Monday, August 24, 2020

August 24, 1966 -- John Hancock Center Stops Work


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August 24, 1966 – Developers of the 100-story John Hancock Center at Michigan Avenue and Delaware Place announce that they have ordered a second round of tests for 57 caissons, a portion of the caissons that will form the foundation of the building.  The action comes after voids and imperfections are found in five of those caissons, starting about 60 feet below ground level.  Engineers predict that testing and repairs will continue for three weeks.  Construction on the super-tall building was halted on August 5 when a caisson moved sideways after a 12-ton test beam was placed on top of it.  J. Theodor Dailey, a co-developer on the project, says, “Such a review is necessary because of the unique design of the building, its foundation, and soil conditions at the site.  When approved, the foundation will have undergone one of the most complete analysis in construction history.”  [Chicago Tribune, August 25, 1966].  The problems originated with the steel tubes that were used to hold back soil and water as the caisson holes were excavated.  These tubes were removed as concrete was poured, which resulted in concrete being pulled up with the tubes in some caisson holes, allowing voids to form which filled with soil or water.  Over two-dozen of the caisson holes required corrective work, adding six months to the construction schedule and another $1 million to the budget.  It is fortunate, though, that the problems were discovered and corrected.  Considering what might have happened if the problems were not detected, the Engineering News-Record opined, “Cost in dollars or in lives from damage that might have befallen a completed 100-story John Hancock Center if its faulty caissons had settled years hence is just too horrible to dwell upon.”  [Chicago Tribune, March 24, 1985]



August 24, 1968 -- Seven leaders of the Youth International Party and their candidate for the Presidency of the United States, a 150-pound pig named Pigasus, are arrested at the Civic Center, today’s Richard J. Daley Center.  The Chicago Tribune reports, “Moving quickly and without incident, 10 uniformed policemen and several detectives under the personal direction of Comdr. James Riordan of the First District, loaded the pig into a police wagon as soon as it was placed in the plaza.”  The seven leaders of the demonstration are loaded into the wagon with the pig.  The Yippie leaders are taken to police headquarters where they are charged with disorderly conduct and released on $25 bonds with a court date scheduled for September 19.  Pigasus is taken to the Anti-Cruelty Society where he is “given a bath, fed, and placed in an outside pen,” according to the society’s director.  The demonstration, attended by about 50 Yippies and watched by 200 spectators, apparently is enough to scare Country Joe and the Fish away as the San Francisco  rock group withdraws from the Hippie Festival of Love, scheduled to begin in the city later in the day. 


August 24, 1982 – Archbishop Joseph Louis Bernardin is installed as the seventh Roman Catholic archbishop of Chicago in a candlelight service at Holy Name Cathedral. Reverend John Richard Keating reads the papal letter assigning Archbishop Bernardin to the archdiocese of Chicago at 8:01 p.m. before 1,500 priests in attendance. After the reading of the letter is completed, the priests provide Archbishop Bernardin with a two-minute standing ovation.  The Archbishop’s homily is entitled “I Am Joseph, Your Brother,” and in it he promises, “We will work and play together, fast and pray together, mourn and rejoice together, despair and hope together, dispute and be reconciled together.  You will know me as a friend, fellow priest and bishop.  You will know also that I love you.  For I am Joseph, your brother.” [Chicago Tribune, August 25, 1982]
bartholomew photo
August 24, 1920 – The full-sized plaster model of Lorado Taft’s “The Fountain of Time” is completed after years of work and stands at the head of the Midway Plaisance, west of Cottage Grove Avenue.  The sculptural piece is described as comprising “ . . . scores of figures, arising from mystery, moving through life, and vanishing in mystery.  Some are dancing, some proceed sorrowfully, some are Galahads, some are satyrs.  Towering over all is Mr. Taft’s conception of Father Time.  The huge, weird figure dominates the movement of the pushing mob it faces.”  [Chicago Daily Tribune, August 25, 1920]

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