Chicago In and Around the Loop : Walking Tours of Architecture and History [Paperback]

Gerard R. Wolfe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 2004

Twelve well-mapped walking tours help you discover a city with a long history of being on the forefront of architectural innovation. These tours highlight the works of architectural giants including Frank Lloyd Wright, Dankmar Adler, Louis Sullivan, and others who helped revamp the American skyline.

* Updated to reflect new buildings, owners, functions, and landmark designations; the expansion of McCormick Place, and new information on the Prairie Avenue Historic District
* MORE historical facts, background information, anecdotes, architectural details, and additional historic photos of major buildings
* Renovated historic hotels
* Significant skyscrapers
* Major cultural centers
* 275 vintage and contemporary photos

THE WALKING TOURS INCLUDE:
Old Chicago and the Financial District
Grant Park to the Museum Complex
The Downtown Underground Walkway System
The Prairie Avenue Historic District to the Centennial Fountain
The North Branch to the Illinois Center
The Sears Tower to the Merchandise Market
The Michigan Avenue "Cliff"
The Gold Coast
Printer's Row (20040701)

Editorial Reviews

Review

well-mapped walking tours help you discover a city with a long history of being on...forefront of archtiectural innovation (ArchitectureWeek )

From the Back Cover

Explore Chicago: Cradle of the American Skyscraper and World Leader in Modern Building Design!

The fascinating architecture of Chicago unfurls before your eyes in this acclaimed -- and now completely revised and updated -- walking tour guide to the birthplace of the skyscraper. Full of little-known facts intriguing to natives and tourists alike, Chicago: In and Around the Loop guides you through Chicago's world-famous landmark buildings; walks you through the Loop and along the "Magnificent Mile," the "Gold Coast," Printers' Row, Grant Park, and Prairie Avenue; and shows you the most stunning views of Chicago's glorious and historic skyline. Along the way, you'll meet such architects as Daniel H. Burnham, Louis Sullivan, Dankmar Adler, John Wellborn Root, Mies van der Rohe, Frank Lloyd Wright and many others who revamped the American skyline and aesthetic.

Walkers and armchair tourists alike will enjoy:
* 12 unique tours that include walks through vintage Chicago, both pre– and post–Great Fire of 1871; North Loop’s newest "cloud-piercers"; and renovations of historic buildings into the Hotel Burnham, the House of Blues, and the Hard Rock Hotel
* New anecdotes and fascinating facts about major landmarks (and their tenants) in the heart of Chicago
* Easy-to-follow maps of all walking tours
* 275 vintage and contemporary photographs, including many new to this edition

THE TOURS INCLUDE:
* The Loop I: Old Chicago and the Financial District
* The Loop II: The James R. Thompson Center to State Street
* Along the Chicago River I: The Sears Tower to the Merchandise Mart
* Along the Chicago River II: The North Branch to the Illinois Center
* The Michigan Avenue "Cliff"
* The Magnificent Mile and Streeterville
* East Lake Shore Drive to the Centennial Fountain
* South of the Loop: Printers Row
* Grant Park to the Museum Campus
* The Prairie Avenue Historic District to McCormick Place
* North of the Loop: The River North Neighborhood
* The Gold Coast

Recommended by the Chicago Architecture Foundation for its completeness and lively style, winner of the Council for Wisconsin Writers' Nonfiction Book of the Year, Chicago: In and Around the Loop is your ideal companion as you explore the city's rich architectural heritage and the exciting Chicago of today. This guide also serves as an ideal reference for architects, architectural historians, and students.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 495 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional; 2 edition (January 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071422366
• ISBN-13: 978-0071422369
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,111,277 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best guide to downtown Chicago architecture and history!, January 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Chicago: In and Around the Loop - Walking Tours of Architecture and History (Paperback)

An excellent set of tours of all neighborhoods of downtown Chicago, profusely illustrated with contemporary and archival photos, with a lively and user-friendly text. Especially helpful for the first-time visitor, although I understand it has been adopted by the Chicago Architecture Foundation as a guide to train its docents who give walking tours. I have not come across any better guide to the Loop and its surroundings, with a crisp style and useful historical facts. Dr. Gareth Shellman ([e-mail]) Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for the traveler or those new to Chicago, April 10, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Chicago: In and Around the Loop - Walking Tours of Architecture and History (Paperback)

I currently live in Chicago and have had a great time exploring and learning about new (to me) places with the help of this book. There is a good amount of info. to give the reader a decent background on many of the buildings in the Loop. It omits lengthy and unnecessary history topics to focus on the highlights of each walking tour, leaving the lengthy history for other books to explore. I've learned alot about my own city by reading this book and highly recommend it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book for a Great City, July 10, 2006

By 

Joyce Mendelsohn (New York, New York USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chicago In and Around the Loop : Walking Tours of Architecture and History (Paperback)

Gerard Wolfe has produced an inclusive and engaging book concentrating on the area in and around the Loop in Chicago. In a series of walking tours, he weaves history and architecture into a "must see" for tourists, native Chicagoans and armchair travelers, alike.