The Nation Shakes in 1886 August 26 2015

This is the eleventh installment in our series of posts comparing significant events from a year in United States history with a few of our unique architectural plans from the same period.  1886, the topic of this installment, subsequently marks the eleventh year of the American Architect and Building News' existence.

Click on the pictures to find the plans below in our store! 

In 1886 a general strike began among the workers of the United States to fight for better working rights within the nation.  It culminated with the Haymarket affair at Haymarket Square in Chicago, Illinois.  Originally a peaceful rally in support of those striking, the situation took a turn for the worse when someone threw a bomb towards the police line watching over the protests.  Seven police officers and four citizens were ultimately killed in the resulting chaos.  This Store Building on State St. for Ben Bagaman would soon be built near to the square, and its workers would soon be rewarded with the eight-hour workday fought for by their fellow workers.  It was designed by Addison & Fielder.

On August 31 of 1886, an earthquake of magnitude 7.6 hit the coast of southeastern South Carolina, right near Charleston.  Over 2,000 buildings in the area were destroyed and 60 lives were lost.  Before this earthquake, almost no seismic activity was recorded in the history of the area, though it sits right near an active tectonic region.  The St. James' Goosecreek Church in Charleston, South Carolina, designed by an unknown architect, likely was built after the earthquake hit the region.  However, one would hope that all new buildings built in the area after the event would be reinforced to prevent such massive damage in the future.

The Nation Develops in 1885 August 24 2015

This is the tenth installment in our series of posts comparing significant events from a year in United States history with a few of our unique architectural plans from the same period.  1885, the topic of this installment, subsequently marks the tenth year of the American Architect and Building News' existence.

Click on the pictures to find the plans below in our store! 

On February 16 of 1885, the first edition of the Dow Jones Industrial Average was published by Charles Dow, a major step in the development of the United States' economy.  The average originally represented the dollar average of 14 of the most important United States stocks, while today it represents the average of 30.  The original average consisted of 12 railroads, including the New York Central railroad.  A beautiful station for the New York Central, as well as the Hudson River Railroad in Schenectady, New York is presented below, designed by R. H. Robertson & A. J. Manning.

In Chicago, Illinois, the tallest building in the world was completed in 1885.  The Home Insurance Building was ten stories tall and the world's first skyscraper.  It was the king for four years, until being passed by the Auditorium Building in 1889, also built in Chicago.  This plan for the Adams Express Building for A.J. Cooper & Jas D. Carson from 1885 in Chicago only has eight stories, but was sure to tower over the rest of the city when its Geo. H. Eabrooke design was completed.

Kenwood Club Central to 1919 Chicago Race Riots January 20 2014

From 1915 to 1919 the black population in Chicago nearly tripled.  The blacks, who prior to 1915 mostly lived in the area bounded by the railroad on the west, 30th Street on the north, 40th Street on the south and Ellis Avenue on east, became overcrowded and began moving into so-called "white" neighborhoods.  In response there arose "Property Owners Associations", and the most prominent of these was the Kenwood-Hyde Park Property Owners’ Improvement Association.  Walter White, the Chicago writer, recalls attending a meeting at the Kenwood Club and relates that, "...various plans were discussed for keeping the Negroes in “their part of the town,” such as securing the discharge of colored persons from positions they held when they attempted to move into “white” neighborhoods, purchasing mortgages of Negroes buying homes and ejecting them when mortgage notes fell due and were unpaid."   In a number of cases during the period from January, 1918, to August, 1919, there were bombings of houses occupied by blacks who lived outside of their traditional neighborhoods.  Tensions boiled over and from July 27 to 30, 1919, Chicago saw some of the most severe race riots in the country's history.

Serial Killer Stalks Victims During 1893 Chicago World's Fair January 08 2014

Burnham and Root, the great Chicago architects, brought together architects from all over the US to design the buildings of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, also known as the Columbian Exposition.  Little did they know that on the perimeter of their enterprise, Dr. Henry  Howard Holmes, the first documented American serial killer, built a hotel to lure in young women so he could torture and brutally murder them.

Some of the architects who designed buildings for the Exposition were Peabody and Stearns, McKim, Mead and White, A. Page Brown and Adler and Sullivan.  You will find many plans and photos by these architects on this website.

Dr. Holmes opened his hotel, called the "Castle" in 1893.  The ground floor of the Castle contained Holmes's own  drugstore and various shops, while the upper two floors contained his personal office and a maze of over 100 windowless rooms with doorways opening to brick walls, oddly-angled hallways, stairways to nowhere, doors openable only from the outside, and a host of other strange and labyrinthine constructions. Holmes repeatedly changed builders during the construction of the Castle, so only he fully understood the design of the house.

One can only imagine the dapper and successful Dr. Holmes strolling through the Fair, carefully selecting his victims and coercing them into his chamber of horrors.  While he confessed to 27 murders, of which nine were confirmed, his actual count could be as high as 200.  He took an unknown number of his victims from the 1893 Chicago World's Fair to his "World's Fair" hotel.