Raising of Chicago

In the raising of Chicago piecewise the ground level of the center of Chicago was raised. Streets, sidewalks and buildings were either built, raised by physically lifting equipment or moved. The lift kit of the city began in 1856 and lasted for about 20 years, although there was increases from less than one meter to nearly 2.5 meters ( 2-8 feet). There are no exact figures on the costs. It is estimated, however, from 10 million U.S. dollars or more, which would now correspond to an amount 233090000-294640000 U.S. dollars.

Background

The city of Chicago mid-19th century rose on average only about 1.5 meters (5 feet) above Lake Michigan, on whose banks it lies. Near the northern and southern spur of the Chicago River just below the surface between and beyond one meter ( 3-4 feet ) above the level of the lake while in the western Chicago 3 to a maximum of 3.6 meters (10-12 was walking ) were. Thus little or no natural outflow from the surface of the city was possible in the 19th century for many years. The city stood on a marshy foundation, fermented standing water and caused unpleasant living conditions. Epidemics such as typhoid or dysentery studied Chicago home for six consecutive years, culminating in an outbreak of cholera in 1854, the more than 1,400 citizens were killed. The hygienic conditions were blamed for these deadly outbreaks in no small measure.

The crisis forced the aldermen ( a municipal body ) and engineers of the city to take the drainage problem seriously. On February 4, 1855, the Act on the Establishment of a Sewage Commission was adopted. The Commission chose the engineer Ellis S. Chesbrough out for the task. 1856 adopted by the City Council a proposed by Chesbrough plan for the building of a city-wide sewer system.

For the construction of the sewer parts of Chicago had to be set higher. Chesbrough proposed an increase in the city by about 3 meters ( 10 feet), with the actual increase so turned out, was that the construction of 2.1 to 2.4 meters (7-8 feet) high basements possible. The increase of about 3 meters was due to probable difficulties in the procurement of earth discarded for the landfill.

Beginning of the increase

As a result, processes were laid, covered streets and sidewalks with several feet of earth and rebuilt. Vacant lots were filled, some old wood frame houses were torn down and filled the land, while other owners could raise their wooden frame houses. The newer brick building set in the displacement is a problem, they could not be raised. These buildings were left on the old ground level, while streets and sidewalks were laid slowly higher. It formed a city, " built on two levels," whereby parts of the sewer ran through the earth. Legal steps against the increase were unsuccessful. Only from 1858 did the raising of brick buildings.

The earliest raising of a brick building

The first building was raised from masonry in January 1858. It was a four-story, 21 meter ( 70 feet ) long, 750 -ton brick building on the northeast corner of Randolph Street and Dearborn Street. It was raised to 200 spindles on the new level, the 1.88 meters (6 feet 2 inches ) was higher than the old one. This was done " without the slightest damage to the building ." It was the first of more than fifty comparable large brick buildings that have been raised this year. The contractor was the Boston engineer James Brown, who entered into a business partnership with the Chicago native and engineer James Hollingsworth. Before the year was over, they raised brick buildings that were more than 30 meters ( 100 feet ) long. The following spring, they signed a contract to lift a brick block of more than twice that length.

The street line at the Lake Street

By 1860, the trust was sufficient enough that a consortium of six engineers, including Brown, Hollingsworth and George Pullman, one of the most important areas of the city lifted in a train. They raised half of the block of Lake Street, between Clark Street and LaSalle Street: a massive brick row with shops, offices and print shops. This project was 98 meters (320 feet) long, sometimes four, sometimes five stories high, with an area of ​​4,000 m2 and a total estimated weight of 25,000-35,000 tons, including the hanging sidewalks. Businesses that were located in these buildings were not closed during the uplift. While the buildings were raised, people came and went, bought and worked in them, as if nothing special happened. Within five days, the entire assembly was about 1.42 meters (4 feet and 8 inches ) set higher, with a group of six hundred men worked with six thousand spindles. The spectacle attracted thousands of people, on the last day got permission to run on the old ground level between the lifting apparatus.

The Tremont House

The following year, a team led by Ely, Smith and Pullman, the Tremont House Hotel raised to at the southeast corner of Lake Street and Dearborn Street. A brick building, six stories high, with a total area of ​​over 4,000 m2, which was luxuriously appointed. Again, the business was continued without interruption, while the hotel was lifted from the ground. Five hundred men worked with five thousand lifting equipment in covered trenches. A regular guest was surprised that the entrance staircase was steep every day to the hotel. The hotel, which was the tallest building in Chicago to the previous year, to 1.8 meters (6 feet) placed higher.

The Robbins Building

Another tour de force presented the raising of the Robbins Building dar. This iron building was 46 meters ( 150 feet) long, 24 meters (80 feet) wide, five stories high and was on the corner of South Water Street and Wells Street. The building was very difficult due to its ornate iron frame, its 305 mm (12 inches) thick wall wall and heavy goods inside the building was estimated at 27,000 tons the weight. Hollingsworth and Coughlin took the contract and not only the building by 0.70 meters ( 27.5 inches) was set up in November 1865 but also 70 meters (230 feet) of the stone walkway outside the building.

Hydraulic lifting of Franklin House

There are reports that at least one building in Chicago, the Franklin House was raised on Franklin Street, by the engineer John C. Lane hydraulically. Lanes group used this technique since 1853 in San Francisco.

Displacement of buildings

Many of the frame building that had been hastily erected in Chicago's center, were now regarded as inappropriate for the expanding and becoming rich city. Instead of lifting them, the owners often preferred a shift of these buildings to replace them with new brick building. Old, multi-storey and intact wooden buildings, sometimes entire road blocks were put on rollers and moved to the edges of the city or in the suburbs. The traveler David Macrae described in disbelief: " Not a day went by during my stay in the city where I did not meet one or more houses that changed their quarters. One day I met nine. Crossing the Great Madison Street with horse-drawn carriage we had to stop twice to let houses over. " As with previous operations were shops open, even if customers had to climb through the moving door.