City - Chicago IL - South Wabash Ave 1900
by Mike Savad
Title
City - Chicago IL - South Wabash Ave 1900
Artist
Mike Savad
Medium
Photograph - Colorized Photo
Description
Colorized photo from 1900 Sept 1
Original title: Wabash Ave., north from Adams St
Photographer: Detroit Publishing
Location: 120 S Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL
This is a section of South Wabash Ave, taken back in the 1900's, where most buildings here were hotels of some kind.
On the left is the Palmer Potter house. It originally opened on September 26, 1871, and in a turn of bad luck, just 13 days later after it was built, it was destroyed in the great Chicago fire. They quickly rebuilt it in 1875. There have been a total of 3 hotels in this spot, and its always been the same hotel. The first one was never really used, the second, which is this one, was removed in 1925. The building was dubbed fireproof, but it was never tested on a large scale.
They built have of the new hotel, then removed this hotel to finish it. They never closed the hotel because they did it that way. There was a story about how the owner of the barbershop planted something like 216 silver coins in the floor. It became a spectacle. People came far and wide to see how a person would waste that much money. But they also had their hair cut and such, it was a pretty good marketing gimmick.
On the left on the next block, that white building on the corner was the Windsor-Clifton Hotel built in 1872, razed in 1927. The building replacing that one was the Men's store, Carson, Pirie, Scott & Company.
That tall building in the back, the Silversmiths building, is presently the Silversmith hotel.
If you look carefully you'll see a small sign on the left somewhere near that bridge for a sign for Alfred Peats. According to his March 1915 obituary, Peats made money so fast, that he was "crazed by the riches" and driven insane. He ended up at the Bloomingdale Asylum.
You'll notice a long pipe running up and down all these buildings. That is called a standpipe, a device used to put out fires. They would attach a hose at the base, then just hook up the hose on whatever floor they were on, so they wouldn't have to carry hose up all the flights. It also seems to double as a ladder. Imagine climbing down that thing on the top floor in one of those dresses!
There are a few hidden things you can look for. A hat sign, and a gun that stands over 2 stories tall. There is also half of a mortar and pestle.
Uploaded
November 3rd, 2019
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