Category Archives: industry

Chicago’s Rail Bascule Bridges

Posted on May 22, 2013 by

Swing bridges are quiet curiosities – if it seems odd that a bridge should move, at least it’s only moving sideways. Bascule bridges, by contrast, are utterly bizarre. If bridges aren’t supposed to move in the first place, then they … Continue reading →

Posted in industry, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Swing Bridges of the Sanitary and Ship Canal

Posted on May 6, 2013 by

The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal has the least appealing name imaginable, but it draws interest for its remarkable history – as a feat of engineering, as a center of industry, and as a major geographic feature for southwestern Chicago. … Continue reading →

Posted in industry | 1 Comment

Industrial art

Posted on January 16, 2011 by

A friend’s blog post from a while back extols the architectural merits of a St. Louis industrial park… then leadingly wonders if there might be any comparably architectural industrial park elsewhere. I haven’t managed to find a Chicago counterpart just … Continue reading →

Posted in industry, Midcentury Modernism | 1 Comment

The industrial wonders of northwest Indiana

Posted on August 28, 2009 by

Whiting. Hammond. East Chicago. Calumet City. Pullman. Harvey. Dixmoor. Blue Island. Gary. As I slowly become more familiar with the southern reaches of Chicagoland, these names gain more and more resonance for me. Each speaks of strange contrasts, lands of … Continue reading →

Posted in industry, Northwest Indiana, The Infinite City | 9 Comments

Quarry town

Posted on June 25, 2009 by

The fascination of a rock quarry isn’t hard to grasp. Here in the unendingly flat Midwest, a quarry is a shocking interruption of the landscape. The walls are vertical cliffs, their relief impressive in their own right and doubly so … Continue reading →

Posted in industry | 4 Comments

Hardy Glass Block Company

Posted on October 23, 2008 by

Standing at 711 W. 103rd Street, deep on the south side, the Hardy Glass Block Company‘s building is a weathered time capsule. With a couple of eager companions in tow, I paid a visit last weekend. The exterior sign isn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in industry, Midcentury Modernism, Sculptured glass block | 6 Comments

Schulze Baking Company

Posted on October 12, 2008 by

Here is a building I have longed to photograph for many months, maybe even years. Today, I finally got my chance. Amid the houses, apartments, and low-grade commercial enterprises along Garfield Boulevard, this gleaming, towering industrial building stands out like … Continue reading →

Posted in industry | 5 Comments

Finkl Steel

Posted on October 6, 2008 by

As recently as two decades ago, Chicago was famously a steel mill town. Vast south side factories belched smoke and fire by day and night. Those days are gone now, for better or worse; the last of the city’s great … Continue reading →

Posted in industry | 4 Comments

Trilla Steel Drum Corp.

Posted on June 25, 2008 by

What the – – what the heck is it? Thus ran my initial reaction upon seeing the building of the Trilla Steel Drum Corporation during a cross-south side bike trip. The company’s low-slung factory and office building sits alongside 47th … Continue reading →

Posted in industry | Leave a comment