| Address | 11941 S. Parnell Avenue, Chicago, IL |
|---|---|
| Built | 1894 1900 |
| Architect | William Bryce Mundie, John Charles Christensen |
| Status | Designated Chicago Landmark |
| Designation Date | May 25, 2018 (Final)City Council Journal of the Proceedings, p. 78865 |
| Neighborhood | West Pullman |
| Type | School and education |
| Landmark ID | L-350 |
Direct quotes from the Chicago Landmark Designation Report
“The school building is composed of three unique sections, which illustrate a range of forms and styles that bridge a significant transitional period in the design of public school buildings.”
“Architect W. August Fiedler, commonly known as August Fiedler, was the first in-house architect. That same year, the School Board completed construction of twenty-two new school buildings, including the West Pullman Elementary School, and approved plans for ten more school buildings, all designed by Fiedler.”
“The three sections share similar forms and materials, but they also illustrate a progressive period of school building design innovation from the late 19th to the early 20th centuries. bays on its west and south elevations, with a short pyramidal roof crowning its western bay.”
“The west and south elevations are shown. The 1900 addition was designed by William B. Mundie who retained Feidler's original design for the first two floors of the addition, but added a third level in the Classical Revival style with rustic brickwork and a painted metal cornice.”
“Public education has historically been one of the most important responsibilities of Chicago government, and public school buildings often are architecturally prominent buildings and visual and social anchors in the City's neighborhoods.”
“Architecturally, the West Pullman School's three separate periods of construction display innovations made in the form and style of public school buildings in Chicago during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.”
“Mundie's addition to the West Pullman School was completed in February 1900 and held twenty-two classrooms with capacity for over 1000 students. The first floor featured a flexible space for use as an assembly hall or a gymnasium, and new manual training rooms for trades were included.”
“Irish, German, and Scandinavian immigrants and residents moving westward from the East Coast settled the area during the 1850s. The opening of George M. Pullman's Palace Car factory and the development of his surrounding factory town of Pullman in 1880 attracted additional investment, new manufacturers, and new settlers to the area.”
“The West Pullman Elementary School reveals a progression in the design of public schools between its three sections. It exhibits the changing prevailing concepts of and innovations in school architecture during the late-19th and early-20th centuries, with its masonry construction, central corridor layout, large windows for ample light and ventilation, and its variety of classroom and assembly spaces.”
“The combination of new attendance requirements, child labor laws, new immigrant populations, and a much larger city area led to an extensive school construction campaign to accommodate Chicago's thousands of new students.”