Lot 13251: Kurz - Custom House, Chicago

About the image:

Generally known as the Post Office Building, this building on the corner of Dearborn and Monroe, contained the Customs, U.S. Marshals, Federal Courts, District Attorneys and of course the Post Office. It was completed in 1860, faced with Illinois marble and said to be completely fire-proof. It was however lost in the Great Fire, only the walls remaining.


About the work:

This hand-colored lithograph is from Louis Kurz's Chicago Illustrated: 1830-1866. The work was published in Chicago by Jevne & Almini in 1866. It was a suberb series of views of pre-Great Fire Chicago. Because of the devastating fire of 1871, these views turned out to be particularly important historically.

"In 1863, Mr. Uranus H. Crosby, of Chicago, a gentleman of means and of great enterprise, conceived the idea of building in this city an edifice of this kind, which, while designed to be of personal profit to its projector, should also be a credit and an ornament to the city, and give stability to the growing interest of the fine arts. Filled with this most honorable ambition, he, in company with W. W. Boyington, Esq., an architect of Chicago, visited the other cities of the country, examining with care all the buildings erected for like purposes, profiting alike by the practical excellencies and the practical defects which they witnessed. The results of this careful and deliberate examination was the plan of the present building, which, without exception, is generally acknowledged the best designed structure of the kind in America." [from the original text].

Provenance: Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Americana Collection.

Mat Size ~ 19 1/2" by 16 1/2"; Paper Size ~ 14 3/4" by 11 1/2"

Hand-colored Lithograph

1866

Overall Excellent. There may be a few minor imperfections to be expected with age. Please review the image carefully for condition and contact with any questions.

Chicago Illustrated: 1830-1866