{"nrhp_refnum":"02001349","name":"Maxwell-Briscoe Automobile Company Showroom","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1737 S. Michigan Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Chicago","county":"Cook County","state":"IL","lat":41.860168455000064,"lon":-87.62359690799997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-11-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story red brick and terra cotta automobile showroom at 1737 South Michigan Avenue, at the corner of 18th Street in Chicago, built in 1909 for the Maxwell-Briscoe Motor Co.","why_significant":"It is one of the earliest surviving intact automobile showrooms in Chicago and part of the Motor Row multiple property listing. It is significant under Criterion A for Commerce and Criterion C for Architecture as an early example of the large, multi-story corner showroom building type. Its original brick, enameled terra cotta ornament and window patterns remain largely intact.","narrative":"Built in 1909 at the corner of Michigan Avenue and 18th Street in Chicago, this four-story building was designed as a showroom for the Maxwell-Briscoe Motor Co. of Tarrytown, New York. Architect William Ernest Walker used wire-cut red brick with buff glazed terra cotta trim, including stepped pediments filled with cartouches, shields, acanthus leaves and cornucopias at the corners. Brick piers frame large plate glass windows on the ground floor. The building served as a showroom until 1915, when it was converted to storage. It is considered one of the earliest surviving showrooms in the city and an early example of the large, multi-story corner showroom type that shaped Chicago's Motor Row. Apart from a removed cornice and two new service entrances, the exterior remains close to its original appearance. A recent rehabilitation was reviewed under federal standards, and the building now houses offices.","period_of_significance":"1909-1915","architect_builder":"Ernest Walker","architectural_style":"Commercial Style","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Rehabilitated and currently used as offices; it no longer functions as an automobile showroom.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.313888-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/58/8909/28890958/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/02001349.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02001349/589ce2f8c1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02001349/589ce2f8c1-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Andrew Jameson","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maxwell-Briscoe_Automobile_Company_Showroom_Chicago_IL.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Andrew Jameson</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maxwell-Briscoe_Automobile_Company_Showroom_Chicago_IL.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28890958","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxwell-Briscoe_Automobile_Company_Showroom","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q48810737"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/cook-county/maxwell-briscoe-automobile-company-showroom-02001349/"}