Chicago River Highlights: Tribune Tower
When it comes to fascinating history along the Chicago River, a must-see stop for any tour has to be the Tribune Tower. Located at 435 Michigan Ave., the creation of this 36-floor neo-Gothic skyscraper was a historic moment for 20th-century architecture, both domestically and worldwide.
A Global Design Contest
In 1922, the Chicago Tribune newspaper wanted to commemorate its 75th anniversary, with a goal of increasing its international presence. The solution? A new headquarters, designed via a worldwide architecture competition.
An ingenious publicity campaign, the global design contest drew more than 260 entries from 23 countries, with a hefty prize of international renown as well as a total of $100,000 in prize money (almost $2 million today!). The prompt was to create “the most beautiful building in the world,” and the resulting entries (both the winning design and runner-ups) still mark a monumental turning point in American architectural history.
The Results
Submissions for the design contest displayed an amazing array of international talent and values when it came to public space. The majority of the entries came from the U.S. and Europe, and when compared, painted a fascinating story. Though the purpose of the contest was to give all contestants equal footing, American architects understood the need to maximize the commercial and office space of their designs.
The building code for the plot of land allowed 260 feet of occupied space, with an additional 140 feet of unoccupied structure above it. This resulted in a variety of American designs featuring 16 to 20 stories of office space, topped by various designs of towers, domes, and buttresses to distinguish the entries.
While most American designs maximized the amount of rentable office space, many European entries prioritized form over function, pushing the boundaries of architecture and sacrificing usable space in favor of grandeur. Notable submissions included a giant Doric column and a large classical arch similar to the Arc de Triomphe.
Although international competitions may be commonplace today, the Tribune Tower design contest was unique and noteworthy for its time. The competition’s global scale brought together architects from around the world, allowing audiences to compare diverse styles and schools of thought side by side.
The results of the competition, published as widely as they were, had a wide-reaching effect and momentous influence on the visual themes of what would be called the “Modern Age” of design. Both the winning submission and other entries would go on to influence North American skyscraper designs as well as post-war and Postmodernist buildings, including the classic step-backs of Chicago’s 181 W. Madison Street skyscraper, an homage to Eliel Saarinen’s 2nd place design.
The Winning Design
The winning entry for the Tribune Tower Design contest, awarded both fame and a $50,000 grand prize, was designed by New York architects Raymond Hood and John Mead Howells. The design, a marriage of traditional European architectural style with modern American architecture, features a Gothic Revival style crowned by a Butter Tower, reminiscent of the 13th-century French Rouen Cathedral. The lower office block is an Art Deco style, with limestone, piers, and spandrels, while the top highlights arched portals, delicate carvings, and stone ornaments.
The design appealed to the newspaper owners’ nostalgia and history, featuring an entryway, the “Hall of Inscriptions,” with famous quotes by Benjamin Franklin, Voltaire, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison praising the freedom of the press. Sharp-eyed visitors will be able to spot hidden carvings, including animals from Aesop’s Fables as well as references to the architects themselves (a howling dog for John Mead Howells and Robin Hood for Raymond Hood).
A History in Stone
Though completed in 1925, the Tribune Tower features building and stone fragments from well before and after its creation. At the request of its owners, Tribune correspondents initially brought back pieces of structures from traveling across the world, and the segments can still be seen embedded into the facade of the building (or inside, if delicate).
Today, in 2025, 149 stones and pieces can be found (as well as a moon rock). They include fragments and chips from:
- Taj Mahal, Agra, India
- The Winter Palace, Peking, China
- Great Pyramid, Giza
- Pompeii, Italy
- The World Trade Center
- The Citadel of David’s Tower, Jerusalem
- Cave of the Nativity, Bethlehem
- Westminster Abbey, London, England
- Castle of Chillon, Switzerland
See Chicago’s History in Person
Take in the Tribune Tower yourself and see first-hand Hood and Howells’ winning design! Learn the fascinating history of this monumental skyscraper, plus dozens of others on The Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise aboard First Lady, the only Chicago River cruise with volunteer docents from the Chicago Architecture Center! Grab your seat today!
