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860–880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments

860–880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments
Photo: JeremyA, CC BY-SA 2.5 (licence)

These glass and steel towers may look commonplace, but they were some of the first glass and steel towers, a concept copied everywhere. The 26-story apartment towers were built in 1949-1951 to a design by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (a nearby street bears his name). The neighbouring 900-910 Lake Shore Drive were also designed by van der Rohe and built in 1955 as one of the first towers to use glass curtain walls. The towers house apartments and the interior is not open.

Listing from Wikivoyage: Chicago/Near North, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Updated 28 Sept 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.