National Register of Historic Places

Mark Twain Hotel

Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Listed
May 8, 2017
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
100000961

About this property

The Mark Twain Hotel is a historic residential hotel located at 111 W. Division Street in the Near North Side community area of Chicago, Illinois. Built in 1930 by developer Fred Becklenberg, the hotel was one of several residential hotels built to house the influx of labor to Chicago in the late 1920s. Most of the hotel's residents were permanent; according to 1940 census records, the majority had been at the hotel for over five years. Architect Harry Glube designed the hotel in the Art Deco style, a departure from the revival styles normally used for residential hotels. The brick building features extensive terra cotta detailing, including an elaborate cornice and stringcourse above and below the fourth floor. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 8, 2017. The building was renovated starting in 2018 and celebrated a grand re-opening in 2020. During the renovation it was converted to 148 typical but affordable rental studio apartments by NHP Foundation. The Mark Twain Hotel is a significant location in Naomi Hirahara's 2021 mystery novel Clark and Division. The book follows a Japanese-American family’s move to Chicago in 1944 after being released from the Manzanar concentration camp. The narrator's sister, Rose Ito, lives across the street from the hotel before being fatally struck by a train at the nearby Clark and Division train station. Several other characters work at the hotel.

Location

111 W. Division St.
Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
41.90372, -87.63189

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
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

Marshall Hotel
Industrial
0.1 mi
Swedish Club of Chicago
Industrial
0.1 mi
Burlingham Building
Industrial
0.2 mi
Maynard, Isaac N., Rowhouses
Industrial
0.2 mi
North Wells Street Historic District
Listed
0.2 mi

Questions about this property

When was Mark Twain Hotel listed on the National Register?

Mark Twain Hotel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 8, 2017.

What type of historic resource is Mark Twain Hotel?

Mark Twain Hotel is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Mark Twain Hotel?

The period of significance for Mark Twain Hotel is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Mark Twain Hotel?

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