Clarke House Museum and Building 51 Museum will partner to present a special exhibition of early Chicago building fragments and systems on display in the historic Glessner House Museum coach house. This two-day installation features a selection of mid-nineteenth century building materials including millwork, sill plates, joinery, and original hardware. Guests will explore the roots of Chicago architecture seen through specimens from the Henry Brown Clarke House (1836), John Kent Russell House (c.1855), and other pre-Fire structures. This exhibit will provide a rare glimpse of the techniques and technologies employed in constructing Chicago's early buildings, too many of which have been lost to the wrecking ball.
Clarke House Museum (1836) is the oldest surviving building in the original Chicago city limits. Moved twice, the Greek Revival house has been restored to its mid-1850s appearance and operates as a fully-furnished historic house, interpreting family life in pre-Civil War Chicago.
Building 51 Museum is the private collection of Eric J. Nordstrom. Containing architectural fragments from both world-famous and little-known buildings, Building 51 Museum encompasses a wide range artifacts from Chicago's past.
