01.30.2022 Written by Justina So
The city where the first skyscraper was built, Chicago is known for its infamous skyline and contribution to modern architecture. Chicago is built around the Chicago river, next to Lake Michigan. The waterway was used for transporting goods, boosting the economy, connecting the city’s infrastructure to the Great Lakes, and was a sustainable source of drinking water. The river helped establish Chicago’s growing economy, population, and environment. To this day, the Chicago river remains a way of transportation, mainly for tourist attractions and boat tours to learn about the history of Chicago architecture.
After the Great Chicago Fire in 1871 that burnt a large portion of downtown Chicago and threatened the infrastructure of the city, changes needed to be made in order to recover. With limited land and money, it became a challenge of urban planning to rebuild after the fire. Now that Chicago’s land was empty, it gave urban planners and architects a chance to experiment with new structures. The only solution with the circumstances was to build towards the sky. William LeBaron Jenney, among other architects and engineers, became well known for their innovative contributions to modern structures. Jenney built the first ever skyscraper in Chicago in 1885, called the Home Insurance Building. The building revolutionized architecture for the future; it was one of the first buildings to be made of primarily iron and steel and had 10 storeys. Using this style of architecture to progress recovery for Chicago, the city’s environmental, social, and economical status flourished as a result. Skyscrapers began to appear elsewhere worldwide after seeing the success of Chicago’s innovative architecture.
As of today, the Home Insurance Building no longer exists, but other infamous skyscrapers such as the Willis Tower (previously named the Sears Tower), John Hancock Center, and the Aqua Tower stand today, a product of the modern architecture created in Chicago.
Citations
History.com Editors. “Home Insurance Building.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 22 Apr. 2010, https://www.history.com/topics/landmarks/home-insurance-building.
Koziarz, Jay. “Transportation That Built Chicago: The River System.” Curbed Chicago, Curbed Chicago, 19 Sept. 2017, https://chicago.curbed.com/2017/9/19/16332590/transportation-chicago-river-history-future.
“History of Chicago Architecture.” Study.com, 2 July. 2016, https://study.com/academy/lesson/history-of-chicago-architecture.html.
