Northwestern Terra Cotta Company collection of photographs, [ca. 1900-1960]

  • Collection ID 2008.0155.2
  • Creator Names Northwestern Terra Cotta Company.
  • Title Northwestern Terra Cotta Company collection of photographs [graphic].
  • Dates [ca. 1900-1960]
  • Physical description
    • 646 photographic prints : b&w. ; 22 x 18 in. and smaller.
    • 474 photographic prints : b&w ; 11 x 14 in. and smaller.
    • 3 albums of photographic prints : b&w ; 11 1/4 x 16 in. and smaller.
    • 2 portfolios (24 plates) : b&w ; 11 x 14 in.
    • 43 photographic prints : col. ; 8 x 10 in. and smaller.
    • 83 transparencies : col., slide ; 35 mm.
    • 35 transparencies : col. ; 8 x 10 in. and smaller
    • 1 photographic print : b&w, hand-colored ; 7 1/2 x 32 in.
    • folders of non-graphic materials.
  • Access and usage restrictions Advance appointment required to view color materials in cold storage.
  • Collection summary
    • Photographs of terra-cotta products and many of the buildings for which Northwestern Terra Cotta Company (NWTC) products were used; views and portraits of NWTC plants and workers, designers, modelers, and executives; and other miscellaneous materials. A few black-and-white photographs have hand-coloring to indicate glazes used on the molded decorative items, and many photographs have handwritten annotations. Many photographs of buildings with terra-cotta decoration made by NWTC are identified by name, location, architectural firm, and descriptions of the types of materials and glazes used by NWTC. Some photographs of terra cotta architectural ornaments are identified with job number and name of the building for which they were created.
    • Other items in the collection include photographs of Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) used as reference for creating terra cotta murals for the Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma (also pictured); photographs of sculptures by Edgardo Simone (1890-1948), including a few portraits of the sculptor with his work; photographs of panels made for the Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden, Colorado; a hand-colored photograph of a panoramic terra cotta mural depicting Aesop's Fables, created for a school in Kalamazoo, Michigan; an original design of a tile mural for the Isaly Dairy Plant in Youngstown, Ohio, by artist Carlo Ciampaglia (1891-1975); portfolios of 12 plates entitled, "Portfolio of Architectural Ornament Vol. 1 Modern"; and a scrapbook of photographs entitled: Alleged failures of building materials. Non-graphic materials include news clippings, memos, and photocopies of photographs on album pages before being disassembled for preservation.
  • Biographical or Historical Note Northwestern Terra Cotta Company was Chicago's largest manufacturer of architectural terra cotta. With headquarters at 1750 Wrightwood Avenue in Chicago, NWTC operated from ca. 1877 until its last factory, located in Denver, closed its doors in 1965. The firm was a leader in development of the architectural terra cotta industry and provided building elements for numerous Chicago buildings, including the Wrigley Building, Chicago Theatre, and Civic Opera House.
  • Terms Governing Use and Reproduction Please credit: Gift of Ms. Grace Kristiansen (2000.0201) and the Grace Kristiansen Trust (2008.0155).
  • Finding Aids Note Descriptive inventory available online.
  • Location of Other Archival Materials Note Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include the Northwestern Terra Cotta Company records and several publications and newsletters cataloged by title.
  • Names
    • Northwestern Terra Cotta Company Photographs.
    • Wrigley Building (Chicago, Ill.)
    • Kristiansen, Grace, donor.
  • Uniform Title Aesop's fables Pictorial works.
  • Subjects
    • Buildings Illinois Chicago 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Buildings United States 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Decoration and ornament, Architectural 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Decoration and ornament, Architectural Illinois Chicago 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Designers Illinois Chicago 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Terra-cotta Illinois Chicago 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Terra-cotta industry United States 1900-1960. lctgm
    • Terra-cotta sculpture 1900-1960. lctgm
  • Geographic coverage
    • Chicago (Ill.) Buildings, structures, etc. 1900-1960.
    • United States Buildings, structures, etc. 1900-1960.
  • Genre
    • Gelatin silver prints. gmgpc
    • Group portraits. gmgpc
    • Illustrations. gmgpc
    • Photograph albums. gmgpc
    • Photographic prints Color. gmgpc
    • Portrait photographs. gmgpc
    • Slides Color. gmgpc
    • Transparencies. gmgpc
  • Geographic name United States Illinois Cook County Chicago.
  • Finding aid URL Finding aid available online http://chsmedia.org/media/fa/fa/2008/155.htm