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Gropius Buildings Slated for Demolition

Posted by: Alek Miller

31 October 2009 - 7:00am

The Friend Convalescent Hospital was the first of Walter Gropius' modernist buildings to be destroyed at Chicago's Michael Reese hospital. Bulldozing began on Wednesday with more still to go.

"Tim Samuelson, the city's cultural historian, at least was able to get into three of the still-standing Reese buildings and get copies of the hospital's architectural drawings. The drawings and photographs will allow these buildings to live on in the archives, but they should have lived on in real life. Of the 8 Gropius-related buildings at Reese, only the Singer Pavilion--a psychiatric and psychosomatic institute--may be saved. That's appropriate, in a bizarre way: What Chicago's doing is crazy."

Full Story: Chicago lets its savage side show: First Gropius building being demolished at Michael Reese; more still to be destroyed
Source: The Chicago Tribune, October 28, 2009
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Preserving historic resources

Submitted by HRPlanner on Sat, 10/31/2009 - 07:52.

We need to get far more serious about protecting historic resources in this country. Politicians need to feel pressure from their constituents for protecting them.

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