eric j. nordstrom

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

images of burnham & root's heavily fortified first regiment armory (1552 s. michigan avenue) shortly after completion in 1891 and again during its demolition in 1967. richard nickel and john vinci documented the armory (interior an exterior) before and du…https://t.co/rBeMSfpJZw

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

one of many "systems" i've recreated based on photographs taken while deconstructing/documenting the materials and methods used to erect 19th century wood-framed workers cottages over the past five years.

this "system" begins with the ever-present round…https://t.co/M95cuP1Uj7

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

three chicago privy-dug 1860s william h. hutchinson cobalt blue blobtop soda bottles with lightly embossed block lettering. the unearthed bottles were made by the william mccully glassworks of pittsburgh, pa.

courtest of bldg. 51 archive. https://t.co/XatlQhue5w

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

rare undated cabinet card of the la salle street tunnel designed by william bryson in 1871.
the tunnel was originally built with lanes for both pedestrian and horse-drawn traffic.
the image was likely taken in the late 1880's when the tunnel was used ex…https://t.co/JbYq8Syreq

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

when i find time, i'm carefully extracting fragments from the piles of "insulation" discovered behind the walls of a pre-chicago fire worker's cottage i salvaged a few days ago. my research strongly indicates that the house was constructed around 1867, po…https://t.co/4RWbmbr5Wj

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

found shortly after surveying the destruction of a pre-fire chicago workers cottage, located at 1043 w. ohio street.

courtesy of bldg. 51 archive. https://t.co/X9uJCe0EpS

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

exterior images of william le baron jenney’s romanesque style church of the redeemer (1886).

the ornamental unglazed terra cotta was fabricated by the northwestern terra cotta works, chicago, ills. the richly colored stained glass windows were made by c…https://t.co/6zwAqOYfyi

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

vinci, nickel, and david norris managed to salvaged architectural elements, including column capital panels (see image of norris in window), along with four-sided exterior red slip terra cotta heads between the long and narrow arched windows. the church w…https://t.co/IeRIIO7BWP

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

old silver gelatin print i found in the attic of a cottage shortly before its demolition. the man, with navy pier in the background, likely was an early occupant of the house, based on additional images found in the same box.

it sickens me to think how…https://t.co/w4y2VpxwM0

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

albumen print of burnham and root's drafting room located on the top floor of the rookery building (burnham and root, 1888).
there's a lot going on here if you look closely at the image. the coiled wire waste baskets, dietzgen stools, wall gasoliers with…https://t.co/JfCMiPZ7MY

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

"buried treasure" discovered behind louis sullivan's krause music store (1922).

material courtesy of eric j. nordstrom and timothy j. samuelson. https://t.co/UQymQyxxoP

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

while i have touched on the importance of photo-documenting salvages, lately my focus has expanded to buildings undergoing historic renovations in chicago’s downtown. a number of facades are worked on each year, with little public attention to the craft a…https://t.co/WJ4wUPdUuH

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

down in a hole.

richard nickel images documenting the hand-dug caissons for chicago's civic center (1965) designed by jacques brownson of c. f. murphy associates. nickel was commissioned by murphy to photograph the building's construction beginning in 1…https://t.co/9XYZEG7naO

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

henry fuermann image of a george grant elmslie-designed teller cage for louis sullivan's national farmers' bank of owatonna (1908). the copper-plated cast iron cages were executed by the winslow brothers, chicago, ills.

courtesy of bldg. 51 archive. https://t.co/GzqJjNUNa7

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

three seldom seen early 20th century photographic images showing erection of steel framing for second addition of louis sullivan's schlesinger and mayer building/store (the madison street section was completed in december of 1899).

by may of 1903, work w…https://t.co/ZQ1aCgxDuZ

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

chicago-based mid-19th century soda bottles with embossed lettering and iron-pontiled bases. the majority of the bottles were discovered long-forgotten privy pits in and around downtown chicago, including wolf point, site of grand central station and area…https://t.co/NyrIOARrYj

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

kodachrome slides of adler and sullivan's chicago stock exchange building (1894) shortly before demolition in 1972. the slides were taken by an unidentified amateur photographer who documented much of adler and sullivan's work between the 1960s and 1980s.…https://t.co/FhQVauWD0E

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

william le baron jenney's home insurance building shortly before it was demolished in 1931. the newman wrecking signs resting on the sidewalk against the west facade helped date the image, which was likely taken by the chicago architectural photographing…https://t.co/GiMKlwzcJd

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

https://t.co/vTsmwa3iVJ https://t.co/opK2zEImv6

[eric j. nordstrom @bldg51chicago]

several examples of custom-designed 19th and early 20th century commerical building (mostly chicago) interior hardware including office door knobs and backplates, sash pull handles, and letter slots.

most of the hardware, especially from the late 19th c…https://t.co/XptzYXB2hg