Marquette Building, Chicago

Imagine slipping a sleek, tailored cover over an iron skeleton-that’s the Marquette Building, constructed in 1895. Underneath its crisp, geometric skin hides a tough steel frame, one of the early hallmarks of Chicago’s vertical ambitions. The base is rugged stone. The crown is an ornate cornice that looks like it belongs on a royal pastry. But most of the façade sticks to business: form follows function, with clean lines that echo the structure’s bones. Inside, every office hugs the building’s arms, ensuring that each room gets a slice of sunlight, either from the street or the central light well. Think efficiency with a touch of elegance...

The building takes its name from Jacques Marquette, the Jesuit priest and explorer whose 1674–75 journal gave Europe its first written peek at what we now call Chicago. Owen F. Aldis-part real estate developer, part amateur historian, full-on fanboy-translated the journal in 1891 and made it the heart and soul of the building. That’s why you’ll spot reliefs on the exterior showing scenes from Marquette’s adventures, as if the building’s wearing a historic graphic novel on its face.

Inside the lobby, you may feel like you’re in a jewel box: bronze fixtures gleam under a Tiffany glass mosaic that narrates Marquette’s journey with serious flair. Over the elevators are bronze reliefs of French explorers and Native Americans mid-expedition. And if you wander just a bit farther, you’ll find a mini-exhibit on the building’s history and recent restoration-brought to you by the MacArthur Foundation, which, fittingly, is one of the tenants here.

All of this came from the minds of Holabird & Roche, two architects who started out as draftsmen for the guy who basically invented skyscrapers, William Le Baron Jenney. Indeed, these guys didn’t just raise buildings-they raised the bar...