Category Archives: Chicago

InSPIREd Sunday ~ Chicago

In May of 2012 I traveled with Dear to an Oncology Conference held in Chicago and on one of the mornings we had time to enjoy breakfast together and a visit to two interesting churches filled with history.

” Holy Name Cathedral on North State Street is both a Roman Catholic parish and the seat of the Archdiocese of Chicago. After the fire of 1871 destroyed the former Holy Name Church, Bishop Thomas Foley resolved to build a spectacular replacement. Brooklyn architect Patrick Charles Keely designed the Gothic structure, and the cornerstone was laid on July 19, 1874.”

Once inside the church, the most striking feature is the suspended Resurrection Crucifix sculpted by the artist Ivo Demetz.

“Among the many striking features inside the Cathedral are the five red, broad-brimmed, cardinals’ hats, or galeros, suspended from the ceiling. Traditionally, this symbol of a cardinal is raised to the ceiling of his cathedral upon his death. The hat hangs until it turns into dust, a reminder that all earthly glory is passing.”  You’ll need to look carefully in the upper part of my photo which is almost too dark to see the galeros.

The most famous story about Holy Name Cathedral involves a mobster gunfight that happened on Oct. 11, 1926. Gunmen hired by Al Capone were positioned across from the cathedral and killed Earl “Hymie” Weiss in a hail of gunfire, leaving a bullet wedged into the cornerstone. We saw the bullet hole but I didn’t take a photo of it.

The Fourth Presbyterian Church was the 2nd church we visited. “The name “Fourth” was selected not because it was the fourth Presbyterian church to be founded in Chicago—there had been several founded before then, with North Presbyterian being one of the earliest—but because “Fourth” was the lowest number then not in use. “ The first structure at a different location was re-dedicated on October 8, 1871 and just 2 hours after it’s evening services concluded the Great Chicago Fire swept through downtown and the Northside and destroyed it. They were at another location and then in 1912 they settled at this property on Michigan Ave.

There was no “Michigan Avenue” north of the Chicago River yet in 1912; it was to be several years before a bridge was constructed over the Chicago River to extend north the Michigan Avenue that had grown in prominence south of the river.

“The church proper (the Sanctuary) was designed by architect Ralph Adams Cram, the parish buildings around the courtyard by architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, and the stained glass windows by Charles J. Connick. The interior painting and decoration of the Sanctuary was overseen by Frederick Clay Bartlett. The new church was dedicated in 1914.”

“The North Michigan Avenue “Magnificent Mile” neighborhood literally grew up around the church, particularly after the opening of the Michigan Avenue Bridge in 1920. Except for the familiar Water Tower complex two blocks to the south, which survived the Chicago Fire of 1871, Fourth Church is now the oldest surviving structure on Michigan Avenue north of the river.”

The hotel we stayed in was just across the street from The Fourth Presbyterian Church. Do you make it a point to open the door of a beautiful church when you are traveling. I’m always happy to find them open to enjoy.

Linking up with InSPIREd Sunday with Beth and Sally.

Back here in November of 2014 we are still cold and dry in the greater Seattle area. Dear has been finishing up some painting of new doors and baseboard and touching up the walls around the bathroom renovation. We moved some wall art which meant some more touch up needed to be done. We’re getting ready for an early Thanksgiving gathering this coming weekend. How was your weekend?

That’s All Folks…

These are the last of my Chicago photos that didn’t fit in elsewhere in my posts…

Lincoln at O’Hare airport. Lincoln had no idea we’d be flying in and out of Illinois day in and day out…

I was impressed with the planters and lights in trees around the Michigan Ave. area.

Tallest Church building in the U.S.

Buckingham Fountain

Crown Fountain

This sign is great and it really makes it clear that winter in Chicago is very different from winter in Seattle.

Thankfully our ride back to the airport in our taxi was very pleasant compared to our drive to the hotel from the airport. Word to the wise…you might want to reject a taxi ride specified for you at the airport if the cab is real stinky and old.

Farewell Chicago. Time will tell if we’re back next year for ASCO.

I was very busy on Thursday and up on my feet all day long. My back and feet were complaining by two in the afternoon so I knew it was a pizza delivery day. We have a great pizza spot that delivers pizza with half Greek or Caeser salads that are delicious. Sometimes you just have to know when your body is spent and ready for food to be delivered to you. Today is a relaxing off day for me and I’m really ready for that. Hope you all have a wonderful first weekend of Summer!

Chicago Art Museum

There is so much to see at the Chicago Art Museum. Here are the pieces that caught my interest…

Doris Lee (1905-1983) ~ Thanksgiving, c. 1935, Oil on canvas.

Randolph Rogers (1825-1892) Nydia the blind flower girl of Pompeii

Flower Girl in Holland, 1887. George Hitchcock

The Annunciation ~ George Hitchcock ~ Mary depicted as a Dutch peasant girl in a field of lilies.

The next several pieces are from the artist Monet…

There were many more pieces painted by Monet.

Renoir

Pierre Auguste Renoir , Young Woman Sewing, 1879.

Gustave Caillebotte, Paris Street; Rainy Day, 1877.

Degas

“Marc Chagall’s America Windows is one of the most beloved treasures in Chicago’s Art Museum’s vast collection. First debuting at the Art Institute in 1977 and made forever famous less than ten years later by an appearance in the film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, the “Chagall Windows,” as they are more popularly known, hold a special place in the hearts of Chicagoans. Following an intensive period of conservation treatment and archival research, the windows returned in 2010 as the stunning centerpiece of a new presentation at the east end of the museum’s Arthur Rubloff building.”

If you are ever in Chicago you shouldn’t miss this great art museum. What I’ve shared is such a small representation of what the museum offers.

We are yearning for sunshine here in the Pacific Northwest.  This weather just makes me want to curl up with a good book. I’m enjoying a new to me murder mystery series by Anne Perry. Today I’m looking forward to meeting up with the gals from my Bible Study Tuesday group for a casual lunch in Lake Forest Park. It will be nice to see them and do a little catch up.

Graceland Cemetery

One of the days I was in Chicago I got real brave and found the city transit bus I needed to get to Graceland Cemetery that is just north of Wrigley Field. I really enjoy old cemeteries with great above ground headstones/monuments.

The bus let me off right at the main gate of the cemetery. Sigh of relief. I was the only visitor at the cemetery but thankfully there were grounds crew there mowing and edging so I wasn’t completely alone. That would have been a little creepy.

This cemetery really is one of the best in the U.S. I’ve been to so far. I had a walking guide that led me to some  noteworthy Chicago people buried here.

This is Peter Schoenhofen’s tomb 1827-1893. He established Schoenhofen’s Brewery. Although a significant amount of the brewery has been lost, the structures that remain of the Schoenhofen Brewery are still the most impressive pre-Prohibition era brewery structures in Chicago. Buildings were first erected in 1862.  The last buildings were built in 1912, and the brewery remained in business until 1924, a casualty of prohibition. Supposedly, members of the Schoenhofen family used a tower to broadcast radio messages to German agents during World War I, prompting federal agents to seize the brewery.

 William Kimball (1828-1904) He was the founder of the Kimball Piano and Organ Company.

Potter Palmer, Architect, 1826-1902. A prominent Chicago social leader, he was the primary developer of State Street, and built the Palmer House Hotel.

Architect. Born Lucius George Fisher Jr. in Beloit, Wisconsin, on November 27, 1843, he was a Chicago paper company magnate and architect. In 1895, he commissioned the Daniel Burnham & Company to build the 20 story, 275 foot tall Fisher Building in the loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Completed in 1896, the landmark Fisher Building is the oldest 20 story building in Chicago that has not been demolished. Lucius George Fisher Jr. died in Chicago, Illinois, on March 20, 1916.

Dexter Graves (1789-1844) The Graves family was one of Chicago’s earliest settlers, arriving from Ohio in 1831. Note the most appropriate sculpture for the family name. The bronze is by the famous Lorado Taft and is called ‘Eternal Silence.’ He married Olive Kendall in 1818. Dexter was a son of Charles Graves and his first wife Lucy Brown, and was a seventh generation descendant of Thomas Graves who settled in Hartford, CT in 1645. Dexter lived in Norwich, Chenango Co., NY, and in Ashtabula Co., OH. His son Henry Graves was one of the richest men in Chicago.

There are Halloween rumors that the eyes glow on this statue on Halloween night. It’s pretty creepy even without the eyes glowing.

On my way out walking to Wrigley field to catch a Trolley back to downtown I passed another cemetery that was locked up for renovations.

I was happy to meet up with the trolley on schedule for my trip back. This is a very long post with a lot of photos and I didn’t even share all the photos I took. As always I find out after the fact what I missed when I do more research. I might have a chance to get back here since the ASCO conference will be in Chicago the next several years and Dear might have to represent his company again.

From an early age my siblings and I went to funerals and cemeteries. We were never left at home when my parents attended a funeral. It was part of our life to be exposed and not sheltered from death as hard as death is…

On a brighter note…the sun is shining here to day and as I look out my window I do not see any clouds. I’ll have to find something to do out and about to get my fair share of vitamin D. Have a great Father’s Day weekend everyone!

Tiffany Dome

I had read about the wonderful Tiffany glass dome in the Cultural Center in Chicago just across from Millennium Park so I jumped off the trolley to go have a look. I was greeted by a 3-story vaulted lobby with walls of white marble and mosaics.

The dome was restored to Tiffany’s original vision. Now the dome can be seen as it was in 1897, when the building opened as the first Chicago Public Library, and the room now named Preston Bradley Hall was where people picked up the books they had requested. Natural light shines through the glass, changing the subtle colors of the restored glass minute-by-minute. There is much evidence in the buildings interior to point to the fact that this building used to be the first Chicago Public Library.

The cultural center is free and the hours it’s open are very generous. I missed another dome in the building that I read about after the fact.

Today, Wednesday, I’m cashing in a Mother’s Day present from middle son for a massage. I think I’ve needed one since Katie and Andrew’s wedding in March. I booked the full 90 minute tranquility massage. Ahhh….If you don’t hear from me you’ll know that I’m in relaxation mode.

I’m also be linking to Alphabe-Thursday with Miss Jenny for the letter D…dome!

Cruising…

…along the Chicago River.

So many of you recommended this cruise and I found myself on an almost empty boat to make the voyage. We started just east of Michigan Ave.

The tall building on the left is the Trump International Hotel and Tower. It is the tallest structurally all-concrete building in the world.

We went under 21 bridges on the cruise.

This is Marina City, highly innovative when they were completed in the 1960’s by Bertrand Goldberg.

See how the corner of this building really isn’t a corner. This type of construction yields 4 corner offices instead of just 2 bringing in more revenue. Wouldn’t you prefer a corner office? I would if I didn’t have to pay for it.

The brochure says that this is 333 West Wacker Dr. Kohn Pedersen Fox’s Chicago debut and that it is a good example of contextualism, with a curved, shimmering, green-tinted facade flowing in harmony with the river’s hue.

The center building in this photo is now called the Willis Tower. It used to be called the Sears Tower. It was the world’s tallest building for 24 years.

A three-story art deco statue of Ceres, goddess of agriculture (particularly grain), caps the Chicago Board of Trade Building which has been given a National Historic Landmark designation. Here’s the full building way at the end of this street.

Here’s what a full boat looks like. I was happy to be on our boat with only about 10 other people.

The building on the right with 2 parts, one shorter and the other tall is the Boeing Headquarters.

This is the Centennial Fountain on the North bank of the Chicago River. Every hour, for ten minutes, the fountain shoots a massive water arc across the river from a modernist tiered waterfall.

The Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier. It is 140 Ft. high.

This center building is called Aqua. It was designed by and it is the tallest building the the U.S. designed by a woman. It has unique wave like balconies. The next photo is a view of the building looking up at it.

There is still so much to show from Chicago. Tiffany glass dome, the Art Museum, Graceland Cemetery oh my!

We are on our second day of sunshine here in the Seattle area. People are smiling everywhere I go. Yesterday after church we were able to get all our yard work done so now we can enjoy the weather. I’m still taking in everything we heard at our conference on the weekend. One theme that was woven through the talks by the 3 major speakers was the pure undiluted Gospel. So refreshing…

Michigan Ave.

I spent a lot of time on Michigan Ave. while I was in Chicago last week. Was that just last week? We stayed on the North end of Michigan Ave.

The Water Tower and nearby pumping station were the only two buildings in downtown Chicago that survived the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 which razed the whole city to the ground.

Constructed in 1869 using big limestone blocks, the Chicago Water Tower, with all its small neo-gothic towers resembles more a tiny European medieval castle than a water tower. It was designed by architect William W. Boyington.

Just a few buildings away is the Hancock Building which has an observatory where you can see miles east, west, north and south of downtown Chicago. On the 96th and 97th floor is a restaurant and bar where you can have a meal or a drink and enjoy the views.

Our hotel, the Westin, was also on Michigan Ave. right next door to the Hancock Building.

At the Chicago River on the N. side of Michigan Ave. are two great buildings across the street from each other. This is the Wrigley Building.

The Chicago Tribune building on the opposite side of the Ave. has a Gothic top and Art Deco bottom.

Another view of the Wrigley Building taken on a different day. The next few photos are showing more of the detail on the Chicago Tribune building.

Hall of Inscriptions..
The soaring entrance area is known as the Hall of Inscriptions. Carved into the walls are famous quotaions expressive of ideals and obligations of the press. These record the spoken words of leaders like Votaire, Benjamin Franklin, Milton.. The Nathan Hale lobby has words of Abraham Lincoln, Arthur Miller and Thurgood Marshall..

Aesop’s Stone Screen..
By Rene Paul Chambellan
The three-story arched entrance is so overlooked. Over the doorway of the main lobby is this carved stone screen. It bears symbolic imagery of Aesop’s fables. One can see cartouches surrounded by animals, acanthus leaves, scrolls and ribbons..

Nathan Hale Lobby..
To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Chicago Tribune in 1997, the Tower’s Nathan Hale lobby was renovated and inscriptions were added to include words of Abraham Lincoln, playwright Arthur Miller and former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.

If you ever find yourself in Chicago take advantage of the great tours that are offered on trolleys and sight seeing buses. You get information that will help you to choose what you’d like to see in depth. I’ll still be posting on the Architectural River Tour which is well worth your time, too. There are so many places to eat and so many things to see in Chicago it could be overwhelming without narrowing things down.

I’m looking forward to a full week at home to get caught up. What does your week look like?

New Taste Treats!

If you’ve followed my blog at all over the years it will come as no surprise that food is something I really enjoy. While we were in Chicago I found 2 brand new taste treats. Thank you for your suggestions to try Garrett Popcorn.

I thought you all were a little nutty when you said the Chicago mix was your favorite. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Garrett Chicago Mix it’s a mixture of sweet and salty, their Caramel crisp and Cheese corn. It was delicious. We were going to buy some at one of their shops on Ontario off Michigan Avenue but they weren’t open when we came by so when we got to the airport I went on the hunt. I walked all the way to terminal 1 from terminal 3 before I finally spotted their small shop. I bought a small bag. On my way back to terminal 3 I noticed the Garrett shop that was way closer…yep, I walked right past it. OYE! I needed the extra exercise anyway.

This is truth in advertising right here! But now to my absolute favorite cheap Chicago taste treat…drum roll please.

The famous Chicago Dog! A Chicago-style hot dog, or Chicago Dog, is a steamed or water-simmered all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun,originating from the city of Chicago, Illinois. The hot dog is topped with yellow mustard; chopped white onions; bright green sweet pickle relish; a dill pickle spear; tomato slices or wedges; pickled sport peppers; and a dash of celery salt. The complete assembly of a Chicago hot dog is said to be “dragged through the garden” due to the many toppings.

Yes folks, I am now a huge fan of this taste treat. I had my very first one at Portillo’s in Chicago when I hopped off the trolley for under $3.00.

Before we left Chicago I had another one at the airport! We had $50.00 meals in Chicago that I didn’t enjoy as much. I guess I’m more of a simple all American girl with a twist…or a little twisted.

Coach’s meat loaf stack at Ditka’s, Frog legs at Hugo’s Frog Bar (I only had one), Filet Medallions Oscar at Hugo’s Frog Bar, Bookbinder’s Soup, Chilaquiles egg dish at Eggsceteria, Mac and Cheese loaded at the Grill on the Alley. All that goodness and I’m only craving a hot dog since we came home!

Today is Saturday and Dear and I are attending a conference all day. We are still holding out for some nice weather here in the Northwest. We have dubbed this month Juneuary instead of just plain June!

Lake Michigan

Did you know that Lake Michigan is the third largest Great Lake by surface area and the sixth largest freshwater lake in the world?

Lake Michigan, by volume, is the second largest Great Lake and the only one located totally within the United States.

The word “Michigan” was originally used to refer to the lake itself, and is believed to come from the Ojibwa Indian word mishigami, meaning “great water.”

More than 10,000 ships have sunk in the Great Lakes – with 3,000 of those in Lake Michigan.

We really have had a couple dreary days here in the Seattle area. Things are brightening up right now and we’ll see how long it lasts.

Tomorrow and Saturday Dear and I are headed to the West Coast Conference ~ Standing Firm at Overlake Christian Church. Steve Lawson, John MacArthur and R.C. Sproul are the keynote speakers. I’m excited to be able to hear these 3 great defenders of our Faith right here in the Seattle area. When Dear and I were first married and living in the L.A. area we attended the church where John MacArthur is pastor. It will be good to hear John again in person after all these years. I’ll be scarce on the internet the next couple days.

Hope all is well where you find yourself the next few days.

Churches With Interesting History…

From the Great Chicago Fire to Al Capone both these Gold Coast churches have some great history.

Early Friday morning in Chicago after breakfast Dear and I visited 2 churches that were close to our hotel. The first church we visited was Holy Name Cathedral.

” Holy Name Cathedral on North State Street is both a Roman Catholic parish and the seat of the Archdiocese of Chicago. After the fire of 1871 destroyed the former Holy Name Church, Bishop Thomas Foley resolved to build a spectacular replacement. Brooklyn architect Patrick Charles Keely designed the Gothic structure, and the cornerstone was laid on July 19, 1874.”

Once inside the church, the most striking feature is the suspended Resurrection Crucifix sculpted by the artist Ivo Demetz.

“Among the many striking features inside the Cathedral are the five red, broad-brimmed, cardinals’ hats, or galeros, suspended from the ceiling. Traditionally, this symbol of a cardinal is raised to the ceiling of his cathedral upon his death. The hat hangs until it turns into dust, a reminder that all earthly glory is passing.”  You’ll need to look carefully in the upper part of my photo which is almost too dark to see the galeros.

The most famous story about Holy Name Cathedral involves a mobster gunfight that happened on Oct. 11, 1926. Gunmen hired by Al Capone were positioned across from the cathedral and killed Earl “Hymie” Weiss in a hail of gunfire, leaving a bullet wedged into the cornerstone. We saw the bullet hole but I didn’t take a photo of it.

The Fourth Presbyterian Church was the 2nd church we visited. “The name “Fourth” was selected not because it was the fourth Presbyterian church to be founded in Chicago—there had been several founded before then, with North Presbyterian being one of the earliest—but because “Fourth” was the lowest number then not in use. “ The first structure at a different location was re-dedicated on October 8, 1871 and just 2 hours after it’s evening services concluded the Great Chicago Fire swept through downtown and the Northside and destroyed it. They were at another location and then in 1912 they settled at this property on Michigan Ave.

There was no “Michigan Avenue” north of the Chicago River yet in 1912; it was to be several years before a bridge was constructed over the Chicago River to extend north the Michigan Avenue that had grown in prominence south of the river.

“The church proper (the Sanctuary) was designed by architect Ralph Adams Cram, the parish buildings around the courtyard by architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, and the stained glass windows by Charles J. Connick. The interior painting and decoration of the Sanctuary was overseen by Frederick Clay Bartlett. The new church was dedicated in 1914.”

“The North Michigan Avenue “Magnificent Mile” neighborhood literally grew up around the church, particularly after the opening of the Michigan Avenue Bridge in 1920. Except for the familiar Water Tower complex two blocks to the south, which survived the Chicago Fire of 1871, Fourth Church is now the oldest surviving structure on Michigan Avenue north of the river.”

There was so much to do and see in Chicago. You’ll be seeing a lot more posts as I organize my photos and re-visit everything I was able to fit in on my 4 full days of sight seeing. We arrived home last night and it will take me a while to get a handle on what day of the week it is. We are overcast and cool again here in the Seattle area. My sunburned scalp and nose will appreciate this weather for sure.

Since this post is full of C’s I’m linking with Teacher Jenny at Alphabe-Thursday for the letter C.