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Roosevelt University Auditorium Building

This is an archived listing.

Address

430 S. Michigan Ave.

Neighborhood

Downtown

Architect

Louis Sullivan & Dankmar Adler, 1889

Website

roosevelt.edu

Description

Locals referred to the Auditorium Building as the "eighth wonder of the world" upon its completion. In 1889, it was the tallest building in Chicago and the largest building in the country by volume. Its magnificent theater boasted some of the world's best acoustics. The Richardsonian Romanesque-style structure was revolutionary as a mixed-use development. It contained both hotel rooms and offices in order to supplement revenue from the theater. Architects Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan (along with young draftsman Frank Lloyd Wright) even had their offices in the building for a short time. The Auditorium Building has been home to Roosevelt University since 1946 and includes stunningly-decorated corridors, stairways and meeting rooms that have remained mostly unchanged.

View this Building on Architecture.org

Archived In

2016