{"nrhp_refnum":"85002842","name":"Smith, J. P., Shoe Company Plant","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"671--699 N. Sangamon Ave. and 901--921 W. Huron St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Chicago","county":"Cook County","state":"IL","lat":41.894855034000045,"lon":-87.65093812999999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1985-11-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A six-story brick industrial building at 671-699 North Sangamon Avenue and 901-921 West Huron Street in Chicago, built in 1911-1912 as a shoe factory and designed by Horatio R. Wilson. An addition by Shankland & Pingrey followed in 1919.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the plant is significant for its association with architect Horatio R. Wilson and with J.P. Smith, Chicago's second largest shoe manufacturer of the early twentieth century (Criterion B). It is also significant as an early Chicago example of a factory with large metal sash windows and a steel-framed curtain wall, a shift toward modern industrial design (Criterion C).","narrative":"Built in 1911-1912 for the J.P. Smith Shoe Company, this six-story brick factory on Chicago's Near West Side was designed by architect Horatio R. Wilson. Its main facade runs 283 feet along Sangamon Street. Heavy timber mill construction supports the interior, while a steel frame carries a brick curtain wall of thin piers and recessed spandrels. Between them sit large metal sash windows, each holding 48 panes, which cover about 65 percent of the facade. The nomination describes these as among the earliest in Chicago and as part of a broader move toward factories with more daylight. Shankland & Pingrey added a wing in 1919 that followed the original design. The company was the city's second largest shoe maker, and its production flowed from leather cutting on the sixth floor to shipping on the first. Shoe making ended in the 1960s, but the building keeps its original appearance, apart from bricked-in first-floor windows.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"Horatio R. Wilson (1858-1917)","architectural_style":"Modern industrial style (hybrid heavy timber mill and steel-frame curtain wall construction)","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Retains its original character in good condition; shoe production ended in the 1960s and the building has no significant remains of manufacturing. Some first-floor windows were bricked in, and a rehabilitation was anticipated. The form marks the status as occupied.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:34.584735-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/22/8924/28892422/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/85002842.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85002842/339671fdfd-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85002842/339671fdfd-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Andrew Jameson","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:J_P_Smith_Shoe_Company_Plant_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:J_P_Smith_Shoe_Company_Plant_Chicago_IL.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892422","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._P._Smith_Shoe_Company_Plant","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q65061716"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/cook-county/smith-j-p-shoe-company-plant-85002842/"}