Page Brothers Building

In a neighborhood of skyscrapers, the Page Brothers Building is short. It’s seven stories tall, but it seems even shorter, since a couple of those floors are hidden by rumbling El tracks. Its neighbor to the south, the glitzy Chicago Theatre, overshadows the relatively stoic structure, but if you take a closer look—and maybe even apply a magnet—you’ll discover one of the oldest buildings in the city and one of only two with a cast-iron front. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a Chicago Landmark, this building at the corner of State and Lake was built in 1872 and is a symbol of recovery after the Great Chicago Fire and a city reinventing itself. It’s also a legacy of Chicago’s first architect.

Read more about this landmark in Living Landmarks of Chicago.

Completed: 1872
Architect: John Mills Van Osdel
Address: 177 N. State St.

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Sources for Page Brothers Building

This is a selection of specific sources used to provide details while researching this landmark. Additional sources, including books and websites, can be found on the Resources page.

  • Biographical Sketches of the Leading Men of Chicago. Chicago: Wilson & St. Clair, 1868.
  • Encyclopedia of Chicago
  • Ericsson, Henry, 1861-, John M. Van Osdel, and Lewis Edward Myers. Sixty Years a Builder: the Autobiography of Henry Ericsson. Chicago: A. Kroch and son, 1942.
  • Glessner House blog
  • Illinois. Division of Historic Sites, and Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Division of Preservation Services. Historic Illinois. [Springfield]: Illinois Dept. of Conservation, Division of Historic Sites, 1978.
  • Ryerson & Burnham Archives