National Register of Historic Places

Conway Building

Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Listed
February 9, 1984
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
84000988

About this property

The Burnham Center, originally known as the Conway Building and later as the Chicago Title & Trust Building, is a historic skyscraper in Chicago, Illinois. Built with funds from the Marshall Field estate, it was the last building designed by Daniel Burnham before his death on June 1, 1912, and was completed in 1913. The Burnham Center, originally known as the Conway Building, replaced the Chicago Opera House, which had been built in 1885. The Conway was a real estate project resulting from the estate of Marshall Field, who had died in 1906. Field requested that his $83 million estate be invested in Chicago real estate until his grandson, Marshall Field III, turned fifty (1943). For the most part, Field's estate was invested in existing property, but it was used to fund three major projects: the Conway Building, the Pittsfield Building (1927), and the Field Building (1934). Daniel Burnham was a frequent associate of Field, designing an annex to the Marshall Field and Company Building (1892) and the Field Museum of Natural History (c. 1900). Burnham, with Frederick P. Dinkelberg, completed his design for the building shortly before leaving Chicago in April 1912; he died in Germany two months later. The building resembles Burnham's Flatiron Building in New York City: both buildings are twenty-one stories, have rounded corners, and are decorated in a Beaux-Arts style. Both buildings are thought to be influenced by the Palazzo di Propaganda Fide in Rome. Ernest R. Graham, Peirce Anderson, and Edward Probst assumed control of the project on April 30. It was completed under the auspices of Graham, Burnham & Co. (a precursor of Graham, Anderson, Probst & White) in 1913. The building was recognized by the National Park Service with a listing on the National Register of Historic Places on February 9, 1984. The Chicago Title & Trust Co. was a longtime tenant before the 1992 completion of the Chicago Title and Trust Center. Their former headquarters then became known as the Burnham Center. The Burnham Center is currently home to the corporate headquarters of Grubhub.

Location

111 W. Washington St.
Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
41.88281, -87.63135

Categories

COMMERCEECONOMICSARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

One LaSalle Street Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
Lumber Exchange Building and Tower Addition
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Reliance Building
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0.1 mi
Chicago Savings Bank Building
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0.2 mi
Steuben Club, The
Industrial
0.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Fort Dearborn Massacre August 15 1812
1812Early Republic
0.3 mi

Questions about this property

When was Conway Building listed on the National Register?

Conway Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 9, 1984.

What type of historic resource is Conway Building?

Conway Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Conway Building?

The period of significance for Conway Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Conway Building?

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