. The four wings met under the dome to form an octagonal rotunda
, inspired by Imperial Roman
architecture
, that was open to the ninth floor. The rotunda's 100 ft (30.5 m) diameter made it larger than that of the United States Capitol
in Washington, D.C.
The federal building was also the tallest capitol-style building constructed in Chicago, with the exception of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition buildings, all of which were demolished. Under the dome was a large public space surrounded by the floors containing office space.
The interior details were accented with terra cotta
and scagliola
. Doors were oak with brass hardware and "US" molded into doorknobs. Mahogany was used in courtrooms and other offices. Marble from Tennessee, Vermont, Maine and Italy was used in corridor floors, wainscoting and stairways. Floors in the rotunda were marble accented with mosaic tile while railings and elevator grilles throughout the building were wrought iron. Ceilings were framed by egg-and-dart
mouldings. The four courtrooms on the sixth floor contained a series of murals depicting historical moments in the development of law.
maintained offices in the dome and took official measurements from July 1, 1905 until December 31, 1925 when the official weather station was transferred to the University of Chicago
campus. The Federal Building site maintained supplemental observation equipment until 1970.
In 1907, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis
presided over an antitrust case against Standard Oil
in which the company was fined $29 million for accepting freight rebates from the railroads. The verdict was later set aside but in 1920, Landis went on to become the first Commissioner of Baseball
.
On September 4, 1918, a bomb exploded on the building's north side that killed two people, destroyed the entrance doors and damaged windows of buildings across Adams Street. Police arrested a suspect on September 7, 1918 who was linked to the Industrial Workers of the World
.
Another bombing attempt was October 31, 1921, however the bomb was located before it exploded. There was no damage to the building or its inhabitants. In 1931, the courtroom of Judge James Herbert Wilkerson
was the location for the trial of gangster Al Capone
. On October 24, 1931, Wilkerson sentenced Capone to a 10-year in prison sentence and fine of $50,000 for tax evasion
. His conviction was upheld by the appellate court on December 20, 1937.
The District and Circuit courts and several agencies relocated to the Dirksen Federal Building
across Dearborn Street and the building was demolished in 1965. The 45-floor Kluczynski Federal Building
and Loop Postal Station, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
, were built in its place. The plaza between the three structures is the setting for Alexander Calder
's sculpture Flamingo
.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
was constructed between 1898 and 1905 for the purpose of housing the midwest
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States is one of the four U.S. geographic regions defined by the United States Census Bureau, providing an official definition of the American Midwest....
's federal court
United States federal courts
The United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government of the United States organized under the United States Constitution and laws of the federal government.-Categories:...
s, main post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
, and other government bureaus. It stood in The Loop
Chicago Loop
The Loop or Chicago Loop is one of 77 officially designated Chicago community areas located in the City of Chicago, Illinois. It is the historic commercial center of downtown Chicago...
neighborhood on a block bounded by Dearborn, Adams and Clark Streets and Jackson Boulevard. The site held an 1880 post office, courthouse and customhouse which was cleared to make way for the new building.
The push for a new building was spearheaded by postmaster Washington Hesing with backing by civic leaders and the Illinois' members of Congress. The explosion of Chicago's population, especially after the World's Columbian Exposition
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
of 1893, strained the earlier facility beyond capacity. When the Exposition began, the Post Office Department in Chicago employed 998 clerks and 935 carriers. By the time Congress approved funding for a new building, the post office had expanded to 1,319 clerks and 1,096 carriers. Other agencies housed in the building complained of poor planning and shoddy construction which resulted in crumbling plaster, broken plumbing and flooding.
The building was designed in the Beaux-Arts style by architect Henry Ives Cobb
Henry Ives Cobb
Henry Ives Cobb , born in Brookline, Massachusetts to Albert Adams and Mary Russell Candler Cobb, was a Chicago-based architect in the last decades of the 19th century, known for his designs in the Romanesque and Victorian Gothic styles...
. The floorplan was a six-story Greek cross
Cross
A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...
atop a two-story base with a raised basement. The building was capped by a dome at the crossing that held an additional eight floors of office space in its drum for a total of 16 floors. The gilt dome extended 100 ft (30.5 m) above the drum.
Construction
Congress passed a bill in late 1894 that President Grover ClevelandGrover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
signed on February 13, 1895 appropriating $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
4 million to demolish the existing structure on the site and erect a new one. The 1880 building was considered dangerous and it was inadequate to house all the federal agencies in the city whose offices consequently were spread among several buildings.
On January 20, 1896, Congress approved an additional $25,000 to employ a special architect. The Chicago Federal Building was the first government structure constructed with the purpose of housing the post office.
Demolition began on the old building in June 1896 after the post office relocated to a temporary building on the site now occupied by the 333 North Michigan Avenue Building. Foundation work began in August 1897 and was completed in September 1898 at a cost of $208,000. The foundation was supported by wooden piles driven 72 feet (21.9 m) below street level. The basement and first two floors covered the entire site and measured 321 ft (97.8 m) by 361 ft (110 m).
On April 30, 1898, work for the superstructure was awarded to John Pierce, a New York contractor, who submitted a bid of $1,897,000. The building took seven years to construct because government policy at the time was to appropriate only enough funds for each contract as it was awarded. There was no general contractor
General contractor
A general contractor is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and communication of information to involved parties throughout the course of a building project.-Description:...
and over 100 separate contracts were awarded during construction.
The completed building reached a height of 297 ft (90.5 m) and was dedicated by President William McKinley
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
on October 9, 1899, the twenty-eighth anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire
Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
. The areas for the post office were completed in 1904 and other agencies occupied their spaces in 1905.
Architecture
Vitrified Tile
Vitrified Tile is a tile is created by the Vitrification process. It is processed in ways that it has very low porosity making it stain-resistant and strong.Vitrified tile is an alternative to marble and granite flooring....
over book tile while the dome was covered with gilt glass tiles. The plan called for the post office to occupy the basement and two lower floors. The sixth, seventh and eighth floors of one wing held the courts, judges, clerks and US Marshal. The floors in the dome were reserved for the Civil Service Commission
United States Civil Service Commission
The United States Civil Service Commission a three man commission was created by the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, which was passed into law on January 16, 1883...
, Railway Mail Service
Railway Mail Service
The United States Postal Service's Railway Mail Service was a significant mail transportation service in the US during the time period from the mid-19th century until the mid-20th century. The RMS, or its successor the Postal Transportation Service , carried the vast majority of letters and...
and weather bureau with other agencies occupying the remaining space.
The base consisted of a central entry on each facade flanked by eight bays of windows. The bays were separated by Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
pilasters with arches over the windows of the second floor. A cornice and balustrade
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
topped the base on all four facades. Four Corinthian columns extending from the third to sixth floor supported a pediment at on the face of each arm of the cross. The wings on the north-south axis held seven bays long while the wings on the east-west axis held five bays as the building was situated on a rectangular lot. The bays each held two windows grouped vertically and were separated by Corinthian pilasters. The eighth floor was housed in a shed dormer
Dormer
A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used, either in original construction or as later additions, to create usable space in the roof of a building by adding headroom and usually also by enabling addition of windows.Often...
s extending from the gabled roof. The dome was octagonal with a buttress at each corner of the drum. The buttresses were topped by corbels supporting a large double cornice encircling the sixteenth floor with a large eagle perched atop the corbels. The windows of the ninth through twelfth floors were set into three arches supported by more Corinthian columns. Between the eagles, were three circular windows with elaborately carved frames and above, another circular window pierced the mid-point of each face of the dome.
After construction was complete, more than $2,000,000 remained for interior decoration of the Chicago Federal Building. The four wings met under the dome to form an octagonal rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...
, inspired by Imperial Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
architecture
Roman architecture
Ancient Roman architecture adopted certain aspects of Ancient Greek architecture, creating a new architectural style. The Romans were indebted to their Etruscan neighbors and forefathers who supplied them with a wealth of knowledge essential for future architectural solutions, such as hydraulics...
, that was open to the ninth floor. The rotunda's 100 ft (30.5 m) diameter made it larger than that of the United States Capitol
United States Capitol
The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
The federal building was also the tallest capitol-style building constructed in Chicago, with the exception of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition buildings, all of which were demolished. Under the dome was a large public space surrounded by the floors containing office space.
The interior details were accented with terra cotta
Terra cotta
Terracotta, Terra cotta or Terra-cotta is a clay-based unglazed ceramic, although the term can also be applied to glazed ceramics where the fired body is porous and red in color...
and scagliola
Scagliola
Scagliola , is a technique for producing stucco columns, sculptures, and other architectural elements that resemble inlays in marble and semi-precious stones...
. Doors were oak with brass hardware and "US" molded into doorknobs. Mahogany was used in courtrooms and other offices. Marble from Tennessee, Vermont, Maine and Italy was used in corridor floors, wainscoting and stairways. Floors in the rotunda were marble accented with mosaic tile while railings and elevator grilles throughout the building were wrought iron. Ceilings were framed by egg-and-dart
Egg-and-dart
Egg-and-dart or Egg-and-tongue is an ornamental device often carved in wood, stone, or plaster quarter-round ovolo mouldings, consisting of an egg-shaped object alternating with an element shaped like an arrow, anchor or dart. Egg-and-dart enrichment of the ovolo molding of the Ionic capital is...
mouldings. The four courtrooms on the sixth floor contained a series of murals depicting historical moments in the development of law.
Notable Events
The Building housed the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois until 1964 and the US Court of Appeals-Seventh Circuit until 1938. The Federal Weather BureauNational Weather Service
The National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
maintained offices in the dome and took official measurements from July 1, 1905 until December 31, 1925 when the official weather station was transferred to the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
campus. The Federal Building site maintained supplemental observation equipment until 1970.
In 1907, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and as the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death...
presided over an antitrust case against Standard Oil
Standard Oil
Standard Oil was a predominant American integrated oil producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. Established in 1870 as a corporation in Ohio, it was the largest oil refiner in the world and operated as a major company trust and was one of the world's first and largest multinational...
in which the company was fined $29 million for accepting freight rebates from the railroads. The verdict was later set aside but in 1920, Landis went on to become the first Commissioner of Baseball
Commissioner of Baseball
The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball and its associated minor leagues. Under the direction of the Commissioner, the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball hires and maintains the sport's umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, and television contracts...
.
On September 4, 1918, a bomb exploded on the building's north side that killed two people, destroyed the entrance doors and damaged windows of buildings across Adams Street. Police arrested a suspect on September 7, 1918 who was linked to the Industrial Workers of the World
Industrial Workers of the World
The Industrial Workers of the World is an international union. At its peak in 1923, the organization claimed some 100,000 members in good standing, and could marshal the support of perhaps 300,000 workers. Its membership declined dramatically after a 1924 split brought on by internal conflict...
.
Another bombing attempt was October 31, 1921, however the bomb was located before it exploded. There was no damage to the building or its inhabitants. In 1931, the courtroom of Judge James Herbert Wilkerson
James Herbert Wilkerson
James Herbert Wilkerson was a United States federal judge.Born in Savannah, Missouri, Wilkerson received an A.B. from DePauw University in 1889. He was in private practice in Chicago, Illinois from 1893 to 1922...
was the location for the trial of gangster Al Capone
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...
. On October 24, 1931, Wilkerson sentenced Capone to a 10-year in prison sentence and fine of $50,000 for tax evasion
Tax evasion
Tax evasion is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Tax evasion usually entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities to reduce their tax liability,...
. His conviction was upheld by the appellate court on December 20, 1937.
The District and Circuit courts and several agencies relocated to the Dirksen Federal Building
Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse
The Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, commonly referred to as the Dirksen Federal Building, is a skyscraper in downtown Chicago, Illinois, at 219 South Dearborn Street. It was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and completed in 1964. The building is 384 feet tall, with 30...
across Dearborn Street and the building was demolished in 1965. The 45-floor Kluczynski Federal Building
Kluczynski Federal Building
The Kluczynski Federal Building is a modernist skyscraper in the downtown Chicago Loop located at 230 South Dearborn Street. The 45-story structure was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and completed in 1974 as the last portion of the new Federal Center. It is tall and stands on the site...
and Loop Postal Station, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was a German architect. He is commonly referred to and addressed as Mies, his surname....
, were built in its place. The plaza between the three structures is the setting for Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder was an American sculptor and artist most famous for inventing mobile sculptures. In addition to mobile and stable sculpture, Alexander Calder also created paintings, lithographs, toys, tapestry, jewelry and household objects.-Childhood:Alexander "Sandy" Calder was born in Lawnton,...
's sculpture Flamingo
Flamingo (sculpture)
Flamingo, created by noted American artist Alexander Calder, is a 53 foot tall stabile located in the Federal Plaza in front of the Kluczynski Federal Building in Chicago, Illinois, United States...
.