Forgotten Rail Yard Under Chicago's Largest Historic Building - Merchandise Mart

did you know that Chicago has a building so  massive that it had its own ZIP code that's right   in the year 1930 the merchandise mart opened its  doors to the world as the largest building in the   world it's 4 million square foot area served such  a large influx of visitors daily that it required   its own l-stop and a connection to Chicago's  now abandoned 60 miles of underground Freight   tunnel perhaps what mystifies me most is that the  merchandise mart was built above a massive train   yard and that for many decades Freight delivery  was possible right into the heart of Chicago   this near century-old Art Deco Masterpiece still  stands on the bank of the Chicago River and serves   around 20 000 people daily in modern times in ways  this building has also been disconnected from its   Origins as emphasized by this permanently lifted  train bridge leading to a track line that has   long since ceased to run begging the question  what exactly happened here today we discover   Chicago's merchandise smart I'm your host Ryan  so cash and you're watching it's history [Music]   Merchandise Mart was at one point the largest  building in the world and I've noticed with making   these videos that many of our greatest structures  had similar titles when they were first erected   for example after watching the documentary  vertical City on Magellan TV the sponsor of   this video I learned that Chicago's John Hancock  building was the tallest building outside of New   York City in 1968. its design revolutionized  the way steel buildings were erected but it   also brought great controversy and the great news  is that once you finish watching our episode you   can also watch that documentary free of charge  let me explain Magellan TV is a rising star in   the streaming world it's the best value of any  premium documentary streaming service in both   price and quality actually it's the highest rated  documentary streaming app on Google Play Magellan   TV adds over 20 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description  below and now back to Chicago's Merchandise   Mart surprisingly the site of the modern day  Merchandise Mart has a long-standing trade   for Commerce this River Junction was used by the  Native Americans who ran a trading post signifying   that its location was perfect for business what's  more a look at any early 19th century map shows   just how prominent and accessible this part of  the riverbank was following European settlement   the area would be set up with city blocks as  depicted in this map from 1834 later some of   the structures were cleared away to make room  for the well Street Station built by The Galena   and Chicago Union railroad a part of the first  railroad in Chicago this station opened in 1853   but was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1871. at  that point a temporary wooden train terminal sat   on the site that would become today's Merchandise  Mart until 1881 when the well Street Station was   rebuilt and opened serving Chicago until 1911  when it was ultimately abandoned for years this   station waited in neglect as the adjacent rails  were now used for free leading decision makers to   an exciting conclusion the air rights for those  tracks could be used to establish a Commerce   Center like no other with elevators servicing  track level as well as rapid shipping with a   dedicated connection to the Chicago tunnels  after all cargo Tribune's Thomas Furlong the   location was within a night's journey by rail or  four hours by air from a territory embracing 47   percent of the nation's population and 70 percent  of wholesales and 65 percent of its retail outlets   with figures like those it doesn't take much to  understand why this once decrepit little corner   of Chicago was so valuable and with the powerful  Marshall Fields at the helm it seems that everyone   was on board reporters made exciting premonitions  which helped justify using the air rights in this   way the National Hotel reporter noted quote 30  percent of all electricity used in Chicago is   used in the transportation of people referring to  electric trains but changes were on the horizon as   surveys suggested that Chicago residents would buy  one million 889 407 passenger automobiles in the   next two decades and that by the year 1950 2903  34 110 cars would be added to the Chicago Streets   this would suggest that the rise of automobiles  would lead to the downfall of trains hence for   anyone who was in doubt the pr was established  the tracks were the merchandise mart now sits   were destined for a very different future and this  was reinforced by other City plants for example in   1926 a Westward extension of Wacker Drive brought  more development to the South Bank of the Chicago   River and so it was ground broke on August the  16th 1928 the building was to be so massive that   general contractor John Griffiths and Sons used  techniques typical to Dam construction concrete   arrived by boat and was lifted into Bin's 75 feet  above the ground with gravel and sand deliveries   by railroad to conveyor belts and transfer  elevators giant mixers provided wet concrete   to skip hoists in vertical towers that extended  as the building Rose the crew consisted of up to   5 700 men with the construction project lasting  into the first year of the Great Depression   458 reinforced concrete caissons sunk between 80  to 100 feet below ground would support the whole   structure 25 feet above the tracks and seamlessly  meld the Mart with the downtown streets I need to   underline just how big of a project this was the  foundation was nearly two square city blocks 29   million bricks were laid 40 miles of Plumbing  were installed 380 miles of wiring was needed   and almost 4 million cubic feet of concrete  was poured the building has 4 000 windows and   steel components weighing up to 60 000 tons not to  mention 35 000 electric lamps 30 elevators and the   building itself consisting of approximately 7.5  miles of corridors all that being said it might   surprise you to hear that construction cost was  just 26 million dollars obviously inflation has   occurred since then anyhow Merchandise Mart opened  on May the 5th 1930 and provided Marshall Fields   with a single wholesale Center consisting of 13  warehouses and changed ownerships on numerous   occasions in the mid-1940s the Kennedy family  made a purchase via Merchandise Mart Properties   Incorporated for a reported 13 million dollars  which was half the construction price it's been   speculated that this lowball price was based on an  oral agreement between fields and Kennedy with the   condition that after the sale Kennedy would donate  the building to the University of Chicago Kennedy   would enjoy a tax deduction as a result of this  transaction but again there is no known evidence   of this what's more it's not how things played out  you see the revenues were retained as a vital part   of the family's Empire until 1998 when it was  finally sold for 625 million dollars apparently   at the time of its sale the merchandise mart was  the Kennedy Family's last remaining operational   business from the start this Monumental structure  was intended to be a city within a city it was   largest building until 1943 when the Pentagon  surpassed it the merchandise mart was also   difficult to categorize as it was a warehouse  a department store and a skyscraper all in one   Beyond its sheer size it also offered Artistry  the art deco exterior matched that of the Chicago   Board of Trade building with ribbon Piers defining  the windows the South Corner Pavilions the highest   and initially 56 sculpted American Indian Heads  once adorned the building in remembrance of the   site as a Native American Trading Post most of  these marvelous seven foot tall statues were   removed in 1961 and according to Twitter which I  admit is not the most reliable source some remain   on the North and East sides we can't show those  images here on YouTube but if you visit my archive   on Instagram you'll be able to see them there  it's difficult for me to determine precisely what   happened to the rest of them though but according  to CBS one family purchased a home in Lake Forest   back in 1983 which happened to have two of those  massive sculptures in the backyard and they came   with the house so with these 7.5 miles of hallway  to explore let's have a look at what's inside the   finished building the first two floors of the  building were occupied by restaurants and stores   well the third to sixth levels were occupied by  Marshall Fields and Company display showrooms and   hundreds of offices would occupy the remaining  floors in no time the merchandise mart became   a Cornerstone of the city but it wasn't just a  place for professionals it was what I'd consider   consumer Recreation with a Vibe more similar to  Ikea or your standard Mall even back in 1928 The   Chicago Tribune pointed out that by bringing  hundreds of tenant firms under one impressive   piece of architecture a visitor from say Minnesota  could accomplish their work in a concentrated and   convenient fashion what can be accomplished  there in a few hours would have otherwise   taken several days you don't even need to leave  for lunch or visit a postal office even smoking   was possible within several various lounges for  example hoarders opened a shop in the Mart and   they suggested that Shoppers would enjoy  quote Chicago's longest indoor Street the   shop offered a variety of 13 000 items most of  which were stationary related the National Hotel   reporter from October the 23rd of opening year  recalled the building's restaurant stating that   seeing is believing describing a mammoth coffee  shop tabled mezzanine tea room and lengthy soda   fountain counter with a quote delightful men Grill  and main dining room offering guests great Beauty   and dignity the author claims that the grand  opening was the biggest restaurant opening in   history thousands were turned away in the lobby  diners enjoyed a rather outstanding novelty a   replica of wolf Tavern the first Inn built in  Chicago Chicago another ad for the merchandise   mart restaurant gives us an exciting insight into  the types of foods that were served in that time   period for example the coffee plate luncheon in  Suite 45C offered Cream of Asparagus or a clear   consume browned beef stew with vegetables and  mashed potatoes one could enjoy homemade baked   pork and beans Boston brown bread and a beverage  of coffee tea or milk reading this menu makes me   believe that diners enjoyed the quote Beauty and  dignity they might even be appalled by the menu   these days so out of curiosity I had a look at the  restaurant's currently occupying the Mart and out   of the 20 to choose from I feel like some of the  modern highlights really set a tone McDonald's   Starbucks Dunkin Donuts and so on although to  be fair when I checked the March social media   I did see some pretty tasty looking food pictures  anyhow the restaurant was so massive that when it   opened it was estimated that ten thousand people  could be fed daily in a seating capacity of 1400   guests at any given time between opening at 7 A.M  and midnight all this required a staff of 500 men   and women and service was classy a tone that  was set by the building's great Lobby visitors   would typically enter a mammoth Lobby defined by  eight Square marbled pillars with stone fronts and   bronze trim all illuminated by ornamental lighting  affixed to cornices above the floor was an unusual   composition of green and orange that guests would  follow to elevator Banks the elevators could be   used to access upper floors where an area known  as business Boulevard offered two 650-foot wide   corridors similar to the lobby below there was one  key difference however the endless display Windows   providing breathtaking views of the city below  but there was actually an area on the upper floors   with no windows this area contained the most  powerful technology of the Era radio broadcast   as early as November of 1929 when it was reported  that the National Broadcasting Company would have   the most extensive broadcasting quarters in the  world occupying 62 000 square feet of floor space   on the top floor of the new Merchandise Mart in  Chicago of January the 1st the following year   six Studios were built one of which stands out  as the city's pretentious Radio Theater offices   and so-called Laboratories occupied the rest of  the space but by Laboratories do you think they   meant restrooms or like actual Laboratories let  me know in the comments anyhow even when this was   just a concept the tentative opening was promoted  nationally bolstering that Chicago would be the   greatest broadcasting Center in the world better  than New York Washington and San Francisco Stu   Studio A was in fact the best and largest Radio  Theater in the world at 70 feet long 35 feet   wide and 26 feet high not to mention the total  floor space of 3820 square feet The Standing Room   could accommodate over a thousand people The Loft  contained a grand pipe organ specially adapted for   radio presentation supporting this studio on the  19th Floor were lockers reception rooms announcer   rooms a music library and a first aid room above  that on the 20th floor set the vice president of   the Chicago Division and his staff also on the  20th floor was an observation area for visitors   to enjoy the various Productions occurring in  the studios throughout the day despite these   Studios excellent location on the upper floors  however sound proofing was a potential issue so   no windows were installed ventilation was made  possible with modern equipment that maintained   a constant flow of pure air at a regulated  temperature and with controlled humidity in fact   one newspaper from September the 7th 1930 points  out that when merchandise smart first opened it   hosted the largest radio School in the world  the ad invited the public to visit the Chicago   RCA Institute which had trained thousands of men  since 1909 and guaranteed job placement within   three to ten days following graduation on a side  note I haven't lived in Chicago for some time but   if memory serves me well q101 is actually based  in Merchandise Mart right I'm curious if they   actually use these historic theaters is that where  Mancow in the morning happens let me know in the   comments Merchandise Mart has its own l-stop  with the original station opening on December   the 5th 1930 until 1963 the station also served  inter-urban trains of the North Shore Line this   connection was remarkable as it gave Merchandise  Mart a direct link not only to the Chicago suburbs   but also Milwaukee Wisconsin door to door sadly  this wasn't to last in the late 1950s the North   Shoreline entirely discontinued service and within  two years of Abandonment most Rail lines were   physically removed anyhow businessmen and Shoppers  could arrive via the station from wide and far and   if they were looking for social opportunities they  may have visited the five-story area topping the   18-story main building known then as the merchants  Club Tower which contained reading rooms smoking   rooms and was a convenient place for retailers  to rest and meet with friends more formal events   also occurred here with the Assembly Hall where  trade meetings business conferences and fashion   shows were occasionally held the designers knew  what type of guests would be spending time here   so Aesthetics were important at every stage of  the project furthermore Architects knew that the   structure would be visible on a rapidly growing  Chicago skyline especially from Wacker Drive or   the Civic Opera House however not everyone  was optimistic the Chicago Tribune recalls   quote the roof was designed with an unusual  Galaxy of skylights tanks penthouses and   other Sky disfiguring atrocities the building  was emphasized overall by its 80-foot setback   from the river as cosmetically pleasing as  these spaces were the Beating Heart of the   Mart was out of sight inaccessible to the general  public and in ways revolutionary I'm referring to   its sub-level trackyard the entire ground level  below the street floor provided one of America's   most massive and modern private Freight stations  tracks for incoming carloads of freight extended   directly under the building the Chicago and  Northwestern railroad operated both inbound and   outbound orders filtered through its new Proviso  yard this solution struck a fantastic balance is   down the line the Proviso trainer yard was a  central hub for a great variety of freight and   the Mart had a direct connection One Source notes  when train cargo was offloaded workers placed   products on high-speed conveyors that delivered to  the same floor and aisle as the ordering Merchant   but there's much more to it so let's take a tour  of the freight Center more in depth this image   taken from the rooftop of the North American cold  storage building shows Merchandise Mart in 1930 in   the lower left hand corner of the frame we can see  the Kenzie Street train bridge it still exists and   has in a sense been memorialized as it's left in a  permanently upright position and perhaps a little   off topic but it would appear that the North  American cold storage building has indeed avoided   the wrecking ball as it's been transformed into  Lofts although I'm just eyeballing this so I'm not   100 sure anyhow the tracks extending immediately  beyond the bridge no longer exist this area was   known as Wolf Point and has since been replaced  by the apparel Center trains to the Mart would   pass under North Orleans Street and into what was  effectively the building's lower level in addition   to the previously mentioned conveyor belts this  area contained the building's columns and support   caissons various mechanical and heating facilities  and 250 feet of Frontage along the riverbank   now I'm not sure about the building's modern  configuration but when it was first constructed   the basement consisted of three fan rooms one  drawing the fresh air in and the other to vent   exhaust gases surface areas for the building's  many elevator shafts storage and a locker room   for the men who managed the building towards  the east end of the building was a cold room a   storage area for perishables which was accessible  by a dedicated freight elevator there was also a   refrigeration plant the ventilating facilities  were critical for instance the larger of the   three fan rooms was located in the basement under  under the inbound platform this was connected to a   tunnel running under the tracks from there a New  York blower fan powered with a general electric   motor was installed to pull air through the graded  floors this system service The Freight House and   offices alike with its surprising air source  being the Chicago tunnel company 40 feet below   ground this might sound odd still it made a lot  of sense as the tunnel air was always a consistent   temperature cool in the Summers and warm in the  winter by drawing it into the building enormous   resources were safe but more on that in a moment  obviously with Chicago Winters being so brutal a   primary heat Source was needed hence steam heating  coils were kept warm thanks to the Mart's very own   heating plant come the brutality of the Chicago  summer A Larson Parker ice machine located in   the inbound basement with an ammonia compressor  powered by two Westinghouse alternating current   motor a 440 volts each kept things nice and cool  then there was the brine storage tank of an 8   000 gallon capacity and worked with a more  humidifier to supply fresh air and maintain   the atmosphere in a constant state of humidity  The Freight House ran East and West the outbound   section was located under the northern portion of  the building where train platforms joined up with   a truck loading dock while the inbound area  ran parallel to the river under the southern   portion of the building drivers could easily  access the facility as the merchandise mart was   effectively encircled by driveways the ramp from  Kinsey brought drivers in at about 100 feet east   of well Street and at a grade of five percent  the ramp curved sharply to the west and Crossed   underwell Street parallel with Kenzie before  merging with the Tramway serving the outbound   platform in 1930 the outbound facility could hand  1 000 tons of freight daily with the inbound only   accommodating 600 tons both the in and outbound  platforms extended several hundred feet west of   the Mart with the outbound platform having a total  length of 1450 feet and the inbound platform at 1   250 feet three tracks could accommodate 93 cars  with a rest accommodating 50. referring back to   our image of the merchandise mart from 1930  you'll see that the platform extends Westward   this was done with the hope of possible future  development of air rights a hope so promising that   the platforms were constructed with a roofing  structure that enabled for dismantlement at a   minimum cost safety was also a premium here you  see the handling facility of Marshall Fields and   Company was enclosed in fireproof walls a  precaution that perhaps benefited the much   larger Network the merchandise mart was connected  to too deep below the Chicago Streets each section   of The Freight House under merchandise smart had  two levels the platform and a basement with the   lower level connected by a 180 foot long concrete  lined Freight transfer tunnel extending about   Midway through the building this transfer tunnel  was accessible by dedicated freight elevators on   each platform capable of moving 10 000 pounds per  load but there were also some additional elevators   that went much deeper you see the platform level  of each section of The Freight House was connected   by an elevator with the underground Railway system  of the Chicago tunnel company these freight trains   ran 40 feet underground and could be used for the  shipment of goods or the removal of waste such   as coal ash or Garbage the Chicago tunnel company  discontinued the service and received abandonment   permission from the city in 1959 and it would  be these tunnels like a skeleton in the closet   that would come back to haunt the  merchandise mart decades later   by the 1980s the rail section of The Freight  House had been transformed beyond recognition   and the old connections to the Chicago tunnels  sat Dorman slowly fading to Decay until 1991   when near the Kenzie Street Bridge a new set of  pilings was being driven into the riverbed when   a miscalculation occurred resulting in critical  damage to the Forgotten tunnels City officials   were slow to respond as no immediate emergency  was obvious however reports of the damaged tunnels   were circulating supported by videotape evidence  of the cracked tunnel oozing with mud and water   from the inside although the risk of flooding was  understood by George W Jackson the chief engineer   who built the system in 1909 and went as far as  installing bulkheads to mitigate risk water had   always been an issue actually by 1913 leaks had  become commonplace to the point that pumps were   installed around the city to remove water fast  forward back to 90 1992 on April the 13th six   months later the tunnel finally gave in and river  water gushed into the Forgotten system flooding   the majority of Chicago's most prevalent buildings  and merchandise mart was the first victim the   Chicago Tribune article by Flynn McRoberts reads  it wasn't even 6 a.m Monday but Bill mcging the   overnight Boiler Room engineer at the merchandise  mart already knew that this was no ordinary start   to another work week water was inexplicitly  pouring into the third and deepest sub-basement   of the building realizing that something was very  wrong he grabbed the nearby telephone and called   the Chicago Fire Department the then Executive  Vice President of merchandise mart Thomas Kennedy   stated that around 557 the worker actually  heard the water rushing in by 6 10 AM the first   firefighters arrived and set up a command post for  the Emergency they were followed by workers from   the city water and sewer department searching  for what they believed was a sewer line rupture   by 7 30 am things were evident as the basements of  Marshall Fields City Hall and many other buildings   reported flooding and only had one commonality  the abandoned Chicago Freight tunnels this flood   that was first noticed at the merchandise mart  was so extreme that Commonwealth Edison turned   off power to sections of the loop to avoid short  outs workers were evacuated and by 9 30 a.m the   Army Corps of Engineers were dumping gravel  into the riverbed with the hopes of plugging   the hole Chicago's underground subway trains were  diverted and extra buses were brought in to help   accommodate Logistics eventually the leak was  plugged and the city trained flood water from the   basements by digging a 50-foot deep hole next to  a deep tunnel drop shaft from where they created   a trench between the Chicago Freight tunnels and  the access point to the Deep City Tunnel before   they punctured the drop shaft to create drainage  the damages of 1.95 billion dollars were about 3.5   billion dollars today were so extreme that many  compare the disaster to the Great Chicago Fire   however unlike the old well Street Station which  burnt down on that same land the merchandise mark   would recover by all indications this is really  a story of gentrification it's easy to forget   but a decade before construction the ground where  merchandise smart would stand had fallen to Decay   and the area around it was in a similar condition  the merchandise mart had a significant impact on   this site even as early as 1930 on the corner  of wells and Kenzie street directly opposite   the big Mart a complete revitalization of a  four-story brick building took place within 90   days specifically because the new owner trusted in  the economic rise of the the area furthermore the   acquisition of this property removed unsavory  saloons from the nearby corner and with those   saloons went the bootlegging criminals from the  decade prior perhaps Chicago Tribune put it best   the coming of the merchandise mart is slowly  but definitely beginning to show its influence   throughout the district surrounding its site a  different and more prosperous class of tenances   inquiring about a store Loft and miscellaneous  space what was a year or so ago one of the most   neglected of the near Loop districts is now  showing signs of transformation as LaSalle   Street is widened and improved and as the  various undertakings of the north central   Association become more effective the Mart  District should change its character entirely   by the time Marshall Fields died in 1906 he was  the director of 28 corporations with a personal   net worth of 120 million dollars and where money  will fade the Legacy that his company left Chicago   the merchandise mart is so physically large that  it's impossible to overlook today Merchandise   Mart is the 44th largest building in the world  and although since 2008 it no longer has its   own ZIP code it is an absolute Cornerstone of the  Chicago story and we'll leave it there for today   I hope you'll subscribe so that we'll meet again  and until we do this is Ryan silkash signing off

Channel: IT'S HISTORY

Views: 561,970

Keywords: urban exploring, Ryan Socash, most amazing abandoned and forgotten trains, largest trains, historic preservation, train station (building function), trains, forgotten mining towns in america, chicago train station history, exploring forgotten towns in illinois, forgotten history, forgotten places in america, forgotten mining town in southern illinois, forgotten towns in southern illinois, historic abandoned railroad crossing, historic chicago photos, historic abandoned railway

Id: xnesHp35NOw

Length: 30min 32sec (1832 seconds)

Published: Sat Dec 03 2022