My friend Carmen just returned from visiting her family’s orchard in Mexico. She was there for a month. I wish I could have gone with her, but since I couldn’t, she emailed me photos of all the beautiful places she visited. It (almost) made me feel like I was there! I hope you feel the same way too. Enjoy!
The Orchard
The Mountains
Flowering Tree
The Market
Farm Animals
Town Square
Beautiful House
Beautiful Flowers
Pet Parrot
If you’re like me, you’ve probably walked past the Federal Center and Plaza in downtown Chicago dozens of times and never thought about it’s history. The Federal Center and Plaza in Chicago is comprised of the John C. Kluczinski Federal Building, the Everett McKinley Dirksen Federal Courts Building, the Ralph H. Metcalfe Federal Building and the U.S. Post Office (Loop Center). Bounded by Dearborn on the East, Clark on the West, Jackson on the South and Adams on the North. The Kluczinski, Dirksen and U.S. Post Office (Loop Station) were all designed by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in the Mid-Century Modernist style.
The John C. Kluczinski Federal Building is located at 230 S. Dearborn St. It was completed in 1974 and is a 42 story tall skyscraper with 1.2 million square feet of space. It was named after U.S. Congressman John C. Kluczynski who represented Illinois’ 5th congressional district from 1951 until 1975. It was designed in the minimalist style.
The Dirksen Federal Courts Building is located across the street at 219 S. Dearborn St. It was completed in 1964 and is 30 stories tall with 1.4 million square feet of space. It was named after U.S. Congressman and Senator Everett Dirksen. It was designed in the international style.
The U.S. Post Office (Loop Station) is located at 211 S. Clark St. It was completed in 1975 in the minimalist style.
The Metcalfe Building is located at 77 West Jackson Blvd. It was built in 1991 and designed by Fujikawa Johnson and Associates in the Mies van der Rohe style. It is 27 stories tall and it was named after former Olympian and U.S. Representative Ralph Harold Metcalf.
The Federal Plaza features a red steal sculpture by Alexander Calder entitled Flamingo. It was unveiled on the plaza in 1974.The plaza hosts events such as farmers markets, arts, crafts and jewelry booths, as well as demonstrations (with required approval).
The entire complex is on a grid pattern and seams of the granite pavers extend into the lobbies and up to the sides of the Kluczynski, Dirksen and Post Office buildings to create unity among the three buildings.
There was a Federal Building in Chicago prior to the current buildings described above. The old Chicago Federal Building was built in 1905 and demolished in 1965. It was built by architect Henry Ives Cobb in the Beaux-Arts style. It was 297 ft. tall.
Quite a different look – then and now! Both beautiful in their own way for their own time!
Anyone who knows Chicago knows Marshall Field’s flagship store on State Street. Almost every Chicagoan has probably shopped there at some time in their life. Now, of course, Marshall Field’s is no longer there – instead it was replaced by Macy’s in 2006.
The Marshall Field and Company building was constructed in 1891-92 at 111 North State Street, on the corner of State and Washington. Other sections were added to the building in 1902, 1906, 1907 and 1914. It was designed by Chicago architect, Daniel Burnham. The building is among the largest stores in the world. It is a designated National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was also designated a Chicago Landmark in 2005. It is a granite structure known for its atrium with several balconies, called “The Great Hall” and its Tiffany mosaic vaulted ceiling, as well as the two clocks on the outside of the building. After construction of all the sections was completed the store consisted of 73 acres of floor space with largest book, china, shoe and toy sections of all department stores in the world.
The Marshall Field’s Department store itself was founded in 1852 and merged with Federated Department Stores (Macy’s) in 2006, thus losing the Marshall Field’s name. Marshall Field’s origin goes back to a dry goods store founded by Potter Palmer in 1852. It was located at 137 Lake Street. In 1865 Palmer sold the business to Field and Leiter and the store was renamed Field, Leiter and Company. In 1868 they leased a six story space at State and Washington. The building was completely destroyed by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, but rebuilt.
In 1881 Marshall Field bought out Levi and Leiter and renamed the business Marshall Field and Company. The building that currently stands on the corner of State and Washington was then started in 1891 and completed (with multiple additions) by 1914.
The building is also known for Christmas traditions such as the Christmas Tree in the Walnut Room and the decorated Holiday window displays (and is known for its Frango mints).
Macy’s today continues to be an upscale retail department store selling men’s, women’s and children’s clothing as well as jewelry, cosmetics, and home furnishings and accessories; as well as personal services such as a beauty salon, personal shoppers, wedding and gift registry, jewelry and watch repair and alterations.There are eight restaurants located in the building and they also sponsor events that are free to the public, such as a flower show and fashion shows. It is a beautiful and fun place to shop!
The City of Chicago celebrated its 181st Birthday this past Sunday, March 4th. Chicago was incorporated as a city on March 4, 1837. So, I thought it would be interesting to take a look back at what the city was like at that time.
The city was divided into three districts (North, South and West) by the Chicago River. Due to its location on the river and near a portage between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River watershed, it quickly became a major trading center and grew rapidly. During that time and for several decades it became known as the world’s fastest growing city. It also became an important railroad transportation hub between the eastern and western parts of the U.S.
At the time of incorporation, Chicago’s population was approximately 4,000 and it had many dry-goods stores and grocery stores; and a few hardware stores. It also had a few taverns and law offices. Chicago was the county seat. The panic of 1837 and the depression that followed did affect the Chicago economy, but it didn’t stop it due to the money that was laid out for building the Illinois and Michigan canal.
Between 1844 and 1854 many immigrants came to Chicago to work in factories, and flour mills, grain elevators, warehouses and packing houses were formed to process the shipments moving to the East. The Illinois and Michigan Canal was completed in 1848 (which opened trading throughout Chicago). By 1854 Chicago was considered the railroad center of the West. By 1860 Chicago had a population of 109,260.
In 1865 the Union Stockyards were built at 39th and Halsted streets and meatpacking businesses soon followed. Other important events of the time included:
1840 – Public Schools established; 1848 – Chicago Board of Trade established; 1855-Chicago Police Department formed; 1855-Lager Beer riots; 1855-Street Grade raised; 1869-Chicago Water Tower built; and 1871-Great Chicago Fire.
