John Hancock Center

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For the tower in Boston, see John Hancock Tower.
John Hancock Center
Hancock tower 2006.jpg
The John Hancock Center
General information
Type mixed use
Location 875 N. Michigan Avenue Chicago, Illinois, United States
Coordinates 41°53′56″N 87°37′23″W / 41.8988°N 87.6230°W / 41.8988; -87.6230Coordinates: 41°53′56″N 87°37′23″W / 41.8988°N 87.6230°W / 41.8988; -87.6230
Construction started 1965
Completed 1970[1]
Cost $100,000,000[1]
Height
Architectural 1,127 ft (344 m)[2]
Tip 1,506 ft (459 m)[2]
Roof 1,127 ft (344 m)
Top floor 1,054 ft (321 m)[2]
Observatory 1,030 ft (314 m)[2]
Technical details
Floor count 100[2]
Floor area 2,799,973 sq ft (260,126 m2)[2]
Lifts/elevators 50, made by Otis Elevator Company[2]
Design and construction
Owner Golub & Company [3]
Architect Skidmore, Owings and Merrill
Developer John Hancock Insurance
Main contractor Tishman Construction Co.
References
[2][4][5]

The John Hancock Center, at 875 North Michigan Avenue in the Streeterville area of Chicago, Illinois, United States, is a 100-story, 1,127-foot[6] (344 m) tall skyscraper, constructed under the supervision of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill,[6] with chief designer Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan.[7] When the building topped out on May 6, 1968,[1] it was the tallest building in the world outside New York City. It is currently the fourth-tallest building in Chicago and the seventh-tallest in the United States, after One World Trade Center, the Willis Tower, the Empire State Building, the Bank of America Tower, the Trump Tower Chicago, and the Aon Center. When measured to the top of its antenna masts, it stands at 1,506 feet (459 m).[8] The building is home to offices and restaurants, as well as about 700 condominiums, and contains the third highest residence (above adjacent ground level) in the world, after the Trump Tower (also in Chicago), and the Burj Khalifa (in Dubai).[9] The building was named for John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, a developer and original tenant of the building,[10] and has the nickname "Big John".

The 95th floor has long been home to a restaurant, the latest tenant being "The Signature Room on the 95th Floor". Diners can look out at Chicago and Lake Michigan. The Observatory attraction (called "John Hancock Observatory") competes with the Willis Tower's Skydeck across town. John Hancock Center is in the heart of Michigan Avenue, a prime tourist hotspot in Chicago, while the Willis Tower is in the financial district. John Hancock Observatory allows a 360° view of the city, up to four states, and a distance of over 80 miles (130 km). The Observatory has Chicago's only open-air SkyWalk and also features a free multimedia tour in six languages, narrated by actor David Schwimmer.[11] From January to March the Observatory offers what is claimed as the world's highest ice skating rink, using a synthetic surface that enables the use of standard ice skates at normal room temperature.[12] The 44th-floor sky lobby features America's highest indoor swimming pool.[13]

Contents

History [edit]

The project, which would at that time become the world's tallest building, was originally conceived of and owned by Jerry Wolman in late 1964, the project being financed by John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. Construction of the tower was interrupted in 1967 due to a flaw in an innovative engineering method used to pour concrete in stages that was discovered when the building was 20 stories high.[14] The engineers were getting the same soil settlements for the 20 stories that had been built as what they had expected for the entire 99 stories. This forced the owner to stop development until the engineering problem could be resolved, and resulted in a credit crunch. This situation is similar to the one currently being experienced with the construction of Waterview Tower. The owner went bankrupt, which resulted in John Hancock taking over the project, which retained the original design, architect, engineer, and main contractor.

The building's first resident was Ray Heckla, the original building engineer, responsible for the residential floors from 44 to 92. Heckla moved his family in April 1969, before the building was completed.

On November 11, 1981, Veterans Day, high-rise firefighting and rescue advocate Dan Goodwin, for the purpose of calling attention to the inability to rescue people trapped in the upper floors of skyscrapers, successfully climbed the building's exterior wall. Wearing a wetsuit and using a climbing device that enabled him to ascend the I-beams on the building's side, Goodwin battled repeated attempts by the Chicago Fire Department to knock him off. Fire Commissioner William Blair ordered Chicago firemen to stop Goodwin by directing a fully engaged fire hose at him and by blasting fire axes through nearby glass from the inside. Fearing for Goodwin's life, Mayor Jane Byrne intervened and allowed him to continue to the top.[15][16]

The John Hancock Center was featured in the 1988 movie Poltergeist III.

On December 18, 1997, comedian Chris Farley was found dead in his apartment on the 60th floor of the John Hancock Center.[17][18]

On March 9, 2002, part of a scaffold fell 43 stories after being torn loose by wind gusts around 60 mph (100 km/h) crushing several cars, killing three people in two of them. The remaining part of the stage swung back-and-forth in the gusts repeatedly slamming against the building, damaging cladding panels, breaking windows, and sending pieces onto the street below.

On December 10, 2006, the non-residential portion of the building was sold by San Francisco based Shorenstein Properties LLC for $385 million and was purchased by a joint venture of Chicago-based Golub & Company and the Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds.[19] Shorenstein had bought the building in 1998 for $220 million.

An annual stair climb race up the 94 floors from the Michigan Avenue level to the observation deck called 'Hustle up the Hancock' is held on the last Sunday of February. The climb benefits the Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago. The record time as of 2007 is 9 minutes 30 seconds.

On April 16, 2009 at 6:00AM CDT, WYCC-TV transmitting off the John Hancock switched to all-digital broadcasting, becoming Chicago's first television station to stop broadcasting in an analog signal.[20] WYCC-TV is one of only two Chicago market full-power television stations which broadcast from the top of the John Hancock Center. The other is WGBO-DT, while all of the other area stations broadcast from the top of the Willis Tower.

Jerry Springer, host of The Jerry Springer Show, maintains a residence on the 91st floor.[21] Prior to Chris Farley's death, the two lived in adjacent residences.[22]

Design [edit]

The John Hancock Center

One of the most famous buildings of the structural expressionist style, the skyscraper's distinctive X-bracing exterior is actually a hint that the structure's skin is indeed part of its 'tubular system'. This is one of the architectural techniques which the architects used to achieve a record height (the tubular system is the structure that keeps the building upright during wind and earthquake loads). This X-bracing allows for both higher performance from tall structures and the ability to open up the inside floorplan. Such original features have made the John Hancock Center an architectural icon. It was pioneered by Bangladeshi-American structural civil engineer Fazlur Khan and chief architect Bruce Graham.

The interior was remodeled in 1995, adding to the lobby travertine, black granite and textured limestone surfaces. The elliptical-shaped plaza outside the building serves as a public oasis with seasonal plantings and a 12-foot (3.7 m) waterfall. A band of white lights at the top of the building is visible all over Chicago at night and changes colors for different events. For example, at Christmastime the colors are green and red. When a Chicago-area sports team goes far in the playoffs, the colors are changed to match the team's colors.

The building is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers. It has won various awards for its distinctive style, including the Distinguished Architects Twenty-five Year Award from the American Institute of Architects in May 1999.

Height [edit]

As seen from the Willis Tower. Lake Michigan is seen in backdrop.

Including 2 antennas, the John Hancock Center has a height of 1,500 feet (457.2 m), making it the thirty- third tallest building in the world when measured to pinnacle height. The Observatory elevators of the John Hancock center, manufactured by Otis, travel 96 floors at a top speed of 1,800 ft/min (20.5 mph).

Tenants and businesses [edit]

Panorama of the skyline of Chicago [edit]

311 South Wacker Willis Tower Chicago Board of Trade Building 111 South Wacker AT&T Corporate Center Kluczynski Federal Building CNA Center Chase Tower Three First National Plaza Mid-Continental Plaza Richard J. Daley Center Chicago Title and Trust Center 77 West Wacker Pittsfield Building Leo Burnett Building The Heritage at Millennium Park Crain Communications Building IBM Plaza One Prudential Plaza Two Prudential Plaza Aon Center Blue Cross and Blue Shield Tower 340 on the Park Park Tower Olympia Centre 900 North Michigan John Hancock Center Water Tower Place Harbor Point The Parkshore North Pier Apartments Lake Point Tower Jay Pritzker Pavilion Buckingham Fountain Lake Michigan Lake Michigan Lake MichiganThe skyline of a city with many large skyscrapers; in the foreground are a green park and a lake with many sailboats moored on it. Over 30 of the skyscrapers and some park features are labeled.

Gallery [edit]

  • A view of the Hancock Center at dusk

  • Side view of the Hancock Center

  • A view of Lake Michigan from the observatory in the Hancock Center

  • A detailed view of the two antennas atop the John Hancock Center

See also [edit]

Portal icon Chicago portal
Portal icon Illinois portal
Portal icon Architecture portal

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b c "John Hancock Observatory – At a Glance" (Press release). Edelman. 2008. Retrieved 16 September 2010. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "John Hancock Center - The Skyscraper Center". Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. 
  3. ^ "Golub Property Profile: John Hancock Center". Retrieved 8 April 2012. 
  4. ^ John Hancock Center at SkyscraperPage
  5. ^ John Hancock Center at Emporis
  6. ^ a b "John Hancock Center". Emporis.com. Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  7. ^ p. 422, American Architecture: A History, Leland M. Roth, Westview Press, 2003, ISBN 0-8133-3662-7
  8. ^ "The John Hancock Center: 875 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois". Chicago Architecture Info. Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  9. ^ "The John Hancock Center". Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  10. ^ "John Hancock Insurance". Academic dictionaries and encyclopedias (in Russian). Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  11. ^ "Hancock Observatory tour, Schwimmer included". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 December 2009. 
  12. ^ Schwarz, Jennifer (9 September 2010). "Ice Skate in the Sky". NBC Chicago. Retrieved 10 September 2010. 
  13. ^ Emporis.com
  14. ^ Jerry Wolman: The World's Richest Man, Joseph Bokol, Richard Bokol, 2012
  15. ^ Headliners Higher and Higher Published: 15 November 1981, New York Times
  16. ^ "Sears Tower". Retrieved 4 July 2011. 
  17. ^ "Chris Farley: Trivia". TV.com. CNET Networks, Inc. Retrieved 17 April 2008. 
  18. ^ "Chicago Ghosts". Chicago Hauntings Tours. Retrieved 17 April 2008. 
  19. ^ Golub Real Estate Investment and Development
  20. ^ "WYCC-Channel 20 goes all-digital early". Chicago Sun-Times. 
  21. ^ "Jerry Springer Fights For Employees In Move To Stamford". Courant. 13 March 2009. Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  22. ^ Petrikin, Chris (18 December 1997). "Comic Farley dies". Variety. Retrieved 31 July 2011. 
  23. ^ "New Best Buy Opens in John Hancock Center on Chicago's Famous Magnificent Mile". Yahoo! News. 14 May 2009. Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  24. ^ a b c "John Hancock Center Chicago". Retrieved 19 May 2009. 
  25. ^ "Oficinas Consulares en Estados Unidos." Embassy of Chile in Washington, D.C. Accessed 31 January 2009
  26. ^ "Consulate General of Denmark - Chicago." Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Accessed 7 May 2012
  27. ^ "Our offices." (Select United States of America) Etihad Airways. Accessed 11 February 2010
  28. ^ Hanig's Footwear, website
  29. ^ The Signature Room at the 95th, website
  30. ^ "Chicago." Qatar Airways. Accessed 9 February 2009

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: John Hancock Center
Preceded by
Richard J. Daley Center		 Tallest building in Chicago
1969–1972
344 m		 Succeeded by
Aon Center
Preceded by
Prudential Tower		 Tallest building in the United States outside of New York City
1969–1972
344 m
 
Current
North America
Asia
Europe
Australia
Tallest towers
Selected towers with
20 or more floors
Chicago Landmark skyscrapers
with 12 or more floors
See also
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