The
Wrigley Building (400-410 North
Michigan AvenueMichigan Avenue is a major north-south street in Chicago which runs at 100 east south of the Chicago River and at 132 East north of the river from 12628 south to 950 north in the Chicago street address system....
,
Near North SideThe Near North Side is one of 77 well defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is located north of the Chicago River and the downtown central business district . With the exception of Cabrini-Green, the Near North Side is known for its extreme...
,
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
,
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
) is a
skyscraperA skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building. There is no official definition or height above which a building may clearly be classified as a skyscraper...
located directly across Michigan Avenue from the
Tribune TowerThe Tribune Tower is a neo-Gothic building located at 435 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Tribune and Tribune Company. WGN Radio also broadcasts from the building, with ground-level studios overlooking nearby Pioneer Court and Michigan Avenue. CNN's...
on the
Magnificent MileThe Magnificent Mile is the portion of Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois extending from the Chicago River to Oak Street in the Near North Side community area. The district is located adjacent to downtown; it is also one block east of Rush Street, which is known for its nightlife...
. It was built to house the corporate headquarters of the Wrigley Company.
When ground was broken for the Wrigley Building in 1920, there were no major office buildings north of the
Chicago RiverThe Chicago River is a river that runs 156 miles and flows through Chicago, including the downtown. Though not especially long, the river is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards...
and the Michigan Avenue Bridge, which spans the river just south of the building was still under construction. The land was selected by
chewing gumChewing gum is a type of confection traditionally made of chicle, a natural latex product, or synthetic rubber known as polyisobutylene, which is a non-vulcanisable form of the butyl rubber used for inner tubes or to line tubeless tires. For reasons of economy and quality, many modern chewing gums...
magnate
William Wrigley Jr.William Wrigley Jr. was a U.S. chewing gum industrialist. He was founder and eponym of the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company in 1891. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
to headquarter his gum company. The building was designed by the architectural firm of
Graham, Anderson, Probst & WhiteGraham, Anderson, Probst & White is a Chicago architecture firm that was founded in 1912 originally as Graham, Burnham & Co. This firm was the successor to D. H. Burnham & Co. by Daniel Burnham's surviving partner Ernest Graham and Burnham's sons Hubert Burnham and Daniel Burnham Jr...
using the shape of the
GiraldaThe Giralda is the bell tower of the Cathedral of Seville in Seville, Spain, one of the largest churches in the world and an outstanding example of the Gothic and Baroque architectural styles. The tower's first two-thirds is a former Almohad minaret which, when built, was the tallest tower in the...
tower of Seville's Cathedral combined with French Renaissance details. The south tower was completed in April 1921 and the north tower in May 1924. Walkways between the towers were added at the ground level and the third floor. In 1931, another walkway was added at the fourteenth floor to connect to offices of a bank in accordance with a Chicago statute concerning bank branch offices. The two towers, not including the levels below Michigan Avenue, have a combined area of .
The two towers are of differing heights, with the south tower rising to 30 stories and the north tower to 21 stories. On the south tower is a
clockA clock is an instrument used to indicate, measure, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell"...
with faces pointing in all directions. Each face is in diameter. The building is clad in
glazed terra-cottaGlazed architectural terra-cotta is a ceramic masonry building material popular in the United States from the late 19th century until the 1930s, and still one of the most common building materials found in U.S. urban environments...
, which provides its gleaming white façade. On occasion, the entire building is hand washed to preserve the terra cotta. At night, the building is brightly lit with floodlights.
The Wrigley Building was Chicago’s first
air-conditionedAn air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area, or provide heat to an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
office building. If one walks through the center doors, they will find themselves in a secluded park area overlooking the
Chicago RiverThe Chicago River is a river that runs 156 miles and flows through Chicago, including the downtown. Though not especially long, the river is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards...
.
Tenants
Addresses at 400 North Michigan Avenue:
- The Consulate-General of Austria
This is a list of diplomatic missions of Austria, excluding honorary consulates.-Europe:** Tirana ** Brussels ** Sarajevo ** Sofia ** Zagreb ** Prague ** Copenhagen...
resides in Suite 707.
- The Consulate-General of Ireland
Ireland has diplomatic relations with 161 foreign governments. The Irish government has 74 missions across the world including 55 embassies, 8 multilateral missions and 8 Consulates General and other offices. The country has also appointed 24 Honorary Consuls General and 62 Honorary Consuls...
is in Suite 911.
- The Consulate-General of the United Kingdom resides on the 13th Floor.
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