100 years of the Tribune Tower: How it helped create the "Mag Mile"
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Michigan Avenue looking north in 1927. The Wrigley Building is on the left; Tribune Tower is on the right. Photo: Kirn Vintage Stock/Corbis via Getty Images
This week's History Mystery isn't much of a mystery, but more of a time capsule.
The latest: The Tribune Tower, one of Chicago's most famous buildings, just turned 100.
State of play: The Gothic tower opened in 1925. The building, which was once the home of the giant Chicago Tribune empire, is now luxury condos.
- Fun fact: The building was designed by a contest winner.
The intrigue: While the building celebrated its birthday over the weekend, this Getty archival photo gives us a glimpse of what was happening just a few short years after the building reshaped the Mag Mile forever.
Flashback: The Trib Tower and its neighbor, the Wrigley Building, ushered in a new era for North Michigan Avenue in the 1920s. Before the two buildings were erected, the north side of the river was grimy and gritty, home to manufacturing and a smattering of residential buildings.
- With the two buildings anchoring the south end of the street, the now notorious stretch took off with new construction, retail and investment.
- In just a few short years, traffic boomed, new buildings were born, and North Michigan Avenue became the Mag Mile.
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The bottom line: The 100th anniversary of the Trib Tower is a huge moment for Chicago, but also marks the moment Michigan Avenue became magnificent.