Architectural Salvage
Scavenging and saving bits and pieces of architectural ornamentation, and then reusing
them elsewhere, has been going on since the Romans brought chunks of Greece to Italy.
[Balbo Monument, Burnham Park, Chicago, July 8, 2009 /Images & Artwork: designslinger]
Chicago has its own relationship with ancient Rome and salvaged material, to be found in
a marble column brought to the shores of Lake Michigan as part of the festivities surrounding the 1933 World's Fair. The column came from the Roman port of Ostia and dates to the 2nd century A.D. So this is one very old piece of architecture plucked from who knows what building, or pile of ancient columns stacked in some salvage yard. The deteriorating shaft stands atop a tall, square, travertine marble pedestal in a remote grassy area near Soldier Field stadium, in a cluster of trees, adjacent to a bike and pedestrian path. It's an odd piece of architectural memorabilia stuck in an odd location.
[Monument detail /Images & Artwork: designslinger]
The ancient Roman artifact was flown to the city accompanied by a squadran of 24
seaplanes led by Italian flying ace, Italo Balbo. The monument bears his name, and if you look closely you can find the name of the person who sent the artifact, Benito Mussolini. While it may seem odd to have a gift from Il Duce still on display given what happened after 1933, his name will forever be associated with column, as long as the carved letters last. Given the harsh Chicago winters, his days may be numbered.
[Schiller/Garrick Theater Building, Louis Sullivan, detail, June, 2009 /Images & Artwork: designslinger]
While these pieces aren't quite as old as the Balbo coulmn, they were saved from one of
Chicago's greatest buildings, which was turned into a pile of rubble in 1961 to make way for a parking garage.
[Schiller Building, view northeast, Photocopy of photograph, c.1900, Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of
Congress, HABS ILL,16-CHIG,60-7; Entry, Second City Theater, 1616 N. Wells St., Chicago /Image & Artwork:
designslinger]
The entry arcade in the photo on the right, was created from material salvaged from one
of Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler's best works: The Schiller/Garrick Theater Building built in 1892. If you look closely at the photograph of the building taken in 1900, you can just make out the original location of two arcades, one just above the entrance canopy and the other at the top of the tower. Today, this small, section serves as the entryway to the Chicago Second City improvisational comedy troupe's Wells Street theater.
[Schiller Building, exterior top story detail, Historic American Buildings Survey, Richard Nickel,
photographer, 1961, Library of Congress, HABS ILL,16-CHIG,60-1; Rebuilt Schiller/Garrick arcade detail, Second City
building, Chicago /Image & Artwork: designslinger]
The building was originally known as the Schiller, named for Friedrich Schiller a German
playwright, poet and philosopher. The reliefs that fill the spring line of the arches are profiles of famous Germans in the arts and letters, people like Goethe, Bach, Beethoven, and Wagner. The theater's name was eventually changed to the Garrick, and the building was popularly known as the Garrick Theater Building. When the owners announced that they were going to demolish this architectural masterpiece, a group of people got together to stop the demolition resulting in the city's first, big landmarks battle. The fight to save the Garrick was lost, but the modern preservation movement in Chicago was born.
[Entrance and Balcony details, Schiller Building, Historic American Buildings Survey, 1964, LoC-082A1-1549;
Schiller relief in brick wall, North Dearborn St., Chicago /Image & Artwork: designslinger]
Not every bit of the Garrick made its way to Second City's door. Random pieces were
scattered hither and yon, with one head ending up in this home made brick wall on Dearborn Street. Architectural salvage is big business, you can still find pieces of the Schiller/Garrick Theater building here, here, here, and here, and marvel at the prices. I am crushed, no pun intended, every time I see a photograph documenting the demolition of a beautiful old building. It's even worse when I find myself standing in front of a barricade watching the last bits of rubble being removed from a demo site where a great building once stood. But, that's the way it's been for eons, and although we still lose a few gems to the wrecking ball now and then, we are doing much better at preserving and saving our architectural legacy than we were 48 years ago when the Garrick fell, though the battles continue.
them elsewhere, has been going on since the Romans brought chunks of Greece to Italy.
Chicago has its own relationship with ancient Rome and salvaged material, to be found in
a marble column brought to the shores of Lake Michigan as part of the festivities surrounding the 1933 World's Fair. The column came from the Roman port of Ostia and dates to the 2nd century A.D. So this is one very old piece of architecture plucked from who knows what building, or pile of ancient columns stacked in some salvage yard. The deteriorating shaft stands atop a tall, square, travertine marble pedestal in a remote grassy area near Soldier Field stadium, in a cluster of trees, adjacent to a bike and pedestrian path. It's an odd piece of architectural memorabilia stuck in an odd location.
The ancient Roman artifact was flown to the city accompanied by a squadran of 24
seaplanes led by Italian flying ace, Italo Balbo. The monument bears his name, and if you look closely you can find the name of the person who sent the artifact, Benito Mussolini. While it may seem odd to have a gift from Il Duce still on display given what happened after 1933, his name will forever be associated with column, as long as the carved letters last. Given the harsh Chicago winters, his days may be numbered.
While these pieces aren't quite as old as the Balbo coulmn, they were saved from one of
Chicago's greatest buildings, which was turned into a pile of rubble in 1961 to make way for a parking garage.
Congress, HABS ILL,16-CHIG,60-7; Entry, Second City Theater, 1616 N. Wells St., Chicago /Image & Artwork:
designslinger]
The entry arcade in the photo on the right, was created from material salvaged from one
of Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler's best works: The Schiller/Garrick Theater Building built in 1892. If you look closely at the photograph of the building taken in 1900, you can just make out the original location of two arcades, one just above the entrance canopy and the other at the top of the tower. Today, this small, section serves as the entryway to the Chicago Second City improvisational comedy troupe's Wells Street theater.
photographer, 1961, Library of Congress, HABS ILL,16-CHIG,60-1; Rebuilt Schiller/Garrick arcade detail, Second City
building, Chicago /Image & Artwork: designslinger]
The building was originally known as the Schiller, named for Friedrich Schiller a German
playwright, poet and philosopher. The reliefs that fill the spring line of the arches are profiles of famous Germans in the arts and letters, people like Goethe, Bach, Beethoven, and Wagner. The theater's name was eventually changed to the Garrick, and the building was popularly known as the Garrick Theater Building. When the owners announced that they were going to demolish this architectural masterpiece, a group of people got together to stop the demolition resulting in the city's first, big landmarks battle. The fight to save the Garrick was lost, but the modern preservation movement in Chicago was born.
Schiller relief in brick wall, North Dearborn St., Chicago /Image & Artwork: designslinger]
Not every bit of the Garrick made its way to Second City's door. Random pieces were
scattered hither and yon, with one head ending up in this home made brick wall on Dearborn Street. Architectural salvage is big business, you can still find pieces of the Schiller/Garrick Theater building here, here, here, and here, and marvel at the prices. I am crushed, no pun intended, every time I see a photograph documenting the demolition of a beautiful old building. It's even worse when I find myself standing in front of a barricade watching the last bits of rubble being removed from a demo site where a great building once stood. But, that's the way it's been for eons, and although we still lose a few gems to the wrecking ball now and then, we are doing much better at preserving and saving our architectural legacy than we were 48 years ago when the Garrick fell, though the battles continue.
Posted by designslinger at 7/16/2009 2:14 AM 
Categories: Architecture, Preservation, History, Decorative Arts
Tags: Garrick Theater/Schiller Building Balbo Monument Louis Sullivan
Categories: Architecture, Preservation, History, Decorative Arts
Tags: Garrick Theater/Schiller Building Balbo Monument Louis Sullivan
Good stuff in the post as always. Thanks, Slinger.
we always enjoy our research projects - this really took us out in the "field" - thanks for your support & encouragement
Sometimes these works of art go back to their country of origin like when more than a few antiquities, detained by the Getty Museum, went back to Italy a few years ago.
All the best for 2011!
Thanks!