Boston Store , State Madison Building
Life Span: 1905/1917-Current
Location: Northwest Corner State and Madison
Architect: Holabird & Roche
- Lakeside Annual Directory of the City of Chicago, 1911
Boston Store dry goods Henry G Hart mngr; State, Madison and Dearborn
Inter Ocean, April 5, 1905
Fuller Company Secures Contract for Construction of New Boston Store Building for Mrs. Charles Netcher.
The George A. Fuller company has been awarded the general contract for the construction of the Boston store for Mrs. Charles Netcher. As already announced, It will be a twelve story structure, covering the entire south half of the block bounded by Washington, State, Madison, and Dearborn streets, and will be built in five sections. The first of these includes part of the State street frontage and the premises 81 to 85 Madison street, the second section part of the State street frontage, on which half of the old building now stands; the third section the other half of the old building; the fourth section, remodeling the Champlain building, and the last section that portion of the block facing Dearborn street, extending from Madison street to the alley north. The complete structure is estimated to cost $3,000,000.
Inter Ocean, July 2, 1905
Last Tuesday the wrecking of the old landmark at 81 to 87 East Madison street, familiarly known as the Hannah & Hogg building, which also housed Sam T. Jack’s theater, started to make room for the new fourteen story building, the new home of the Boston store.
The property from State street to Dearborn street, on the north side of Madison street and extending north to the alley, is owned or controlled under ninety-nine year leases by Mrs. Mollie Netcher, widow of the late Charles Netcher, who amassed a remarkable fortune in the management of the great Boston store.
The location is one of the most accessible in the down town district.
It is the intention to finally cover this entire half-block, 325×163 feet, with a building eighteen stories high. The architects are Holabird & Roche, and the contractors for the general work are John Griffiths & Sons.
Bullding Entirely Fireproof.
The building is to be of the highest class of fireproof, skeleton construction, department store buildings, with walls and columns supported on mammoth concrete caissons, extending down 100 feet below the sidewalk to the solid rock underlying the clay of the Chicago basin.
The most Interesting feature of this building is the great amount of space occupied below the street level. The entire basement which is fifteen feet in the clear, is devoted to salesrooms, and below this is a twelve foot clear story devoted to shipping-rooms, and below this again is the deep second sub-basement.
Lower Storles of Granite.
The two lower stories will be of polished gray granite, and above this, beginning at the sills of the third story, the entire front will be of light gray, full glazed terra cotta, with the divisions between windows and the moldings around windows of dark green, full glazed terra cotta.
The interior finish generally will be of mahogany.
Every precaution has been taken to protect life and property from fire. Each elevator and staircase is inclosed in fireproof partitions, shutting off these means of exit on each floor, not only from fire, but also from smoke, which, by causing serious panics is nearly as fatal. The building is equipped with a complete automatic sprinkler system, protecting every nook and corner of this great building against even incipient fires. Each piece of steel is inclosed in fireproof tile, and all columns, girders, lintels, etc., are incased in cement and stone concrete, In addition to the usual hollow tile fireproofing. There are stand pipes and hose reels located so that fifty feet of hose will reach every part of each floor, and, in addition to all these precautions, the building will have eight fire escapes, generally of the stairway type.
There will be a complete restaurant on the fifth floor, with kitchen and serving rooms.
Space of Servie Department.
The service department occuples a space 150 feet long In the alley at the middle of the building and 50 feet deep north and south, and is entirely shut off from the rest of the building by walls and fire doors. In this space on the various floors are the shipping and receiving platforms, freight elevators, the employes’ toilets, locker-rooms, lunchrooms, kitchen, unpacking room, workrooms, etc., and where It is not intended that the customers will enter. In this space are the employes’ staircases and elevators and all the utilities of the service departments.
At the rear of the middle section of the main store and near the escalators and the main aisle of the store is a balcony rest and writing-room for lady customers, with the toilets, hospital, lavatories, etc., in connection with the balcony.
Everything has been done to make this the Inest department store In the world, both as to arrangement, equipment, comfort, safety, and stability.
- State & Madison Streets
1902
Chicago Live Stock World, December 18, 1905
No fewer than 200,000 persons experienced the delight of riding on the great system of escalators in the Boston Store today. From the time the store opens in the morning until it closes inn the evening, the moving stairways, which operate between the basement and fifth floor, are continually carrying a never ending line of Christmas shoppers.
Every one that rides on the escalators unconsciously testifies to its merits.The smile of satisfaction that brighten the face of the woman who holds a baby in one arm and a pile of Christmas bundles in another as she steps off the stairway on the main floor, the laughing faces of boys and girls and the pleasure reflected in the countenances of fathers and husbands as they step from the moving stairway all give evidence of success and practicability of the great twentieth century invention.
Christmas Shopping Mads Easy.
There Is no crowding, no pushing, no jolting, no waiting, no stopping and no time lost in riding on the escalator. In fact, the new mechanism robs holiday shopping of nearly ail its terrors.
The Boston Store is a veritable land of Santa Claus. Bright decorations, great displays of Christmas goods and counters piled high with toys and art goods make an imposing sight.
One of the many imposing features of the new home of the Boston Store is the great marble soda fountain on the main floor, the largest in the world.
Makes the Work Easier.
“My work is easier this holiday season than it has been in the fifteen years I have been in the business,” declared a floor walker in the Boston Store. “And at the same time the Boston Store is doing a bigger business and handling more people than ever before.
“I credit the escalators for this improvement, and l’ll tell you why. The handling of crowds such as you see in here now is no small matter. You’ve got to keep every one on the move, and you must also keep them good natured.
“The moving stairway solves both problems. The people do not have to crowd and push and shove and struggle now like they used to.
Keeps the Shoppers Happy.
“Some of the good points l have already observed in the escalator are that it never stops, that it goes right on every second carrying people up and down from one floor to another. The woman need not wait until she gets out of patience, but simply steps on the stairway and the next moment is up a floor or down a floor.
“It is impossible for her do be crowded on the moving stairway, it is impossible for any one to jostle against her. She is kept in a happy frame of mind and there is a real enjoyment in the riding.
“Twenty thousand persons can ride on the escalator every hour, without the least bit of inconvenience.”
Dry Goods Economist, April 26, 1913
Boston Store Catalog, 1908
Chicago Tribune July 31, 1948
BY THOMAS BUCK
At 5:30 o clock this afternoon Chicago will lose one of its older business establishments when the Boston store, at the “world’s busiest corner,” Madison and State sts., closes its doors to the public for the last time.
Today’s closing—the end of a month’s liquidation sale-comes 75 years after the Boston store began business as a product of the reconstruction period following the disastrous Chicago fire of 1871. All that remain for the complete demise of this State st. department store are the disposal at wholesale auction of left-over merchandise and the sale of fixtures.
The 17 story structure, on the northwest corner of the famous business intersection then will be transformed into a combination and store building.
Break In State St. Line-Up
The passing of the Boston store represents the first major break in the big State st. department store line-up in years. The Boston store itself caused the last big change by buying the stock of the Siegal-Cooper company 30 years acts.
The man responsible for making, the Boston store a major operator on State st. was Charles Netcher, whose career followed the traditional Horatic Alger pattern. In 1865 young Netcher was earning $1.50 a week carrying bundles for a Buffalo, N.Y., store operated. by Charles and Edward Partridge. with Netcher’s work in that and subsequent jobs. The Partridges brought him to Chicago in 1873 when they opened a store in a three story building on part of the ground occupied by the present Boston Store.
Installed As Manager
Netcher was installed as manager, and within five years of the store s founding he had bought out the Partridges’ interest. He operated the store until his death In 1904, when it was taken over by his wife, now Mrs. Mollie Netcher Newbury.
Two years ago the store and property were purchased by a syndicate headed by Edgar L. Echnaaig for about 14 million dollars. At that time the name was changed to the New Boston store, altho in the minds of most Chicagoans the original title applied. Earlier this summer control passed to a banking group which exercised a right to convert $5.268,750 of New Boston store notes into stock. Previously a contemplated stock issue to cover the notes failed to materialize after it was decided that the securities market was unfavorable for the offering.
Group Decides To Sell
Shortly after the banking group took over it became known in business circles that the group wished to sell because it did not consider itself equipped to operate a department store. For a short period, it was believed a new department store operator might purchase the business. The banking group, which is headed by Union Securities corporation, is attempting to sell the building and property.
The Boston store once had the second highest annual sales record on State st. That was in 1923 when sales totaled 33 million dollars. Later the sales volume began to shrink. The war was said to have brought only a brief respite.
Sale Attracts Old Customers
The liquidation sale, began 30 days ago, is believed to have brought back many old customers for final bargains, Cashiers reported that silver dollars and old sized bills showed up in the tills as many a gray haired couple strolled along the sale counters.
it was estimated that 4 million worth of stock will have been cleared by closing time In the final sale to the public.
Chicago Tribune, June 17, 1949
FLORSHEIM SHOE SHOP IN OLD BOSTON STORE TO BE OPENED TODAY
Florsheim Shoe company will open a new store today’ at 1 N. Dearborn st. The site Is a corner section of the old Boston Store building and has a frontage of 60 feet on Dearborn at. and 25 feet on Madison.
The store front is of modern visual design with no conventional dIsplay windows. All merchandise on display is shown in moveable glass cases inside the store.
Interior walls are of red brick and dark Tennessee oak, with bleached oak furniture and fixtures for contrast.
Chicago Tribune, January 23, 2015
By Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz, Tribune reporter.
A New York investment group is making a run at selling the iconic Loop building that housed Sears’ flagship State Street store (since 1998) as the downtown office market gears up for another active year.
Investors have been invited to submit offers for the building at 1 N. Dearborn St., which included the Sears store on State Street, according to marketing materials. The documents also list the landmark office tower at 1 N. LaSalle St. for sale.
Both are owned by New York-based Chetrit Group, which also is an investor in the Willis Tower. The firm did not respond to a request for comment.
It is not clear if the November request for bids has yielded a buyer. Eastdil Secured, a real estate investment banking firm handling the offering, did not respond to requests for comment. No pricing information was available.
Chetrit Group bought the buildings, along with 360 N. Michigan Ave.. for about $118 million in 2002.
The 17-story. 940.341-square-foot building at 1 N. Dearborn St. includes 45,232 square feet of retail space and “is perfectly positioned for a new owner to lease its prime State Street availability to one of many nationally recognized retailers vying for a critical presence on the flourishing retail corridor” the materials said.
The building, whose tenants have an average lease term of 8½ years, includes technology, law, government, education and marketing tenants, according to the materials.
One North Dearhorn. built in 1905 and renovated in 2000, is 93.4 percent leased, according to CoStar Group, a real estate information service. About 32,700 square feet available on the first floor is configured as retail.
Hoffman Estates-based Sears Holdings, which closed its five-floor Loop flagship in April, continues to operate online and information technology units on the fourth floor of the building. Chicago Public Schools moved its headquarters into much of the former Sears space last month, taking over the basement and second and third floors, plus parts of the first and ninth floors, for a total of 182,002 square feet, according to CoStar.
But the prime first-floor storefront at State and MadiSon streets leased. remains unleased.
“That is the best location on State Street today,” said David Stone. founder and principal at Stone Real Estate, which is not involved with the building. “Probably the only reason it hasn’t been leased yet is because it is quite large. It will likely be divided”
He said that prime retail corner offers about 24.000 square feet.
The broker with MB Real Estate who is handling the leasing of the space did not respond to requests for comment.
Chicago’s downtown office market has had a sturdy recovery since the recession when building sales dropped from a high of $5.3 billion in 2006 to $60 million in 2009, according to commercial real estate brokerage JLL.
Last year, 16 downtown buildings sold for a total of $3.95 billion, the most since 2007, according to the firm.
Several factors have made the downtown business district attractive to investors, including a reduction in new construction and stronger tenant demand, which has reduced vacancies and helped push up rents, said Bruce Miller of JLL. Sales are expected to rise this year.
“The supply and demand characteristics show no sign slowing down,” said Miller, who completed the sale of six downtown office buildings in 2014.
One North Dearborn and 1 N. LaSalle, which together are referred to as the Central Loop Collection. are being sold together or invidually, and “will be transferred free and clear of any debt,” the marketing materials said.
The LaSalle street office building has 47 stories and 493,738 square feet.
- Boston Store
NE Corner Dearborn and Madison
NW Corner State and Madison
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map
1906
I’m currently employed as an engineer at one North Dearborn for almost 30 years now was informed that one North Dearborn or the Boston store was the first building in the city Chicago to have running escalators always curious to know if that’s the findings on it! Also one North Dearborn used to have a large clock at the side of the building on State in Madison, wondering whatever happened to it and the whereabouts if it still exists
The first escalators were installed in NYC in 1900. The first escalators installed west of New York was in the second Leiter Building and were open to the public on March 31, 1902. This building was immediately leased to Siegel, Cooper & Company, which went bankrupt and Sears, Roebuck and Co. opened its retail store there, on the northeast corner of Van Buren and State.
The Boston Store was built in 1905 and the new escalators were installed at that time.
As far as the location of architectural artifacts, that type of research is outside the scope of Chicagology.
The Leiter Building escalator only operated up from the first to second floors. The Boston Store had a whole up-down system.
It was very expensive to retrofit elevators into existing buildings, whereas the Boston Store had them part of the building infrastructure. Many buildings built after 1905 were designed to have escalator systems installed.