City of Chicago

Style Guide

City of Chicago

Style Guide

Linscott R. HansonArc 125

American Four-SquareThis post-Victorian style of single-family house, prized for its ease of construction, practicality, and roomy interior, is found throughout Chicago. The largest concentrations are in community areas developed during the style's heyday (1900-1930), such as Beverly, Norwood Park, Rogers Park, and South Shore.▸Cubic shape

Broad front porch, sometimes enclosed

Built in wide variety of materials, including wood, brick, and stucco

ART DECO - MODERNEIn the 1920s and 30s, Art Deco and Moderne achieved great popularity as modern architectural styles. Although somewhat

different in their overall appearance, both styles share stripped down forms and geometric-based ornament. A limited number of examples are found in Chicago, with

concentrations located in the Loop, the Near North Side, and along some commercial streets.

rounded edges, corner windows, and glass block walls

ARTS and CRAFTSOriginating from the teachings of William Morris, John Ruskin, and other late-19th century English Theorists, the Arts & Crafts movement's emphasis was on "humanizing" design through simple, crafted forms and honest expression of materials.

use of brick, wood and carved stone

naturalistic and geometric forms

ChateauesqueThe Chateauesque style became fashionable in the 1880s due to the influence of New York City's famed Vanderbilt mansion (1879, Richard Morris Hunt). The style, which was based on 16th century French chateaux, was initially used in Chicago for the mansions of the city's social elite, on such South Side streets as Prairie Avenue. It later became popular for smaller houses throughout Chicago.

mix of "Gothic" and "Renaissance" ornament

high-peaked hipped roofs, elaborate dormers, and tall chimneys

Chicago SchoolDuring the 1880's and '90s, Chicago architects designed buildings with exteriors clearly expressing their innovative steel-frame construction. These "Chicago School" buildings have been praised as important precursors to 20th-century steel-and-glass skyscrapers. In Chicago, most examples of the style are office buildings in the Loop.

masonry cladding, usually terra cotta, clearly emphasizing the steel framing

distinctive three-part windows, with large central fixed panes flanked by smaller double- hung sash windows

▪minimal use of ornament

CCarson, Pirie, Scott and Company Building

One of the most important structures in early modern architecture, famed for its influential modular construction and design. Visionary architect Louis Sullivan shaped this commercial building--originally built for the Schlesinger and Mayer department store--into a dramatically animated structure that inseparably merges beauty and function. The ornament of the lower two stories is frozen in cast iron, while at the same time giving the impression of being in fluid motion. It is an excellent example of Sullivan's genius for architectural ornament.

Classical Revival

The Classical Revival, based on the architecture of ancient Greece and Rome, was one of the most widespread styles in the United States during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Its versatility was adaptable to a wide range of building types and budgets. Found throughout Chicago, the Classical Revival style was often used for churches and public buildings.

Colonial Revival

A revival of interest in the architecture of colonial America occurred between the 1880s and World War II. Known as Colonial Revival, the style combines elements of both Federal and Georgian architecture, which were popular styles in America in the 1700s and early 1800s. In Chicago, examples can be found in such areas as South Shore, Forest Glen and Beverly.

▸Symmetrical facades, often with side porches▸Red brick or wood clapboard walls

Entrances decorated with sidelights, transoms, columns, and pediments

Dutch RevivalBased on the style of housed built by the Dutch settlers on New Amsterdam (New York) in the 1600s, this style acquired popularity between 1900 and World War II. In Chicago, the style can be found in such community areas as South Shore, Norwood Park, and Morgan Park.

Doorways ornamented with columns, sidelights and transoms

Gambrel roofs (i.e., a curving roof with a shape similar to a barn roof)

Eastlake/Stick StyleThe decorative possibilities inherent in machine-manufactured wood were promoted by late 19th-century architects working in the Eastlake/Stick style. The name refers to both Charles Eastlake, an English architect who advocated the use of wooden decoration, and the use of wooden "stick work". In Chicago, houses of this style can be found in Lakeview, Englewood, and Hyde Park.

▸Wood construction ▸Decorative wooden planks (or "stick

work") which outline the underlying wood frame structure

▸Intricate wooden details, such as lathe-turned spindles and jigsaw-cut brackets

All Saints Church and RectoryThis church, constructed when the surrounding community of Ravenswood was still an independent suburb, is a rare local example of the Stick Style, a picturesque architectural style used primarily for suburban residences in the Eastern United States in the 1860s. It remained popular in the Midwest through the 1880s.The rectory, which was built in 1905, was designed in a simplified Tudor style; the church entry was added at the same time.

Gothic RevivalA rise of interest in the church architecture of medieval France, England, and Germany during the 19th century inspired the Gothic Revival, a popular style until the 1930s. Because it was used frequently in Chicago for religious buildings, examples can be found in most community areas. The campus of the University of Chicago, however, is the city's outstanding ensemble of Gothic Revival buildings.

tall pointed windows, often filled with stained glass and elaborate tracery

carved stone ornament, including gargoyle-like heads and figures

Greek RevivalThis style, based on ancient Greek temples, is considered the first truly American architectural style. Americans associated the style with the ideals of Greek democracy and linked it with the similar aspirations of American government. In its early years, Chicago had many Greek Revival houses, but only a handful remain.

Classical Greek ornament, such as columns

Gable roofs combined with pediments

IInternationalThe International style was developed in the 1920s by European architects in search of a style suitable for a modern society. Many American architects learned of the style through an influential exhibit in 1932, at New York City's Museum of Modern Art. There are few pre-World War II examples in Chicago--most were built after 1950--although a handful can be found in Hyde Park, South Shore, and West Town.

Windows wrapping around corners

▸Flat roofs

IItalianateOne of America's most popular 19th-century styles, the Italianate was derived from the architecture of Italian villas. Chicago architects used the style between the 1860s and 1890s for a wide variety of building types, from houses and small apartment buildings, to institutional structures. Surviving examples can be seen in most community areas developed during the period, although the greatest concentrations can be found in Lincoln Park, the Lower West Side, and West Town.▸Vertical proportions

Tall, rounded windows and doors

Stone trim with incised foliated ornament

Intricate wood or pressed metal cornices

Middle EasternMiddle Eastern-style buildings are an eclectic combination of building forms and exotic details derive from the architecture of the Byzantine and Islamic empires. Although few Middle Eastern buildings were built in Chicago, the style was most typically used for clubs, theaters, and religious buildings between 1910 and 1930.

Colorful terra cotta and ceramic tile ornament forming complex geometric patterns

Elaborate rooflines of towers and domes

Asian StyleThis style is comprised of buildings whose appearances were influenced by Chinese or Japanese forms or decoration. In Chicago, this style is rare and found chiefly in such Asian-American areas as Chinatown (Armour Square community area), where it was used for buildings constructed between 1910 and 1930.

Stone or terra cotta ornament based on Chinese or Japanese decorative motifs (dragons, dogs, alphabet symbols)

Prairie StyleThe Prairie style was developed in the late-19th and early-20th centuries by Frank Lloyd Wright and other architects as "a modern architecture for a democratic American society." Because it was largely developed in the Chicago area, this style is well represented here by some of the most important buildings of the early-20th century. Significant examples can be found in Rogers Park, Hyde Park, and Beverly.

Flat brick or stucco walls, often outlined with wooden strips of contrasting color

▸Hip or gable roofs with wide, overhanging eaves

Queen Ann StyleThis picturesque style, popular in the 1880s and 90s, is found in almost every city and town in the United States. Buildings in the Queen Anne style have asymmetrical shapes characterized by bays and prominent, varied rooflines. In Chicago, it was used for many houses and commercial buildings, with concentrations found in Hyde Park and Lakeview.

▸Rich but simple ornament

▸Variety of materials, including wood, terra cotta, stone, and pressed metal

Irregular roofline with many dormers and chimneys

Renaissance Style

The churches and palaces of Renaissance Italy were the inspiration for this revival style. In Chicago, it mainly was used for churches and institutional buildings, between 1890 and 1930.

round-arched windows and arcades (i.e., covered walkways or porches, formed by rows of arches resting on columns)

profusion of triangular and round-arched pediments

Romanesque RevivalThe forms of the Romanesque Revival actually derive from the 11th and 12-century architecture of France and Spain, although the style enjoyed a resurgence in the 1880s due to the work of architect H. H. Richardson. It was used for many building types, including houses, clubs, and commercial buildings, before its popularity ended in the late 1890s. Examples can be found in many community areas, including Douglas, Grand Boulevard, and Kenwood.

▸heavy, rough-cut stone walls

Second Empire The elaborate architecture of Paris in the 1850s and 60s when it was rebuilt by Napoleon III became the inspiration for the Second Empire style. Popular in Chicago during the 1870s and early '80s, relatively few examples of the style, mostly houses survive.

intricate stone ornament surrounding doors and windows

sloping "mansard" roofs, often with multi-colored slate shingles and elaborate dormers

▸ prominent cornices

Spanish StyleThis style is based on Spanish colonial and Mexican buildings that were built in California, Texas and the American Southwest between the early 1600s and the 1840s. The style regained popularity as a revival style during the 1920s. Chicagoans used it for houses and religious buildings in several community areas, including Beverly, Edison Park, and South Shore.

▸Brick or stucco walls

Twisting columns and decorative shields made of terra cotta

▸ round arched windows▸Elaborately rounded roof

parapets based on Spanish colonial missions

▪clay tile roofs

SullivanesqueLouis Sullivan, one of Chicago's most influential architects, developed a unique form of decoration that he used for many of his buildings, beginning in the 1890s. This Sullivanesque style was imitated by other architects, using terra cotta designed and manufactured by the Midland Terra Cotta Company in Chicago. Sullivanesque buildings can be found in the Loop, Lincoln Square and North Lawndale.

▸Terra cotta ornament composed of lushly intertwining vines and leaves combined with sharp-edged geometric figures

Tudor RevivalBased on English domestic architecture from the 1500s and 1600s, Tudor Revival gained great popularity as a residential style in America during the early 20th century. It can be found in such Chicago community areas as Beverly, Forest Glen and South Shore.

▸Use of stucco, particularly in ends of gables

▸Irregular massing

CottageThis is a common, "vernacular" residential style that was built in working-class Chicago neighborhoods in the years following the Chicago Fire of 1871. Examples can be found in the community areas of Lincoln Park, the Lower West Side, and West Town.

▸One-and-a-half stories, set atop a raised basement

Ornament restricted to around windows and beneath the roof line (cornice)

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