Magnificent Mile in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Pioneer Court

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, October 30, 2024

1. Pioneer Court Marker

Inscription. A project developed cooperatively by the Chicago Tribune and by the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States in commemoration of the pioneers whose names, selected by the Chicago Historical Society for their contributions to Chicago's birth, growth and greatness, are set in bronze in the base of the fountain.

Erected 1965 by Tribune Company; Equitable Life Assurance; City of Chicago.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Notable Buildings • Settlements & Settlers.

Location. 41° 53.416′ N, 87° 37.407′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in Magnificent Mile. It is on Michigan Avenue south of East Illinois Street, on the right when traveling north. The marker is on the south side of the Tribune Tower, facing Pioneer Court. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 435 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago IL 60611, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

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the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Jack Brickhouse (within shouting distance of this marker); Tribune Tower (within shouting distance of this marker); Catherine and Jean-Baptiste Point du Sable (within shouting distance of this marker); Nathan Hale (within shouting distance of this marker); Tribune Tower Complex (within shouting distance of this marker); World Famous Billy Goat Tavern & Grill (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named World Famous Billy Goat Tavern & Grill (within shouting distance of this marker); Jorge Marín (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chicago.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Chicago's Architectural Landmarks (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been confirmed missing).

Regarding Pioneer Court. Pioneer Court was developed in conjunction with the building

Pioneer Court Marker at the Tribune Tower image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, October 30, 2024

2. Pioneer Court Marker at the Tribune Tower

of the Equitable Life building in 1965 at or near the spot where Jean Baptiste Point DuSable is believed to have established the first permanent residence in what would become Chicago. The fountain's 25 names were: social services pioneer Jane Addams; meatpacking magnate Philip Armour; architect Daniel H. Burnham; manufacturer and financier Jon Crerar, who established a library; politician Stephen A. Douglas; industrial magnate Richard T. Crane; Sears, Roebuck & Co. president Julius Rosenwald; retailer Marshall Field; William Rainey Harper, first president of the University of Chicago; George M. Pullman, maker of the namesake railcar and the south side neighborhood; Chicago Mayor Carter H. Harrison Sr., who was assassinated in 1893; William Le Baron Jenney, known as the "father of the skyscraper"; John Wentworth, journalist, Chicago mayor and U.S. Congressman; Gurdon S. Hubbard, pioneer fur trader; Joseph Medill, newspaperman and publisher of the Chicago Tribune; Cyrus McCormick, agriculture leader who invented the reaper; Walter L. Newberry, founder of the Newberry Library; Charles H. Wacker, chairman of Chicago's planning commission

Tribune Tower image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, October 30, 2024

3. Tribune Tower

The Pioneer Court marker is mostly obscured by a pedestrian standing behind and just to the left of the sculpture that was there when visited in October 2024.

from 1909 to 1926, a period of great architectural developments; William Butler Ogden, an early settler and the city's first mayor; Aaron Montgomery Ward, the mail-order retail leader credited with the preservations that led to modern-day Grant Park; Potter Palmer, dry good industry leader; John Whistler, an early settler who led the building of Fort Dearborn across the river from this site in 1802 and commanded the fort until 1810; John Kinzie, Chicago's first white citizen, who opened a trading post here; Jean Baptist Point DuSable; and Martin Ryerson, business leader and cultural benefactor.

The plaza has undergone significant changes in the nearly 60 years since its construction, and both the fountain and the 25 Chicago pioneer names that are referenced in the plaque were replaced during renovations of the area. Meanwhile, an Apple Store opened in 2017 overlooking the Chicago River, near the DuSable Bridge, and the Tribune left its namesake building in 2018, with the building being converted into condos.

Also see . . . Pioneer Court. A video by WTTW-TV (Channel 11, Chicago's PBS affiliate) looks at the history of Pioneer

Kinzie Mansion (circa 1803) image. Click for full size.

Chicago Daily News Collection, Chicago History Museum, 1903

4. Kinzie Mansion (circa 1803)

Jean Baptiste Point DuSable built a home on the north side of the Chicago River where Michigan Avenue crosses today. Another settler, John Kinzie, acquired the home around 1804. According to the caption from the Chicago History museum, this drawing may have been created as part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the building of Fort Dearborn.

Court, which is at the location of Chicago's first permanent residence.

Excerpt: "Leaping forward a few decades to 1847, a young entrepreneur from Virginia named Cyrus McCormick bought the former Point de Sable property to build a reaper factory.

"His mechanical reaper, which he had invented 16 years earlier, replaced the handheld scythe. It became available just as vast areas of the American West were being plowed for the first time. He now saw the opportunity to build his reapers nearer to the expanding farmland.

"By 1860, he was selling 4,000 of his reapers each year, and did his part to move American men out of the fields and into the factories."

(Submitted on October 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Credits. This page was last revised on January 6, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 252 times since then and 36 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.