Gold Coast Historic District (Chicago, Illinois)
Encyclopedia
The Gold Coast Historic District is a historic district
in Chicago, Illinois. Part of Chicago's Near North Side
community area, it is roughly bounded by North Avenue, Lake Shore Drive
, Oak Street
, and Clark Street
.
The Gold Coast neighborhood grew in the wake of the Great Chicago Fire
. In 1882, millionaire Potter Palmer
moved to the area from the Prairie Avenue
neighborhood on the city's south side. He filled in a swampy area which later became Lake Shore Drive, and built the Palmer Mansion
, a forty-two room castle-like structure designed by Henry Ives Cobb
and Charles Sumner Frost
. Other wealthy Chicagoans followed Potter into the neighborhood, which became one of the richest in Chicago.
In the late 1980s, the Gold Coast and neighboring Streeterville
comprised the second most-affluent neighborhood in the United States
, behind Manhattan
's Upper East Side
. Today, the neighborhood is a mixture of mansion
s, row houses, and high-rise apartments. Highlights include the Astor Street District
and the James Charnley House.
The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1978.
The nearby East Lake Shore Drive District
and parts of northern Streeterville and the Magnificent Mile
near the lake also may be considered part of the Gold Coast (such as the area around the famous 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments
), even if not technically in the historic designation. The mayor's office map extends the Gold Coast south to the area of Northwestern University's Chicago campus.
The Consulate-General of Poland in Chicago
is located at 1530 North Lake Shore Drive.
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
in Chicago, Illinois. Part of Chicago's Near North Side
Near North Side, Chicago
The Near North Side is one of 77 well-defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is located north and east of the Chicago River, just north of the central business district . To its east is Lake Michigan and its northern boundary is the 19th-century city limit of Chicago,...
community area, it is roughly bounded by North Avenue, Lake Shore Drive
Lake Shore Drive
Lake Shore Drive is a mostly freeway-standard expressway running parallel with and alongside the shoreline of Lake Michigan through Chicago, Illinois, USA. Except for the portion north of Foster Avenue , Lake Shore Drive is designated as part of U.S...
, Oak Street
Oak Street (Chicago)
Oak Street is a short street on Chicago's Gold Coast at 1000 North in Chicago's street numbering system, running from 138 east to 648 west in the Near North Side community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It ends without crossing the North Branch of the Chicago River...
, and Clark Street
Clark Street (Chicago)
Clark Street is a north-south street in Chicago, Illinois that runs close to the shore of Lake Michigan from the northern city boundary with Evanston, to 2200 South in the city street numbering system...
.
The Gold Coast neighborhood grew in the wake 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...
. In 1882, millionaire Potter Palmer
Potter Palmer
Potter Palmer was an American businessman who was responsible for much of the development of State Street in Chicago.-Retailing career:...
moved to the area from the Prairie Avenue
Prairie Avenue
Prairie Avenue is a north–south thoroughfare on the South Side of Chicago, which historically extended from 16th Street in the Near South Side community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States, to the city's southern limits and beyond. The street has a rich history from its origins...
neighborhood on the city's south side. He filled in a swampy area which later became Lake Shore Drive, and built the Palmer Mansion
Palmer Mansion
The Palmer Mansion, constructed 1882–1885 at 1350 N. Lake Shore Drive, was once the largest private residence in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Near North Side neighborhood and facing Lake Michigan. It was designed by architects Henry Ives Cobb and Charles Sumner Frost of the firm Cobb and Frost...
, a forty-two room castle-like structure designed by 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...
and Charles Sumner Frost
Charles Sumner Frost
Charles Sumner Frost was an American architect.Born in Lewiston, Maine, Frost was first a draftsman in Boston, and a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. While working in Boston he worked for the firm of Peabody and Stearns. He moved to Chicago in 1 882. There he began a...
. Other wealthy Chicagoans followed Potter into the neighborhood, which became one of the richest in Chicago.
In the late 1980s, the Gold Coast and neighboring Streeterville
Streeterville
Streeterville is a neighborhood in the Near North Side community area of Chicago, Illinois, United States, north of the Chicago River in Cook County...
comprised the second most-affluent neighborhood in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, behind Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
's Upper East Side
Upper East Side
The Upper East Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, between Central Park and the East River. The Upper East Side lies within an area bounded by 59th Street to 96th Street, and the East River to Fifth Avenue-Central Park...
. Today, the neighborhood is a mixture of mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
s, row houses, and high-rise apartments. Highlights include the Astor Street District
Astor Street District
The Astor Street District is a historic district in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The district was built between 1880 to 1940 by various architects. It was designated a Chicago Landmark on December 19, 1975.-References:...
and the James Charnley House.
The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1978.
The nearby East Lake Shore Drive District
East Lake Shore Drive District
The East Lake Shore Drive District is a historic district in the Near North Side community area of Chicago, Illinois. It includes eight buildings at 140 E. Walton, 179-229 E. Lake Shore Drive, and 999 N. Lake Shore Drive designed by Marshall and Fox and Fugard & Knapp and the opposing park. It...
and parts of northern Streeterville and the Magnificent Mile
Magnificent Mile
The Magnificent Mile, sometimes referred to as The Mag Mile, is a neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois, that runs along a portion of Michigan Avenue extending from the Chicago River to Oak Street in the Near North Side community area. The district is located adjacent to downtown; it is also one block...
near the lake also may be considered part of the Gold Coast (such as the area around the famous 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments
860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments
860–880 Lake Shore Drive is a twin pair of glass-and-steel apartment towers on N. Lake Shore Drive along Lake Michigan in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Construction began in 1949 and the project was completed in 1951.They were designated as Chicago Landmarks on June 10, 1996....
), even if not technically in the historic designation. The mayor's office map extends the Gold Coast south to the area of Northwestern University's Chicago campus.
The Consulate-General of Poland in Chicago
Consulate-General of Poland in Chicago
The Consulate-General of Poland in Chicago is Poland's diplomatic mission in Chicago, Illinois, United States; it is situated in Chicago on account of that city's central location in the United States and the large number of Polish Americans in Chicago and the Midwest...
is located at 1530 North Lake Shore Drive.