Lost Houses of Prairie Avenue: 1800-1900 Blocks (East Side)

Lost Houses of Prairie Avenue: 1800-1900 Blocks (East Side). . "If you want to see the richest half-dozen blocks in Chicago... drive out to Prairie avenue from Sixteenth street to Twenty-second. Right there is a cluster of millionaires not to be matched for numbers anywhere else in the country." Chicago Herald, 1886 , , 1815 S. Prairie Avenue , Joseph Sears Residence, Built 1882; Burnham and Root, architects , Built for Joseph Sears, who founded the suburb of Kenilworth, where he moved in 1893. In 1902, the house was acquired by Arthur Meeker, Sr. whose son Arthur Jr. later wrote Prairie Avenue, a fictional account of life on the street. Razed 1967. , , 1823 S. Prairie Avenue , Thomas Dent Residence. Built 1881; Burnham and Root, architects , Thomas Dent was a highly respected attorney and was known throughout his career as Judge Dent, although he never held that position. The home was later donated to the Second Presbyterian Church, of which Dent was an active member. Razed 1945. , , 1827 S. Prairie Avenue , John W. Doane Residence. Built 1882; Theodore V. Wadskier, architect , One of the grandest houses on the street, featuring stained glass windows by John La Farge, chief rival to Louis Tiffany. Doane was a founder of the Western Edison Light Company, and his residence was the first in Chicago to be illuminated by electric lights. Razed 1936. , , 1901 S. Prairie Avenue , Osborn R. Keith-Norman B. Ream Residence. Built 1882; Lavall B. Dixon, architect , The first of several residences built by Keith on the street. He remained only a few years, and sold to Norman B. Ream, who had his good friend Daniel Burnham remodel the house in 1887. It later served as offices for the Radford Architectural Company. Razed 1929. , , 1905 S. Prairie Avenue , Marshall Field Residence Bult 1871-1873. Richard Moms Hunt, architect , The rather austere exterior of this famous house concealed a lavish interior that was the scene of some of Chicago's most extravagant social events. During the 1930s, it housed Laszlo Moholy-Nagy's New Bauhaus design school, and was later converted to an aeronautical university. Razed 1955.