LaSalle National Bank Building
Encyclopedia
LaSalle National Bank Building (formerly known as the Field Building) is an art deco
office building at 135 South LaSalle Street
in the Loop
community area
of Chicago, Illinois
, USA.
The construction of LaSalle National Bank Building was completed 1934 as a 535 feet (163.1 m) 45-story skyscraper
on the site bounded by South Clark Street
, South LaSalle Street and West Adams Street. The architect was the firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst & White
. It is considered the last major office building erected in Chicago prior to the Great Depression
/World War II
construction hiatus which ended with the building of One Prudential Plaza
in 1955. The building was designated a Chicago Landmark
on February 9, 1994.
Many of the latest innovations such as high-speed elevators and air conditioning were incorporated into the building’s design. The lobby features a multi-level arcade between LaSalle and Clark Streets allowing pedestrians to walk between the two streets and access the retail space without exiting the building. The elevator indicator panel and mailbox in the lobby are in an integrated design which resembles the building’s exterior shape.
The building rises from a four-story base that covers the entire site. The exterior of the first story is faced in polished black granite. Windows are framed with polished aluminum or monel metal and have black and polished aluminum spandrel
panels. The entrances on the east and west facades rise the entire height of the base and are also framed in black granite. Five pilasters faced in white Yule marble
separate the bays containing revolving doors that provide access to the lobby.
The upper stories are sheathed in limestone with windows grouped vertically and recessed to emphasize the building’s height. The 45-story rectangular tower is centered on the base and buttressed by a shorter 22-story tower at each of its four corners.
Several buildings occupied this site until construction commenced in 1931. The world's first skyscraper
, the Home Insurance Building
, occupied the western portion facing LaSalle and Adams Streets.
Mechanical spaces are located at the 25th and 45th floor levels. The 43rd and 44th floors house executive dining rooms for use by the bank and selected other tenants, with a cafeteria located on the concourse level. The west side of the ground floor is utilized by Bank of America for retail banking, with the east side rented to merchants. The rest of the floors consist of typical office space. As was customary in the 1930s, the building does not have a 13th floor.
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
office building at 135 South LaSalle Street
LaSalle Street
LaSalle Street is a major north-south street in Chicago named for Sieur de La Salle, an early explorer of Illinois. The portion that runs through the Loop is considered to be Chicago's financial district...
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...
community area
Community areas of Chicago
Community areas in Chicago refers to the work of the Social Science Research Committee at University of Chicago which has unofficially divided the City of Chicago into 77 community areas. These areas are well-defined and static...
of Chicago, 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,...
, USA.
The construction of LaSalle National Bank Building was completed 1934 as a 535 feet (163.1 m) 45-story skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
on the site bounded by South 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...
, South LaSalle Street and West Adams Street. The architect was the firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst & White
Graham, Anderson, Probst & White
Graham, Anderson, Probst & White is a Chicago architecture firm that was founded in 1912 originally as Graham, Burnham & Co. This firm was the successor to D. H. Burnham & Co. by Daniel Burnham's surviving partner Ernest Graham and Burnham's sons Hubert Burnham and Daniel Burnham Jr...
. It is considered the last major office building erected in Chicago prior to the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
/World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
construction hiatus which ended with the building of One Prudential Plaza
One Prudential Plaza
One Prudential Plaza is a 41-story structure in Chicago completed in 1955 as the headquarters for Prudential's Mid-America company...
in 1955. The building was designated a Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation of the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council for historic buildings and other sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artistic, cultural,...
on February 9, 1994.
Many of the latest innovations such as high-speed elevators and air conditioning were incorporated into the building’s design. The lobby features a multi-level arcade between LaSalle and Clark Streets allowing pedestrians to walk between the two streets and access the retail space without exiting the building. The elevator indicator panel and mailbox in the lobby are in an integrated design which resembles the building’s exterior shape.
The building rises from a four-story base that covers the entire site. The exterior of the first story is faced in polished black granite. Windows are framed with polished aluminum or monel metal and have black and polished aluminum spandrel
Spandrel
A spandrel, less often spandril or splaundrel, is the space between two arches or between an arch and a rectangular enclosure....
panels. The entrances on the east and west facades rise the entire height of the base and are also framed in black granite. Five pilasters faced in white Yule marble
Yule Marble
Yule Marble is a type of metamorphed limestone found only in the Yule Creek Valley, in the West Elk Mountains of Colorado, just south of the town of Marble, Colorado . Quarried today at 9,300 feet above sea level, Yule Marble is famous for its uniform pure white consistency, lacking, for the most...
separate the bays containing revolving doors that provide access to the lobby.
The upper stories are sheathed in limestone with windows grouped vertically and recessed to emphasize the building’s height. The 45-story rectangular tower is centered on the base and buttressed by a shorter 22-story tower at each of its four corners.
Several buildings occupied this site until construction commenced in 1931. The world's first skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
, the Home Insurance Building
Home Insurance Building
The Home Insurance Building was built in 1884 in Chicago, Illinois, USA and destroyed in 1931 to make way for the Field Building . It was the first building to use structural steel in its frame, but the majority of its structure was composed of cast and wrought iron...
, occupied the western portion facing LaSalle and Adams Streets.
Utilization
Much of the building's rentable area was occupied by the LaSalle National Bank, with the remainder occupied by various private tenants. In 2007, LaSalle Bank was sold by its European owner ABN-AMRO to Bank of America and the building is now known as the Bank of America Building. In August 2008, the Bank sold the building to AmTrust but continues to occupy 800000 feet (243,840 m) of the 1200000 square feet (111,483.6 m²) in the building under a lease that runs through 2020.Mechanical spaces are located at the 25th and 45th floor levels. The 43rd and 44th floors house executive dining rooms for use by the bank and selected other tenants, with a cafeteria located on the concourse level. The west side of the ground floor is utilized by Bank of America for retail banking, with the east side rented to merchants. The rest of the floors consist of typical office space. As was customary in the 1930s, the building does not have a 13th floor.