Blog

By John Perrecone, Education Guide

Did you know the Michigan Avenue’s DuSable bridge was the country’s first double-leaf, double-deck, fixed counterweight trunnion bascule bridge? Were you aware that a mere 108 horsepower motor moves the bridge’s 12,000 ton counterweights, enabling it to open in less than 60 seconds? Have you seen the unique 1920’s Art Deco motorway mural in the old Chicago Motor Club building or noticed the whimsical Stanley Tigerman parking garage just a stone’s throw from the CAC? The answer is probably yes, since you are a CAC docent or volunteer.

But this was all new to the families and children who took a specially designed mini-tour during the CAC’s annual Engineering Fest (or E-Fest) on February 22-23. This 45-minute tour titled “City on the Move” highlighted how innovative engineering and technology helped Chicago grow rapidly from the 1830s to the present. A cadre of 10 Education Guides led close to 300 people on this complimentary tour during E-Fest.

We started this tour in the CAC lobby, using the floor map to begin the story of how the Chicago River was transformed from a swampy, sandy stream into a major inland commercial waterway by the mid-1800s. We then went outside for an up-close view of the Michigan Avenue’s DuSable bridge. Here we emphasized the engineering of the bridge, from the use of trusses to how the gear box works to open and close the bridge sections, using pictures to illustrate this. We also talked about the two levels of the bridge—the top for people and cars and the lower for trucks and cargo – and how this was a key tenet of Burnham’s 1909 Chicago Plan for Wacker Drive along the river.

Our next stop was the London Guarantee Building and a nod to Fort Dearborn. A highlight was the ornate lobby, including the two paintings showing the Chicago River at different times during the city’s growth. From here we ducked into the Chicago Motor Club (now a Hampton Inn), where our guests loved the 1920s Art Deco motorway mural and the 1927 Model T Ford. We then headed to the “EL” at Wabash and Lake, where we continued the discussion of how to move people about a large city efficiently.

When we asked the kids—where have we seen similar structures in use before? Sure enough, they often recognize the trusses!! Talk about education guide validation–they actually heard and understood what we told them!!

Our final stop was Stanley Tigerman’s parking garage. Perhaps half of the kids could see the auto grill on the garage’s facade. In these days of Teslas and sleek autos, the front grill of cars don’t really pop out. However, when we took out a photo of a Rolls Royce, the grill becomes apparent. It was fun to see the light bulbs go off in the kids’ head followed by their smiles!! This is classic post-modernism and a great way to present it—architecture can be fun and this building proves it!

We concluded by entering 225 North Michigan and walking through the pedway to return to the CAC. Here we saw pictures of the large rail yard that had been in this location some 50 years ago–all gone now except for the Metra Electric lines. Again, we discussed how the city’s several levels keep everyone on the move.

The kids and adults responded so well to this mini-tour — it was all new and inspiring to them. I started developing this tour for E-Fest in November 2019, combining ideas and concepts from the CAC Education Dept’s Chicago City of Architecture and the Science of Engineering tours and relying on feedback from Adam Rubin and Rebecca Boland to refine it. From there, I shared it with other Education Guides; we discussed the tour, walked the route, and worked together to make final improvements. This collaborative process gave us the ideal framework to make the tour come alive for our young guests and complement the exhibits inside the CAC.

I want to give a shout out to the 10 Education Guides who gave this tour — it is one thing to put a tour on paper and quite another to bring it alive for our guests. It’s the Education Guides who use their skills to interpret and deliver a memorable tour. Thanks again to all of you!!