The Potter Palmers and their famous castle

The Potter Palmer “castle” which stood at 1350 N. Lake Shore Drive for more than half a century remains one of the most legendary houses ever built in Chicago, despite the fact it was razed in 1950.  Likewise, the builders, Potter and Bertha Honoré Palmer, are names that remain well-known to anyone with even a passing interest in Chicago history.  This Sunday, March 24, 2013 at 5:30pm, WTTW Channel 11 presents a 30-minute documentary entitled Love Under Fire: The Story of Bertha and Potter Palmer. 

The Palmers, in completing their mansion on Lake Shore Drive in 1884, established the North Side Gold Coast which eventually drew many of the families away from Prairie Avenue and the South Side.    Their decision to build where they did was bold – when Potter Palmer purchased a half mile of undeveloped lakefront property north of downtown, many considered it of little value and not worthy of development.  But Palmer saw the potential and soon acquired additional property, eventually amassing an impressive portfolio of real estate upon which he built dozens of homes that he resold to members of Chicago’s social elite, establishing the character of the neighborhood. 

The Palmers’ own house, the largest ever built in Chicago, was designed by Cobb & Frost, and although originally budgeted at “just” $90,000, cost more than a million dollars by the time it was finished three years after construction began.  The opulent interiors were designed by Herter & Company of New York in a variety of styles from Renaissance to Gothic and Moorish to Eastlake, and served as a showcase for the Palmer’s collection of paintings and other art objects.  In preparation for the 1893 World’s Fair, the Palmers hired Henry Hardenberg (architect of New York’s Plaza Hotel) to build a huge art gallery addition to the house.  Famously, the house had no exterior doorknobs or locks, so that entry was possible only when admitted by a servant.

The Glessners, although preferring a far less ostentatious way of living, were guests at the Palmer mansion on a number of occasions and Frances Glessner and Bertha Palmer collaborated on various projects, and were members of various clubs together including the Fortnightly.  The letter below, sent to Frances Glessner in May 1888, is typical of the letters from Bertha Palmer now preserved in the Glessner House Museum archives:

100 Lake Shore Drive

My dear Mrs. Glessner:

I regret very much that I was not at home to accept your kind invitation to meet Mrs. Ashton Dilke.  I am sure it was a charming occasion and that I missed a great treat.

May I ask if you would like to make one of five ladies to open your house for readings by Mrs. Sherwood of New York?  She would be here the latter part of May I think, that has not been definitely determined.

You of course know of the great success she has had in New York, especially this season.  She wishes to have at least one hundred ladies at ten dollars each for the five readings and I think your rooms open so charmingly that they could be accommodated.  Please do not think of saying “Yes” if you are tired out with all you have been doing to give pleasure to your friends.  I would understand fully that there is a limit to human endurance and that you have possibly reached it.

Thanking you again for your kind invitation and begging an early reply to my importunate request – by telephone if possible –

I remain

As always

Your sincere friend

Bertha M. H. Palmer

(Notes:  The letter bears the original address of the Palmer house, 100 Lake Shore Drive.  Mrs. Glessner did consent to host one of Mrs. Sherwood’s readings at her home, which took place on May 22, 1888 with 150 ladies present).

Potter Palmer died in 1902 and Bertha Palmer in 1918.  The castle remained vacant until 1921 when Potter Palmer Jr. moved in, hiring architect David Adler to make significant alterations.  It was sold to Vincent Bendix in 1928 but reacquired by Palmer Jr. in 1933, standing largely unused, and finally succumbing to the wrecking ball in 1950.

Note regarding photographs:  The photo of the castle shown at the top of the article was taken about 1888 by the Glessners’ son George, a talented amateur photograph.  The portrait of Bertha Palmer is a cabinet card given by her to Frances Glessner.  It was taken at M. J. Steffens Atelier, located at the time at the southeast corner of Prairie Avenue and 22^nd Street (now Cermak Road).

The Rocks Estate

The Rocks Estate, located in the White Mountains in northern New Hampshire, has been an important part of the lives of generations of the Glessner family since 1883.  Approximately 1,300 acres of the estate was donated to the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forest in 1978, and today, thousands of visitors each year come to the site to hike, explore nature, select the perfect Christmas tree, and much more.  The Rocks Estate recently earned its seal of approval from Certified Grand Adventures as detailed in the article below, which appeared in the New Hampshire Union Leader on February 12, 2013.

ROCKS ESTATE:  GRAND CERTIFIED ADVENTURE

Touted: The designation means the estate has a unique flavor for tourists

By Sara Young-Knox

Bethlehem – The Rocks Estate, a North Country destination for outdoor family activities and environmental education, has received the seal of approval from Certified Grand Adventures.

The 1,400-acre Rocks Estate, known for its Christmas tree farm and spring maple syrup tours, is home to the North Country Conservation and Education Center for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.

In the winter, The Rocks Estate partners with another certified experience – Muddy Paw Sled Dog Kennel of Jefferson offers dog sled rides at The Rocks.

The Rocks joins 14 other Certified Grand Adventures of northern New Hampshire.  To become certified, an experience needs to be:  different, better, first or bigger than other adventures within easy driving distance for people from Boston and Montreal.  They also must have a 3-to-1 ratio of positive comments on web feedback sites, be interactive, endorsed by two regional and one national media outlet, open a minimum of 60 days a year, and clearly communicate safety guidelines.

Pam Sullivan, marketing coordinator for New Hampshire Grand, said the Bethlehem landmark was a natural fit. 

“The Rocks has been described as a modern-day Norman Rockwell Christmas scene, complete with the jingling bells of their horse-drawn wagon rides and roasted marshmallows at the fire pit.”

The Rocks Estate was the seasonal home of the Glessner family, who escaped the heat and stench of summer in Chicago to enjoy the mountain air.  John Jacob and Frances Glessner purchased a 100-acre farm in 1882, constructing the 19-room mansion known then as the Big House in 1883.  That house is gone, but many of the buildings they added remain, and those buildings, and the expanded land holdings, were donated to the Forest Society in 1978 by the Glessners’ grandchildren.

What was a wonderful summer place for the Glessner family remains a wonderful year-round destination for all families.  The trail system is open every day and includes the Heritage Trail.  Springtime guests at The Rocks come to the estate to learn about maple sugaring past and present as part of the New Hampshire Maple Experience.

“The most interesting part of this experience for me is when families come for the tours the parents often think that it’s going to be great for the kids – and short enough so that they don’t get too bored,” said Nigel Manley, director of The Rocks.  “However, by the time they’re midway through, the parents are asking more questions than their children, and are fascinated by the time-honored tradition of maple sugaring.”

For more information on The Rocks, visit http://www.therocks.org/.

(Note:  The New Hampshire Maple Experience is housed in a structure [shown at the top of the article] originally built as a combination sawmill and pigpen for the Glessner family in 1906.  It was designed by architect and family friend Hermann V. von Holst.)

Lorado Taft, Sculptor

On Tuesday March 12, 2013 at 7:00pm, the museum will host author Lynn Allyn Young, who will present a lecture on her recently published book, Beautiful Dreamer: The Completed Works and Unfulfilled Plans of Sculptor Lorado Taft.  (Tickets are $10 per person and $8 for museum members.  For more information or to make reservations, call 312.326.1480.)

Lorado Taft (1860-1936) was a prominent American sculptor, respected writer and educator, teaching for many years at the Art Institute of Chicago.  His massive Fountain of Time, located in the southeast corner of Washington Park at the west end of the Midway Plaisance is among Chicago’s best known public works of art. 

Taft was born in Elmwood, Illinois and received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees (1879 and 1880 respectively) from the University of Illinois, where his father was a professor of geology.  Taft later attended the École des Beaux-Arts where he received high praises for his work and twice was asked to exhibit at their annual Salon.  After returning to Chicago in 1886, he accepted a position to teach at the Art Institute of Chicago, a post he retained until 1929. 

During the planning of the World’s Columbian Exposition, Daniel Burnham approached Taft about his concerns that the sculptural decorations on the various buildings would not be completed in time.   Taft suggested the use of a number of his female students to work as assistants to which Burnham famously replied “Hire anyone, even white rabbits if they’ll do the work.”  Several of the female sculptors, who became known as the “White Rabbits,” achieved later fame, and Taft is generally credited with helping to advance the status of women as sculptors.

In 1903, Taft published a comprehensive survey of American sculpture entitled The History of American Sculpture.  The study was revised in 1925 and remained the standard reference on the subject until the late 1960s.  In 1921, he published Modern Tendencies in Sculpture, a compilation of various lectures given at the Art Institute, still regarded as an important work in recording the perspectives on American and European sculpture in the first decades of the 20^th century. 

In 1906, Taft moved his main studio to a converted carriage house at what is now 6016 S. Ingleside Avenue, immediately south of the Midway Plaisance (entrance shown above).  The firm of Pond & Pond was hired to significantly expand the building, known as the Midway Studios, to include a total of thirteen studios and dormitory spaces for Taft and other sculptors.  (The complex, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965, is now used by the University of Chicago as studio and gallery space for its studio art program.)

Taft’s commissions were numerous and not surprisingly several of them can be found today in Chicago.  His Fountain of the Great Lakes, completed in 1913, stands in the south courtyard of the Art Institute of Chicago.  Two prominent monuments at Graceland Cemetery, Eternal Silence (Dexter Graves monument, 1909) and The Crusader (Victor Lawson monument, 1931) remain favorites on walking tours of the cemetery, the latter being used as the cover image of the new guide to the cemetery, written by Barbara Lanctot for the Chicago Architecture Foundation. 

But it is the massive Fountain of Time in Washington Park, 110 feet long and 24 feet high, that remains Taft’s most famous work in Chicago.   (A detail of the fountain is shown on the book cover at top).  It is interesting to note that John Glessner was involved in the planning for this project as noted in an entry in the Glessner journal dated February 2, 1913:

“I have had several meetings with the committee to help place Lorado Taft’s monument, The Passing of Time, on the Midway, in commemoration of 100 years of peace between the U.S. and England, for which the Art Institute gave Taft the commission.  Now the South Park Commissioners must agree to the placing of it.  At least five years will be required to complete the model.”

World War I intervened in the planning and execution of the fountain, so it was not officially dedicated until November 1922.  A $2 million restoration of the fountain and reflecting pool was completed in 2005, returning this treasure to its original glory.

Venetian glass ewer

This elegant ewer was created in one of the many glass factories on the island of Murano adjacent to the Italian city of Venice.  Since the 10^th century, Venice had boasted a proud tradition of decorative glass production because of its surplus of skilled craftsmen who emigrated there from Aquiteia and Byzantium, access to world trade and markets, and abundant raw materials.  As early as the 13^th century many Northern Italian towns had developed glassmaking guilds, but Venetian craftsmen would dominate this industry for the next five centuries.  Glass production was exiled to the nearby island of Murano in 1292 to safeguard Venice from accidental fire.  The Grand Council of the city also ensured its exclusive domination of the glass industry by banning the emigration of glass artisans and the divulging of trade secrets – both crimes were punishable by death.

Venetian glassmakers used an enameling process developed in the 15^th century to decorate vessels with complex, detailed figure designs, possibly reinterpreting nearby Islamic or Italian metalwork designs.  Other objects were decorated with Renaissance scenes usually inspired by classical Roman subjects.  Venetian artists perfected methods for making rich, refractive colors such as blue, opaque white, green, purple, red, and turquoise.  Techniques were invented for shaping and decorating glass by blowing shapes around molds, and decorating glassware with trails, threads, or blobs (prunts) of glass.  The fashion for profusely ornamented glass eventually overpowered the beauty, purity of color and light refraction of the glass itself in Venetian wares.

By 1832, Renaissance-era glass techniques were beginning to be revived in Venice.  Other European glass factories began to imitate Venetian glass products.  In 1864, the first exhibition of Venetian glass was displayed in Venice’s Palazzo Giustinia museum.  Two years later, Antonio Salviati established a glass furnace in the Palazzo Mula in Venice and began reproducing traditional Venetian glass objects on a large scale.  Other Muranese glassmakers followed Salviati in making ‘pastiches,’ or imitations of sixteenth and seventeenth-century Venetian glass for the tourist market.

This light green glass ewer’s gracefully elongated body, applied handle and large spout is decorated with polychrome enamel painted in Renaissance-derived scroll-shaped floral designs on a gold vermicelli background, above and below which are horizontal rows of gilt scales highlighted with tiny painted enamel dots.  The clarity of glass color, graceful body, and intricate colorful decoration of this ewer exemplify the finest of 19^th century Venetian glassware. 

This ewer was a gift to John Glessner from his daughter Fanny in 1884 to honor her parent’s 14^th wedding anniversary, as noted by Frances Glessner’s journal entry of December 7^th: “Fanny gave her Papa a Venetian glass ewer . . .”  Her gift was placed atop a bookcase in the library of the Glessner home at 261 West Washington Street, and later on the mantle of the library in their Prairie Avenue home, where it is now displayed.  Certainly John Glessner thought of this object when describing the family’s “collections of Gallé and Venetian and other rare glass . . .” in 1923 when he penned his history of the house and its contents, The Story of a House. 

NOTE:  When the Prairie Avenue house was under construction, Richardson’s office ordered lamp globes for the main hall and parlor fixtures from Salviati’s firm.  The company, now known as Salviati & Sons, created reproduction globes for the new wall sconces that are now on display in these rooms.

Mrs. Ashton Dilke Visits the Glessner House

On April 8, 1888, Frances Glessner received a letter from a friend which she carefully pasted into her journal.  The letter is fascinating because of who wrote it, as well as the person introduced in the letter.

The letter was written by Sarah Hackett Stevenson, a long-time friend of Frances Glessner.   Stevenson, born in 1841 in Buffalo Grove, Illinois was an early female physician in Illinois.  After serving as the principal at the Mount Carroll Seminary (which later became Shimer College) she moved to Chicago to study medicine at the Women’s Hospital Medical College.   She obtained her MD in 1874, and two years later, while attending the convention of the American Medical Association as a delegate of the Illinois State Medical Society, was accepted as the first female member of the AMA.  In 1880, she co-founded the Illinois Training School for Nurses with Lucy Flowers.  She retired in 1903 and died in 1909. 

Dr. Stevenson was a frequent guest at the Glessner home, and often spent holidays with the family.  Both Dr. Stevenson and Frances Glessner were early members of the Chicago Woman’s Club and The Fortnightly, and it was probably through these organizations that they first became acquainted. 

In the letter, Dr. Stevenson indicated that she had just returned from Washington D.C. where she had treated Mrs. Ashton Dilke.  Having persuaded Mrs. Dilke to come to Chicago, Dr. Stevenson now sought a home where she could stay, and asked Frances Glessner to open her “lovely home” to Mrs. Dilke.  Dr. Stevenson goes on to say that in thinking of where her visitor could stay, she could “find no one who is really situated so beautifully as yourself to entertain such a guest.”

Mrs. Ashton Dilke (1857-1914) was a prominent English suffragette and came to Chicago to speak on the subject.  Both she and her husband (who had died in 1883) were active in the suffrage movement, her husband being a member of the London National Society for Women’s Suffrage, and Mrs. Dilke, a member of the Executive Committee of the National Society.  In 1885, she had published a book entitled Women’s Suffrage.  In 1888, she traveled to the United States with Elizabeth Cady Stanton to attend the International Council of Women in Washington, which is where she met Dr. Stevenson.

Frances Glessner graciously agreed to host Mrs. Dilke during her three-night stay in Chicago, and recorded her arrival in her journal:

“Today (Monday April 16) the house was besieged by reporters to see Mrs. Dilke.  She came at 9:30.  Dr. Stevenson and John went to the 22^nd St. station and took the train there and went on down town with her and then came home.  I gave her a hot supper.  Tuesday the reporters came before Mrs. Dilke was down stairs.  Callers came too by the half dozen.  I took her off for a drive, and then home to luncheon.  After luncheon I made her take a rest.  Then came my afternoon Tea – about seventy five ladies and gentlemen were here – and it was all very pretty.”

Three newspaper clippings pasted into the journal provide more details on the afternoon tea:

“Mrs. J. J. Glessner gave an afternoon tea Tuesday in honor of Mrs. Dilke and Mrs. Chant.  The beautiful new house was thronged with guests, and its artistic interior was brightened everywhere with aesthetic clusters of flowers, arranged in rare bowls and vases.  Mrs. Glessner received in her drawing-room, which is, perhaps, the handsomest salon in the city.  Among the guests were many gentlemen.  Tea was served in the breakfast-room, a small apartment exquisitely finished in the Romanesque style.”

“At Mrs. Glessner’s afternoon tea Tuesday, Miss Fanny Doane, Miss Fanny Locke, and Miss Harriet Monroe did the honors of the table.  The cloth was strewn with rose-buds, and the very dainty arrangement of bonbons, lozenges and glaces gave one the idea of bouquets.”

“Tuesday Mrs. J. J. Glessner gave a delightful 5 o’clock tea to about seventy-five guests in honor of Mrs. Ashton Dilke.  Mrs. Glessner received assisted by Mrs. Dilke, both ladies being attired in exquisite tea gowns.  The handsome house was decorated in the loveliest manner with roses and tulips.  The “tea” was served in the dining room and consisted mainly of English breakfast tea, English wafers and bread and butter and assorted cakes served on china of delicate Royal Worcester.  The ladies were all in lovely toilets of brocades, satins, laces and silks, and all wore dainty evening bonnets, while the gentlemen were in all the glory of evening dress and boutonnieres.”  (The guest list which followed was a virtual Who’s Who of Chicago, and included Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer, Mr. and Mrs. Robert T. Lincoln, Mr. and Mrs. Bryan Lathrop, Mr. and Mrs. Marshall Field, Mr. and Mrs. John B. Drake, as well as many of the Glessners’ Prairie Avenue neighbors).

Mrs. Dilke’s speech was scheduled for Wednesday.  Frances Glessner continued:

“Wednesday Mrs. Field invited us to luncheon and to the French Opera.  She gave Mrs. Dilke a profusion of flowers, one a large bunch of orchids which Mrs. D. wore when she made her address.  The Opera was very poor – but gave me a chance to rest.  We went to the meeting in Methodist Church Block and heard first, Mrs. Dilke on ‘Women in Politics,’ then Mrs. Ormiston Chant on ‘Working Women in England.’  After the speeches we brought Mr. Shortall home and left Mrs. Dilke and Mrs. Stevenson at his house while John and I came home, got the tray of supper for Mrs. D., took it up to Shortall’s and had a hot supper.”

The events of the week concluded the next day.

“Thursday Mrs. Sprague took pity on me and took Mrs. Dilke up to Mr. Hutchinson’s to see his pictures.  Then we went to a luncheon at Mrs. Fernando Jones, where we sat thirteen at table.  We had a very nice luncheon hurried by Mrs. Dilke having to take the 3:10 train for New York.  She had beautiful flowers sent to and given to her.  We went to bed early – tired out.”

And thus ended a busy week entertaining one of the first overnight guests in the Glessner’s new house on Prairie Avenue.

The stone capitals on Glessner House

The façade of Glessner House is dominated by courses of rusticated Braggville granite of various heights, creating the “fortress-like” appearance so often sited in books on American architecture and so representative of Henry Hobson Richardson’s mature style.  Upon closer examination, however, subtle ornamentation enlivens the façade in a few carefully selected locations – beautifully executed stonework that relates directly to the detailing which visitors find upon passing through the front door.

Among the details are a series of nine carved capitals terminating the dressed stone piers set between the second floor windows on both the façade and the north side of the house.  Each of the nine capitals is different, mixing and matching various motifs including the acanthus leaf, dentils, discs, diamonds, scrolls, and basket-weave designs.  Of particular interest is the capital located directly over the front entrance which features the monogram of Richardson, with its pair of mirror-image capital Rs set within a larger letter H, the whole contained in a large circle (see image at top).

The capitals were carved in situ, as was most of the stone decoration.  Early views of the house under construction show the blocks of stone in place awaiting their decoration by the carver’s hand.  The Glessners’ good friend and designer, Isaac Elwood Scott, was asked to prepare designs for the capitals, but the Glessners were not pleased with the drawings he presented. 

A letter dated August 9, 1887 from George Shepley (the architect in the firm of Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge who oversaw the completion of Glessner House) to John Glessner notes that “Mr. Evans started last week with his carvers for Chicago and St. Louis.” 

John Evans (1847-1923) was a Welsh sculptor who first worked with Richardson on the completion of the frieze atop the tower of the Brattle Square Church in Boston in 1873.  Evans also provided the sculpture at Boston's Trinity Church and later went on to found a nationally recognized sculptural studio in Boston.  In 1897, he became a member of the Society of Arts and Crafts in Boston, and a prominent member of Boston’s medieval “guild” of artists.  Richardson used Evans for the sculpture and carving on a number of his buildings, and Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge continued to use his services after Richardson’s death in 1886.

The receipts of the construction of Glessner House show that Evans, or more correctly his firm, Evans & Tomb, was paid $1,086.50 for the stone carvings, including the nine capitals. 

Woman's Athletic Club of Chicago

The Woman’s Athletic Club of Chicago, celebrating its 115^th anniversary in 2013, has deep Prairie Avenue roots.  Its founding can be traced back to a dinner party at the home of Mrs. Philip D. Armour at 2115 S. Prairie Avenue, and many of the early members and supporters were residents of the street as well.  On March 9^th, the museum offers the exciting opportunity to tour the beautiful Club building completed in 1929 at 626 N. Michigan Avenue, including the elegant public spaces, as well as rarely seen behind-the-scenes spaces, truly an upstairs-downstairs experience.   For further information on the tour, call 312-326-1480.  Group size is strictly limited.

The idea for a Club where women could exercise and enjoy a leisurely meal with friends originated with Mrs. Paulina Harriette Lyon.  One night, while dining at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Philip D. Armour, she described her vision of the club.  Mrs. Belle Ogden Armour found the idea most intriguing and an important project for women of the city to undertake (unlike the men who thought it an “excellent joke”), and soon after pledged $50,000 to put the project in motion.   Such an idea was entirely new; it would become the first athletic club for women in the United States.   The Club was officially incorporated on September 13, 1898 and Mrs. Armour was elected president.  Several of Mrs. Armour’s neighbors quickly joined, including members of the Allerton, Caton, Drake, Hutchinson, Lowden, Pullman, Pike, and Smith families, and nationally prominent women such as Susan B. Anthony, Julia Ward Howe, and the wife of President McKinley accepted honorary memberships.

The first home for the Club consisted of three floors in a six-story building on Michigan Avenue north of Adams (now the site of the Peoples Gas Building).  The official housewarming took place May 24, 1899 and it would remain the home of the Club until 1909, when they moved to larger quarters in the recently constructed International Harvester building at 606 S. Michigan Avenue (where John Glessner had his office).   It was in that same year that Belle Armour was made honorary president for life (she died in 1927).

The Club had long dreamed of a building of its own and the opportunity came in the late 1920s when a site became available at the northwest corner of Michigan Avenue and Ontario Street.  Architect Philip B. Maher, just 33 years old at the time, was hired to design the building, and designer Marian Gheen the interiors.  North Michigan Avenue was undergoing a major transformation at the time, so the move north was considered most appropriate and timely.   When the building was designated a Chicago landmark on October 2, 1991, the report said in part:

The building’s architecture illustrates the sophisticated urban ambience of North Michigan Avenue, as it was originally planned and developed in the 1920s.  The modern French-style classical design, which is reminiscent of continental-style Parisian elegance, is one of the last standing links to the street’s formative years.

The building was dedicated and opened in April 1929, just a few months before the Stock Market Crash and the start of the Great Depression.  The Club struggled during those early years in their new building, but a persistent and dedicated group of members ensured its long-term survival, as other Clubs around them failed never to reopen.

Among the more interesting furnishings are the chandeliers in the second floor gallery and card room, made from two old gas chandeliers which once hung in the John B. Drake home at 2114 S. Calumet Avenue.  The nearby Ladies Powder Room contains several miniature rooms created by Mrs. James Ward Thorne, a resident of 1708 S. Prairie Avenue and a friend of George and Alice Glessner and Blewett and Frances Lee, who occupied the two houses immediately to the north.  The second floor also features a portrait of founding president Belle Armour (shown below), painted in 1939 by Charles Sneed Williams. 

Today, the Club serves as a thriving link to our City’s past and continues to provide an elegant oasis for its members amidst the hustle and bustle of North Michigan Avenue.