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Daniel Hudson Burnham (September 4, 1846 – June 1, 1912) was an American
architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
and urban designer. A proponent of the '' Beaux-Arts'' movement, he may have been, "the most successful power broker the American architectural profession has ever produced." A successful
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
architect, he was selected as Director of Works for the 1892–93
World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, h ...
, colloquially referred to as "The White City". He had prominent roles in the creation of master plans for the development of a number of cities, including the Plan of Chicago, and plans for
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...
,
Baguio Baguio ( , ), officially the City of Baguio ( ilo, Siudad ti Baguio; fil, Lungsod ng Baguio), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines ...
and downtown Washington, D.C. He also designed several famous buildings, including a number of notable skyscrapers in Chicago, the Flatiron Building of triangular shape in New York City, Union Station in Washington D.C., London's
Selfridges Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of high-end department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Selfridges Retail Limited, part of the Selfridges Group of department stores. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridg ...
department store, and San Francisco's
Merchants Exchange A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as industry ...
. Although best known for his skyscrapers, city planning, and for the White City, almost one third of Burnham's total output – 14.7 million square feet (1.37 million square meters) – consisted of buildings for shopping.


Early life

Burnham was born in Henderson, New York, the son of Elizabeth Keith (Weeks) and Edwin Arnold Burnham.Norton-Burhnam House
National Register of Historic Places Registration, National Park Service, January 8, 2016
He was raised in the teachings of the Swedenborgian, also called The New Church which ingrained in him the strong belief that man should strive to be of service to others. At the age of eight, Burnham moved to
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
and his father established there a wholesale drug business which became a success.Larson (2003), p.19 Burnham was not a good student, but he was good at drawing. He moved to the eastern part of the country at the age of 18 to be taught by private tutors in order to pass the admissions examinations for Harvard and Yale, failing both apparently because of a bad case of test anxiety. In 1867, when he was 21 he returned to Chicago and took an apprenticeship as a draftsman under William LeBaron Jenney of the architectural firm Loring & Jenney. Architecture seemed to be the calling he was looking for, and he told his parents that he wanted to become "the greatest architect in the city or country". Nevertheless, the young Burnham still had a streak of wanderlust in him, and in 1869 he left his apprenticeship to go to Nevada with friends to try mining gold, at which he failed. He then ran for the Nevada state legislature and failed to be elected. Broke, he returned again to Chicago and took a position with the architect L. G. Laurean. When the Great Chicago Fire hit the city in October 1871, it seemed as if there would be endless work for architects, but Burnham chose to strike out again, becoming first a salesman of plate glass windows, then a druggist. He failed at the first and quit the second. He later remarked on "a family tendency to get tired of doing the same thing for very long".


Career

At age 26, Burnham moved on to the Chicago offices of Carter, Drake and Wight where he met future business partner John Wellborn Root, who was 21 and four years younger than Burnham. The two became friends and then opened an architectural office together in 1873. Unlike his previous ventures, Burnham stuck to this one. Burnham and Root went on to become a very successful firm. Their first major commission came from John B. Sherman, the superintendent of the massive Union Stock Yards in Chicago, which provided the livelihood – directly or indirectly – for one-fifth of the city's population. Sherman hired the firm to build for him a mansion on Prairie Avenue at Twenty-first Street among the mansions of Chicago's other merchant barons. Root made the initial design. Burnham refined it and supervised the construction. It was on the construction site that he met Sherman's daughter, Margaret, whom Burnham married in 1876 after a short courtship. Sherman commissioned other projects from Burnham and Root, including the Stone Gate, an entry portal to the stockyards which became a Chicago landmark. In 1881, the firm was commissioned to build the Montauk Building, which was then the tallest building in Chicago at the time. To solve the problem of the city's water-saturated sandy soil and bedrock below the surface, Root came up with a plan to dig down to a "hardpan" layer of clay on which was laid a thick pad of concrete overlaid with steel rails placed at right-angles to form a lattice "grill", which was then filled with Portland cement. This "floating foundation" was, in effect, artificially-created bedrock on which the building could be constructed. The completed building was so tall compared to existing buildings that it defied easy description, and the name "skyscraper" was coined to describe it. Thomas Talmadge, an architect and architectural critic said of the building, "What Chartres was to the Gothic cathedral, the Montauk Block was to the high commercial building." Burnham and Root went on to build more of the first American skyscrapers, such as the Masonic Temple Building in Chicago. Measuring 21 stories and 302 feet, the temple held claims as the tallest building of its time, but was torn down in 1939. The talents of the two partners were complementary. Both men were artists and gifted architects, but Root had a knack for conceiving elegant designs and was able to see almost at once the totality of the necessary structure. Burnham, on the other hand, excelled at bringing in clients and supervising the building of Root's designs. They each appreciated the value of the other to the firm. Burnham also took steps to ensure their employees were happy: he installed a gym in the office, gave fencing lessons and let employees play handball at lunch time. Root, a pianist and organist, gave piano recitals in the office on a rented piano. Paul Starrett, who joined the office in 1888 said "The office was full of a rush of work, but the spirit of the place was delightfully free and easy and human in comparison to other offices I had worked in." Although the firm was extremely successful, there were several notable setbacks. One of their designs, the Grannis Block in which their office was located, burned down in 1885 necessitating a move to the top floor of The Rookery, another of their designs. Then, in 1888, a Kansas City, Missouri, hotel they had designed collapsed during construction, killing one man and injuring several others. At the coroner's inquest, the building's design came in for criticism. The negative publicity shook and depressed Burnham. Then in a further setback, Burnham and Root also failed to win the commission for design of the giant Auditorium Building, which went instead to their rivals, Adler & Sullivan. On January 15, 1891, while the firm was deep in meetings for the design of the
World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, h ...
, Root died after a three-day course of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...
. As Root had been only 41 years old, his death stunned both Burnham and Chicago society. After Root's death, the firm of Burnham and Root, which had had tremendous success producing modern buildings as part of the Chicago School of architecture, was renamed D.H. Burnham & Company. After that the firm continued its successes and Burnham extended his reach into city design.


World's Columbian Exposition

Burnham and Root had accepted responsibility to oversee the design and construction of the
World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, h ...
in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
's then-desolate Jackson Park on the south lakefront. The largest world's fair to that date (1893), it celebrated the 400-year anniversary of
Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...
's famous voyage. After Root's sudden and unexpected death, a team of distinguished American architects and landscape architects, including Burnham, Frederick Law Olmsted, Charles McKim,
Richard M. Hunt Richard Morris Hunt (October 31, 1827 – July 31, 1895) was an American architect of the nineteenth century and an eminent figure in the history of American architecture. He helped shape New York City with his designs for the 1902 entrance fa� ...
,
George B. Post George Browne Post (December 15, 1837 – November 28, 1913) was an American architect trained in the Beaux-Arts tradition. He was recognized as a master of modern American architecture as well as being instrumental in the birth of the skyscra ...
,
Henry Van Brunt Henry Van Brunt FAIA (September 5, 1832 – April 8, 1903) was a 19th-century American architect and architectural writer. Life and work Van Brunt was born in Boston in 1832 to Gershom Jacques Van Brunt and Elizabeth Price Bradlee. Van Brunt ...
, and Louis Sullivan radically changed Root's modern and colorful style to a
Classical Revival Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing styl ...
style. To ensure the project's success, Burnham moved his personal residence into a wooden headquarters, called "the shanty" on the burgeoning fairgrounds to improve his ability to oversee construction. The construction of the fair faced huge financial and logistical hurdles, including a worldwide financial panic and an extremely tight timeframe, to open on time. Considered the first example of a comprehensive planning document in the nation, the fairground featured grand boulevards, classical building facades, and lush
garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...
s. Often called the "White City," it popularized neoclassical architecture in a monumental, yet rational Beaux-Arts style. As a result of the fair's popularity, architects across the U.S. were said to be inundated with requests by clients to incorporate similar elements into their designs. The control of the fair's design and construction was a matter of dispute between various entities, particularly the National Commission which was headed by George R. Davis, who served as Director-General of the fair. It was also headed by the Exposition Company which consisted of the city's leading merchants, led by
Lyman Gage Lyman Judson Gage (June 28, 1836 – January 26, 1927) was an American financier and Presidential Cabinet officer. Biography Early life He was born in DeRuyter, New York, educated at an academy in Rome, New York, and at the age of 17 bec ...
which had raised the money needed to build the fair, and Burnham as Director of Works. In addition the large number of committees made it difficult for construction to move forward at the pace needed to meet the opening day deadline. After a major accident which destroyed one of the fair's premiere buildings, Burnham moved to take tighter control of construction, distributing a memo to all the fair's department heads which read "I have assumed personal control of the active work within the grounds of the World's Columbian Exposition... Henceforward, and until further notice, you will report to and receive orders from me exclusively." After the fair opened, Olmsted, who designed the fairgrounds, said of Burnham that "too high an estimate cannot be placed on the industry, skill and tact with which this result was secured by the master of us all." Burnham himself rejected the suggestion that Root had been largely responsible for the fair's design, writing afterwards:
What was done up to the time of his death was the faintest suggestion of a plan... The impression concerning his part has been gradually built up by a few people, close friends of his and mostly women, who naturally after the Fair proved beautiful desired to more broadly identify his memory with it.Larson (2003), p.377


Post-fair architecture

Nevertheless, Burnham's reputation was considerably enhanced by the success and beauty of the fair. Harvard and Yale both presented him honorary master's degrees ameliorating his having failed their entrance exams in his youth. The common perception while Root was alive was that he was the architectural artist and Burnham had run the business side of the firm; Root's death, while devastating to Burnham personally, allowed him to develop as an architect in a way it might not have, had Root lived on. In 1901, Burnham designed the Flatiron Building in New York City, a trailblazing structure that utilized an internal steel skeleton to provide structural integrity; the exterior masonry walls were not load-bearing. This allowed the building to rise to 22 stories. The design was that of a vertical
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass id ...
palazzo with Beaux-Arts styling, divided like a classical column, into base, shaft and capital. Other Burnham post-fair designs included the Land Title Building (1897) in Philadelphia, the first major building in that city not designed by local architects, and known as "the finest example of early skyscraper design" there, John Wanamaker's Department Store (1902–1911) in Philadelphia, now Macy's, which is built around a central court, Wanamaker's Annex (1904, addition: 1907–1910), in New York City, a 19-story full-block building which contains as much floorspace as the Empire State Building, the neo-classical Gimbels Department Store (1908–1912) also in New York, now the Manhattan Mall, with a completely new facade, the stunningly Art Deco Mount Wilson Observatory in the hills above Pasadena, California, and
Filene's Department Store Filene's Department Store was a department store building at 426 Washington Street in Downtown Crossing, Boston, Massachusetts. It was the flagship store of the Filene's department store chain. The building has been renovated and now serves as t ...
(1912) in Boston, the last major building designed by Burnham.


The Philippines

In 1904, Burnham accepted a commission from Philippines Governor-General
William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
. He had the opportunity to redesign
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...
and plan a summer capital to be constructed in
Baguio Baguio ( , ), officially the City of Baguio ( ilo, Siudad ti Baguio; fil, Lungsod ng Baguio), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines ...
. Due to the Philippines status as a territory, Burnham was able to pursue his vision without having to win local approval. Altogether the project took six months to design, with only six weeks spent in the Philippines. During his time there, Burnham did not interact with Filipino locals concerning the project. After his plans were approved by William Cameron Forbes, Commissioner of Commerce and Police in the Philippines, Burnham was allowed to choose the principal architect,
William E. Parsons William Edward Parsons (June 19, 1872 - December 17, 1939) was an architect and city planner known for his works in the Philippines during the early period of American colonization in the country. As the consulting architect to the Philippine go ...
. Burnham then departed to keep tabs on the project from the mainland. Burnham's plans emphasized improved sanitation, a cohesive aesthetic ( Mission Revival), and visual reminders of government authority. In Manila, wide boulevards radiated out from the capital building, while in Baguio government structures loomed from the cliffs above the town. The land for the Baguio project, in total, was seized from local Igorots with approval of the Philippine Supreme Court. In Manila, neighborhoods ravaged by the war for independence were left untouched while a luxury hotel, casino, and boat clubs were designed for visiting mainland dignitaries.


City planning and the ''Plan of Chicago''

Initiated in 1906 and published in 1909, Burnham and his co-author Edward H. Bennett prepared a ''Plan of Chicago'' which laid out plans for the future of the city. It was the first comprehensive plan for the controlled growth of an American city and an outgrowth of the
City Beautiful movement The City Beautiful Movement was a reform philosophy of North American architecture and urban planning that flourished during the 1890s and 1900s with the intent of introducing beautification and monumental grandeur in cities. It was a part of the ...
. The plan included ambitious proposals for the lakefront and river. It also asserted that every citizen should be within walking distance of a park. Sponsored by the Commercial Club of Chicago, Burnham donated his services in hopes of furthering his own cause. Building off plans and conceptual designs from the World's Fair for the south lakefront, Burnham envisioned Chicago as a "
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
on the Prairie". French-inspired public works constructions, fountains and boulevards radiating from a central, domed municipal palace became Chicago's new backdrop. Though only parts of the plan were actually implemented, it set the standard for urban design, anticipating the future need to control urban growth and continuing to influence the development of Chicago long after Burnham's death.


Plans in additional cities

Burnham's city planning projects did not stop at Chicago. Burnham had previously contributed to plans for cities such as
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U ...
(the 1903 Group Plan),
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
(1905),
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...
(1905), and
Baguio Baguio ( , ), officially the City of Baguio ( ilo, Siudad ti Baguio; fil, Lungsod ng Baguio), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines ...
in the Philippines, details of which appear in the 1909 ''Plan of Chicago'' publication. His plans for the redesign of San Francisco were delivered to the Board of Supervisors in September 1905, but in the haste to rebuild the city after the 1906 earthquake and fires Burnham's plans were ultimately ignored. In the Philippines, Burnham's Plan for Manila never materialized due to the outbreak of World War II and the relocation of the capital to another city after the war. Some components of the plan, however, did come into fruition including the shore road which became Dewey Boulevard (now known as
Roxas Boulevard Roxas Boulevard is a popular waterfront promenade in Metro Manila in the Philippines. The boulevard, which runs along the shores of Manila Bay, is well known for its sunsets and stretch of coconut trees. The divided roadway has become a trade ...
) and the various neoclassical government buildings around Luneta Park, which very much resemble a miniature version of Washington, D.C., in their arrangement. In Washington, D.C., Burnham did much to shape the 1901 McMillan Plan which led to the completion of the overall design of the National Mall. The Senate Park Commission, or McMillan Commission established by Michigan Senator James McMillan, brought together Burnham and three of his colleagues from the World's Columbian Exposition: architect
Charles Follen McKim Charles Follen McKim (August 24, 1847 – September 14, 1909) was an American Beaux-Arts architect of the late 19th century. Along with William Rutherford Mead and Stanford White, he provided the architectural expertise as a member of the par ...
, landscape architect
Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (July 24, 1870 – December 25, 1957) was an American landscape architect and city planner known for his wildlife conservation efforts. He had a lifetime commitment to national parks, and worked on projects in Acadia, t ...
, and sculptor
Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. From a French-Irish family, Saint-Gaudens was raised in New York City, he tra ...
. Going well beyond
Pierre L'Enfant Pierre "Peter" Charles L'Enfant (; August 2, 1754June 14, 1825) was a French-American military engineer who designed the basic plan for Washington, D.C. (capital city of the United States) known today as the L'Enfant Plan (1791). Early life an ...
's original vision for the city, the plan provided for the extension of the Mall beyond the
Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk shaped building within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and ...
to a new Lincoln Memorial and a "pantheon" that eventually materialized as the Jefferson Memorial. This plan involved significant reclamation of land from swamp and the
Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands of West Virginia, Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Datas ...
and the relocation of an existing railroad station, which was replaced by Burnham's design for Union Station. As a result of his service on the McMillan Commission, in 1910 Burnham was appointed a member and first chairman of the United States Commission of Fine Arts helping to ensure implementation of the McMillan Plan's vision. Burnham served on the commission until his death in 1912.


Influence

In his career after the fair, Burnham became one of the country's most prominent advocates for the Beaux-Arts movement as well as the revival of Neo-classical architecture which began with the fair. Much of Burhham's work was based on the classical style of Greece and Rome. In his 1924 autobiography, Louis Sullivan, one of the leading architects of the Chicago School, but one who had a difficult relationship with Burnham over an extended period of time, criticized Burnham for what Sullivan viewed as his lack of original expression and dependence on classicism. Sullivan went on to claim that "the damage wrought by the World's Fair will last for half a century from its date, if not longer" – a sentiment edged with bitterness, as corporate America of the early 20th century had demonstrated a strong preference for Burnham's architectural style over Sullivan's. Burnham is famously quoted as saying, "Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably will not themselves be realized." This slogan has been taken to capture the essence of Burnham's spirit. A man of influence, Burnham was considered the pre-eminent architect in America at the start of the 20th century. He held many positions during his lifetime, including the presidency of the
American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to ...
. Other notable architects began their careers under his aegis, such as Joseph W. McCarthy. Several of his descendants have worked as influential architects and planners in the United States, including his son,
Daniel Burnham Jr. Daniel Hudson Burnham Jr. (1886–1961), was an architect and urban planner based in Chicago and one of the sons of the renowned architect and urban planner Daniel H. Burnham. Burnham Jr. was director of public works for the Century of Progress ...
, and grandchildren Burnham Kelly and
Margaret Burnham Geddes Margaret Burnham Geddes (née Kelly; September 26, 1907 – February 18, 1995) was an American architect, urban planner, and activist who worked in Providence, Rhode Island. She designed several early modernist houses in southern New England with ...
.


Personal life

Burnham married Margaret Sherman, the daughter of his first major client, John B. Sherman, on January 20, 1876. They first met on the construction site of her father's house. Her father had a house built for the couple to live in. During their courtship, there was a scandal in which Burnham's older brother was accused of having forged checks. Burnham immediately went to John Sherman and offered to break the engagement as a matter of honor but Sherman rejected the offer, saying "There is a black sheep in every family." However, Sherman remained wary of his son-in-law, who he thought drank too much. Burnham and Margaret remained married for the rest of his life. They had five children, two daughters and three sons, including
Daniel Burnham Jr. Daniel Hudson Burnham Jr. (1886–1961), was an architect and urban planner based in Chicago and one of the sons of the renowned architect and urban planner Daniel H. Burnham. Burnham Jr. was director of public works for the Century of Progress ...
born in February 1886,Larson (2003), p.28 who became an architect and urban planner like his father. He worked in his father's firm until 1917, and served as the Director of Public Works for the 1933-34 Chicago World's Fair, known as the "Century of Progress". The Burnham family lived in Chicago until 1886, when he purchased a 16-room farmhouse and estate on
Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that ...
in the suburb of
Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, Downtown Chicago, ...
. Burnham had become wary of Chicago which he felt was becoming dirtier and more dangerous as its population increased. Burnham explained to his mother, whom he did not tell of the move in advance, "I did it, because I can no longer bear to have my children on the streets of Chicago..." When Burnham moved into "the shanty" in Jackson Park to better supervise construction of the fair, his wife, Margaret and their children remained in Evanston.Larson (2003), p.128


Beliefs

Burnham was an early environmentalist, writing: "Up to our time, strict economy in the use of natural resources has not been practiced, but it must be henceforth unless we are immoral enough to impair conditions in which our children are to live," although he also believed the
automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded ...
would be a positive environmental factor, with the end of horse-based transportation bringing "a real step in civilization... With no smoke, no gases, no litter of horses, your air and streets will be clean and pure. This means, does it not, that the health and spirits of men will be better?" Like many men of his time, he also showed an interest in the supernatural, saying "If I were able to take the time, I believe that I could prove the continuation of life beyond the grave, reasoning from the necessity, philosophically speaking, of a belief in an absolute and universal power."


Death

When Burnham was in his fifties, his health began to decline. He developed colitis and in 1909 was diagnosed with
diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...
, which affected his circulatory system and led to an infection in his foot which was to continue for the remainder of his life. On April 14, 1912, Burnham and his wife were aboard the RMS'' Olympic'' of the White Star Line, traveling to Europe to tour Heidelberg, Germany. When he attempted to send a telegram to his friend
Frank Millet Francis Davis Millet (November 3, 1848. – April 15, 1912) was an American academic classical painter, sculptor, and writer who died in the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'' on April 15, 1912. Early life Francis Davis Millet was born in Mattapoi ...
who was traveling the opposite direction, from Europe to the United States, on the RMS'' Titanic'', he learned that the ship had sunk in an accident and Millet did not survive. Burnham died only 47 days later from colitis complicated by his diabetes and food poisoning from a meal eaten in Heidelberg. At the time of his death, D.H. Burnham and Co. was the world's largest architectural firm. Even legendary architect
Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...
, although strongly critical of Burnham's Beaux Arts European influences, still admired him as a man and eulogized him, saying: " urnhammade masterful use of the methods and men of his time... san enthusiastic promoter of great construction enterprises...his powerful personality was supreme." The successor firm to Burnham's practice was Graham, Anderson, Probst & White, which continued in some form until 2006. Burnham was interred at
Graceland Cemetery Graceland Cemetery is a large historic garden cemetery located in the north side community area of Uptown, in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Established in 1860, its main entrance is at the intersection of Clark Street and Ir ...
in Chicago.


Memorials

Tributes to Burnham include Burnham Park and Daniel Burnham Court in Chicago, Burnham Park in Baguio in the Philippines, Daniel Burnham Court in San Francisco (formerly Hemlock Street between Van Ness Avenue and Franklin Street), the annual ''Daniel Burnham Award for a Comprehensive Plan'' (run by the American Planning Association), and the ''Burnham Memorial Competition'' which was held in 2009 to create a memorial to Burnham and his Plan of Chicago. Collections of Burnham's personal and professional papers, photographs, and other archival materials are held by the Ryerson & Burnham Libraries at the
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mil ...
. In addition, the Reliance Building in Chicago which was designed by Burnham and Root, is now the
Hotel Burnham The Reliance Building is a skyscraper located at 1 W. Washington Street in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. The first floor and basement were designed by John Root of the Burnham and Root architectural firm in 1890, with the rest of ...
, although Root was the primary architect before his death in 1891.


Notable commissions

Flatiron Building, Manhattan, New York, USA.jpg, Flatiron Building (1901) Reliance Building in September 2015.jpg, Reliance Building (1890–1895) Chicago_Union_Stockyard_Gate.jpg,
Union Stock Yard Gate The Union Stock Yard Gate, located on Exchange Avenue at Peoria Street, was the entrance to the famous Union Stock Yards in Chicago. The gate was designed by Burnham and Root around 1875, and is the only significant structural element of the stock ...
, Chicago (1879) 1891 Rookery building.jpg, The Rookery Building in Chicago, (1886) 770_Broadway_August_2021.jpg,
770 Broadway 770 Broadway is a landmarked mixed-use commercial office building in NoHo, Manhattan, in Lower Manhattan, New York City, occupying an entire square block between 9th Street on the north, Fourth Avenue to the east, 8th Street to the south, a ...
, New York City (1904, addition: 1907–1910) Pittsburgh_Union_Station_Wide_2900px.jpg, Pennsylvania Union Station (1900–1902) 4. SOUTH FRONT, MAIN ENTRANCE PAVILION, OBLIQUE VIEW 1974 - Union Station 030013pv.jpg, Union Station in Washington, D.C., (1908) Gilbert M. Simmons Memorial Library.jpg, Gilbert M. Simmons Memorial Library, Kenosha, Wisconsin (1900) Train_Station_in_El_Paso,_Texas.jpg, Union Station,
El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the ...
(1905–1906)


Chicago

*
Union Stock Yard Gate The Union Stock Yard Gate, located on Exchange Avenue at Peoria Street, was the entrance to the famous Union Stock Yards in Chicago. The gate was designed by Burnham and Root around 1875, and is the only significant structural element of the stock ...
(1879) * Union Station (1881) * Montauk Building (1882–1883) * Kent House (1883) * Rookery Building (1886) * Reliance Building (1890–1895) * Monadnock Building (northern half, 1891) * Marshall Field and Company Building (now Macy's, 1891–1892) * Fisher Building (1896) * Orchestra Hall (1904) *
Heyworth Building The Heyworth Building is a Chicago Landmark located at 29 East Madison Street, on the southwest corner of Madison Street and Wabash Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The building was constructed in 1904 by the architectural firm of D. H. Burnham & ...
(1904) *
Boyce Building The Boyce Building is an historic building in Chicago, Illinois, associated with William D. Boyce and his publishing house, which catered to small towns. The building was also the headquarters of his Lone Scouts of America. Architecture The Boyc ...
, on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...
(1915) * Butler Brothers Warehouse (now
The Gogo Building The Gogo Building, formerly known as the River Center, is an commercial building located at 111 N. Canal Street in the West Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Originally constructed as a warehouse in the early 1900s, the vintage, loft-sty ...
) (1913)


Cincinnati

* Union Savings Bank and Trust Building (later the Fifth Third Union Trust Building, the Bartlett Building and now the Renaissance Hotel, 1901) * Tri-State Building (1902) * First National Bank Building (later the Clopay Building and now the Fourth & Walnut Center, 1904) * Fourth National Bank Building (1904)


Detroit

* Majestic Building (1896, demolished 1962) * Ford Building (1907–1908) *
Dime Building Chrysler House is a 23-story, skyscraper located a719 Griswold Streetin Downtown Detroit, Michigan. The class-A office building is adjacent to the Penobscot Building in the heart of the U.S. designated Detroit Financial District. It is used as a ...
(1912)


Indianapolis

* Indianapolis Traction Terminal, (1903, demolished 1972) *
Barnes and Thornburg Building The Barnes and Thornburg Building is a high rise in Indianapolis, Indiana originally known as the Merchants National Bank Building. In 1905, the Merchants National Bank and Trust Company engaged the architectural firm of D. H. Burnham & Company ...
, (formerly the Merchants National Bank Building), (1912)


New York

* Flatiron Building (1901) * Wanamaker's Annex, full-city-block department store (1904, addition: 1907–1910) * Gimbels Department Store (1908–1912)


Philadelphia

* Land Title Building (1897) * John Wanamaker's Department Store (now housing a Macy's and offices, 1902–1911)


Pittsburgh

* Union Trust Building (1898, 337 Fourth Avenue – not the 1917 structure of the same name on Grant Street) * Pennsylvania Union Station (1900–1902) * Frick Building (1902) * McCreery Department Store (now offices – 300 Sixth Avenue Building, 1904) *
Highland Building The Highland Building is a 13-story building in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Construction on the building was completed in 1909, with Daniel Burnham being the principal designer. It was listed on the National Registe ...
(1910, 121 South Highland Avenue) * Henry W. Oliver Building (1910)


San Francisco

* Merchants Exchange Building (1904) * The Mills Building (1892, restoration and expansion: 1907–1909)


Washington, D.C.

* Union Station (1908) * Postal Square Building (1911–1914) *
Columbus Fountain ''Columbus Fountain'' also known as the Columbus Memorial is a public artwork by American sculptor Lorado Taft, located at Union Station in Washington, D.C., United States. A centerpiece of Columbus Circle, ''Columbus Fountain'' serves as a t ...
(1912)


Others

*
Keokuk Union Depot Keokuk Union Depot is an historic train station on the west bank of the Mississippi River near downtown Keokuk, Iowa, United States. It was built from 1890 to 1891, and it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013. History Thi ...
, Keokuk, Iowa (1891) * Pearsons Hall of Science, Beloit, Wisconsin (1892–1893) * Ellicott Square Building,
Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...
(1896) *
Columbus Union Station Columbus Union Station was an intercity train station in Downtown Columbus, Ohio, near The Short North neighborhood. The station and its predecessors served railroad passengers in Columbus from 1851 until April 28, 1977. The first station buildin ...
,
Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...
(1897) *
Wyandotte Building The Wyandotte Building is a historic building in Downtown Columbus, Ohio. It was considered the city's first skyscraper, built in 1897-1898 and designed by Daniel Burnham's architectural firm. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Place ...
,
Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...
(1897–1898) * Gilbert M. Simmons Memorial Library, Kenosha, Wisconsin (1900) * Continental Trust Company Building,
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
(1901, southeast corner South Calvert and East Baltimore Streets, damaged during Great Baltimore Fire of February 1904, but upon inspection the steel and masonry exterior was deemed sound; the damaged interior was later reconstructed) * First National Bank Building (now Fayette Building), Uniontown, Pennsylvania (1902) * Pennsylvania Railroad Station, Richmond, Indiana (1902) * Cleveland Mall with Arnold Brunner and John Carrère,
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U ...
(1903) * Union Station,
El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the ...
(1905–1906) * The Fleming Building,
Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moine ...
(1907) *
Yazoo & Mississippi Valley Railroad The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad (Y&MV) was incorporated in 1882 and was part of the Illinois Central Railroad system (IC). Construction began in Jackson, Mississippi, and continued to Yazoo City, Mississippi. The line was later expand ...
station, Vicksburg, Mississippi (1907) * Duluth Civic Center Historic District,
Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...
, (1908–1909, four buildings) * Selfridge & Co. Department Store,
Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and ...
,
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
(1909) * Miners National Bank Building,
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in th ...
(1911, now Citizens Bank Financial Center) *
Terminal Arcade The Terminal Arcade, located on Wabash Avenue in downtown Terre Haute, Indiana, is a Beaux-Arts building on the National Register of Historic Places since June 30, 1983. The building originally served as the Terre Haute, Indianapolis and Eastern ...
, Terre Haute, Indiana (1911) *
Filene's Department Store Filene's Department Store was a department store building at 426 Washington Street in Downtown Crossing, Boston, Massachusetts. It was the flagship store of the Filene's department store chain. The building has been renovated and now serves as t ...
,
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...
(1912) *
Starks Building The Starks Building is a landmark 14-story building on Fourth Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard in Downtown Louisville, Kentucky, USA. It was built in 1913 on a site that had been the First Christian Church of Louisville. It was commissioned by loc ...
,
Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana borde ...
(1912) * Second National Bank Building, Toledo, Ohio (1913, now Riverfront Apartments) * El Granada, California (city master plan) * First National Bank Building,
Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...
* Joliet Public Library,
Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will and Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East sect ...
(1903) * Kenilworth Train Station, Kenilworth, Illinois * Mount Wilson Observatory, Pasadena, California


Philippines

* City planning for
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...
* City planning for
Baguio Baguio ( , ), officially the City of Baguio ( ilo, Siudad ti Baguio; fil, Lungsod ng Baguio), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines ...
* Provincial Capitol Building in Bacolod, Negros Occidental * Pangasinan Provincial Capitol * Burnham Park


In popular culture

* ''Make No Little Plans - Daniel Burnham and the American City'' is the first feature-length documentary film about noted architect and urban planner Daniel Hudson Burnham, produced by the Archimedia Workshop. National distribution in 2009 coincided with the centennial celebration of Daniel Burnham and Edward Bennett's 1909 Plan of Chicago. * '' The Devil in the White City'', a non-fiction book by Erik Larson, intertwines the true tales of two men:
H.H. Holmes Herman Webster Mudgett (May 16, 1861 – May 7, 1896), better known as Dr. Henry Howard Holmes or H. H. Holmes, was an American con artist and serial killer, the subject of more than 50 lawsuits in Chicago alone. Until his execution in 1896, he ...
, a serial killer famed for his 'murderous hotel' in Chicago, and Daniel Burnham. * In the role-playing game '' Unknown Armies'', James K. McGowan, the True King of Chicago, quotes Daniel Burnham and regards him as a paragon of the Windy City's mysterious and magical past. * In the episode "Legendaddy" of TV
sitcom A sitcom, a Portmanteau, portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troup ...
'' How I Met Your Mother'', the character Ted, who is professor of architecture, describes Burnham as an "architectural chameleon". * In the episode "Household" of Hulu original '' The Handmaid's Tale'', Daniel Burnham is indirectly mentioned and only named as a Heretic for the reason the Gilead government demolished and replaced Washington, D.C.'s Union Station. * In Joffrey Ballet's version of '' The Nutcracker'', choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, Daniel Burnham, is the Drosselmeyer character of the ballet.


References

Informational notes Citations Bibliography * * * Burnham, Daniel H. and Bennett, Edward H. (1910) ''Plan of Chicago'', Chicago: The Commercial Club * * * * * * *


External links


Ryerson & Burnham Libraries at The Art Institute of Chicago


*
''Booknotes'' interview with Erik Larson on ''The Devil in the White City'', September 14, 2003.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnham, Daniel 19th-century American architects Fellows of the American Institute of Architects American urban planners Artists from Chicago * People from Henderson, New York American expatriates in the Philippines American Swedenborgians Burials at Graceland Cemetery (Chicago) 1846 births 1912 deaths Western Association of Architects World's Columbian Exposition Presidents of the American Institute of Architects Chicago school architects Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters