Larkin Company Building | |
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General information | |
Architectural style | Classical Revival [1] |
Location | 3617 S. Ashland Avenue, Chicago, Illinois |
Coordinates | 41°49′40.6″N 87°39′53.5″W / 41.827944°N 87.664861°W |
Completed | 1912 |
Demolished | December 2020 |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 8 |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | F. E. Lockwood |
The Larkin Company Building was an eight-story loft building at 3617 S. Ashland Avenue in Chicago's Central Manufacturing District. It was a contributing property to the Central Manufacturing District–Original East Historic District. [1] The building was built in 1912 and was demolished in December 2020.
The Larkin Company purchased the property in late 1911 for $45,257, and built the building in 1912 at a cost of approximately $500,000. [2] [3] [4] [5] It was designed by F. E. Lockwood and originally housed the Larkin Company's Chicago operations. [1] [3] [5] It also housed the offices and warehouse of the Vassar Swiss Underwear Company from 1913 until 1914, when it moved to its newly built plant at 2545 West Diversey. [6] [7] In the 1920s, the building housed the Midwestern operations of the Hydro-United Tire Company and the Bristol Company, a manufacturer of recording equipment. [8] [9]
By the early 1930s, Jewel Food Stores had offices in the building. [10] The Jewel Tea company purchased the building in 1937 for $432,000. [11] The building served the headquarters of the Jewel Food Stores division, as well as its warehouse. [12] [13] A two-story addition was built in 1948, designed by Carr & Wright. [12] In 1954, much of the company's Chicago and Barrington operations were combined at their new site in Melrose Park, but the building continued to serve Jewel as a distribution warehouse for many years. [14] [15] In 1954, Jewel planned to build a heliport on the roof of the building. [16] The building later housed Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company's Wrico Packaging division. [17] A permit to demolish the building was issued on December 11, 2020.