Discovering the “rock collection” at the Chicago Tribune Tower.
I am often asked whether travel with children is worthwhile if they might not remember the trip or get anything out of it. My answer has always been that kids see the world from their own unique perspective both in daily life and when traveling. They may be fascinated by something that their parents would never have given a second glance and they may remember the strangest things. A different world view doesn’t diminish their experience, however, and it may, in fact, lead to some interesting discoveries while traveling.
A recent trip to Chicago with my 9 year old confirmed this for me yet again. I have visited Chicago 7 or 8 times over the last number of years and walked past the Chicago Tribune Tower on Michigan Avenue countless times but apparently I had my eyes closed.
Emma and I spent a weekend in the city last month and as we were strolling past the tower something caught her eye immediately. Embedded in the building were labelled fragments of rocks and bricks. Of course, we now had no choice but to circle the building to see all of these. Back at the hotel room that evening I had to google it to find out more.
From a quick bit of internet research on the Chicago Tribune Tower, I learned that the Chicago Tribune held a competition in 1922 to choose the design of its new headquarters on Michigan Avenue which the owners wanted to be “the most beautiful and eye-catching building in the world“. The winning design was for the Gothic Revival style tower that is located near the Michigan Avenue bridge. The tower which was completed in 1925 has become one of Chicago’s most distinctive (and most photographed) landmarks.
Prior to the construction of the building, Colonel Robert McCormick, who was the owner and publisher of the Tribune at the time, requested that correspondents from the paper bring back rocks and bricks from historically important sites around the world. This “rock collection” was then incorporated into the exterior walls of the building on the lower levels and each piece was labeled with its origin.
Such an interesting story and one that I would have, in all likelihood, never discovered if I hadn’t been traveling with my inquisitive 9 year old.
I took many, many photos but here are a few of our favourites:
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Cathy Sweeney
A++ for Emma on that one. I lived and worked in Chicago for many years, walking by the building countless times, before I ever became aware of those rocks and bricks. The building itself has always been an important landmark for me and the story behind the rocks just makes it even more interesting.
Tonya @ The Traveling Praters
What a wonderful discovery and such a neat lesson on Chicago’s history! Isn’t it neat to get a glimpse into our the minds of our kids and see what they see when we travel? We gave our kids a camera when they were little for one of trips and I was amazed at what they took pictures of!
Lisa Goodmurphy
Thanks, Cathy – I don’t feel quite so bad now!
Lisa Goodmurphy
Giving kids a camera is a great idea and it’s always fun to see what they thought was important enough to take a photo of!
Kate @ Wild Tales of...
What a cool discovery! Way to go, Emma. Kids slow us down for sure, but sometimes whiz past things so they can just get on with it, so I’m impressed with her willingness to take a closer look! I definitely want to check that out when I make my way to Chicago some day.
Sonja
I love that idea! I wish I could do that to my house! My kids are always bringing home seashells, rocks, etc. from our travels and I never know what to do with them.
Becca@RWTYM?
That is FASCINATING!!!! I have walked by this building so many times and NEVER saw that!!!! Please thank Emma for seeing this and making us all aware of it!!
Thanks for linking up this week!
Mary {The World Is A Book}
How interesting and what a great collection of rocks! I think I’ve walked past this building a few times too. I just called one of my BFFs who has lived in Chicago for 20 years and asked about these rocks – she didn’t know what I was talking about 🙂 Nice job, Emma! I always like asking my kids what their favorite part of an attraction is because the answers are always interesting and sometimes bizarre.
Lisa Goodmurphy
Thanks, Kate! Emma has a keen eye – it always amazes me the things that she notices!
Lisa Goodmurphy
That would be a great idea, Sonya but then the kids would never let you sell your house! 🙂
Lisa Goodmurphy
You’ll have to check it out the next time that you are in Chicago, Becca – it is fascinating to see all of the bits of rocks!
Lisa Goodmurphy
Ok, now I feel much better if someone who has lived in Chicago for 20 years has never noticed! 🙂
The Time-Crunched Traveler (Ellen)
These are so awesome! So glad she noticed them. I love how kids can be so fascinated by things adults would just overlook. It’s funny how the older we get, the more we think we know about the world, so the less we ask questions about it.
Lisa Goodmurphy
I think you hit the nail on the head, Ellen. We adults think we know so much about the world that we only see what we expect to see – kids see what is actually there!
Lisa Wood
I love seeing the world through the eyes of a kid – so much more different to what us adults can see 😉