August 31, 2000

Katherine Stevenson
Associate Director, Cultural Resource Stewardship and Partnerships
The National Park Service
1849 C Street NW
Room 3128
Washington, D.C.  20240

Dear Ms. Stevenson:

This letter is an appeal to you to overturn the decision of Ms. Carol Shull, Keeper of the National Register, contained in her letter of August 25, 2000, reference number H32(2280), ruling that the proposed Maxwell Street Historic District is not eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.

Ms. Shull determined that Maxwell Street is too far gone to save. We say Maxwell Street is too important not to save. Its significance is unique due to its role in the Jewish-American experience and African-American experience, and for its importance to the development of American popular music.

Ms. Shull's letter catalogs everything that is wrong with the proposed Maxwell Street Historic District and though we disagree with some of her specific observations and conclusions, her letter describes the very real problems inherent in any attempt to preserve this important historic neighborhood, especially over the objections of powerful interests.

Unintentionally, Ms. Shull may also have written a handbook for the enemies of historic preservation on how to render an area, especially in a dense urban setting like Chicago, unsuitable for National Register listing and Historic Preservation Act protection. Step one, even if you do not own all or even most of the property, discourage other property owners from improving theirs by letting yours deteriorate. If you can afford to let your property sit idle for years, let time do your dirty work. Step two, if you can't buy and demolish every building, attack the corners first, then create gaps along the streetscape between the buildings that remain. Isolate them in clusters of three or fewer. Step three, if historic facades are covered by cheap plastic or metal siding, don't remove it or let anyone see what is underneath. No one will guess there is an intact historic building there. Most of all, keep chipping away because, ultimately, your depredations will be rewarded.

The University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), which wants to redevelop the area for private and University purposes, was demolishing historic buildings while the Coalition's National Register nomination was still pending, even though it can not begin construction yet and, in some cases, does not even intend to begin construction for several years. Just a few months ago (before Ms. Shull's site visit), the south side of Maxwell Street was an unbroken block of historic structures. Today, it features the gaps Ms. Shull noted in her letter, courtesy of UIC's demolition teams. I am sure Ms. Shull did not intend to reward that behavior by her decision, but it has that effect.

In emphasizing what has been lost in the Maxwell Street area, Ms. Shull fails to mention what remains: thirty-eight contributing buildings within an area of a few blocks, most concentrated near an intersection that is the neighborhood's historical hub. These buildings appear to be in poor condition, but they are structurally sound. We believe they exhibit the necessary integrity of design, setting, materials, and workmanship. Yes, it takes vision to look at the Maxwell Street neighborhood today and see a viable historic district, but a strong core of the historic neighborhood it is still there, albeit in the gravest possible danger.

Our concern that the Maxwell Street experience might serve as a model for others who want to clear away troublesome history for their own enrichment is not merely theoretical. As society becomes more sensitive to preserving historic sites of significance to ethnic minorities, the economically disadvantaged, and other communities that have traditionally been ignored by the intellectual elite, and as we move further into the 21st century and the great urbanization of the late 19th and early 20th centuries recedes further into history, we will increasingly find our most precious historic assets located in dense urban areas, where there always will be fierce competition for their control. There are many more Maxwell Street-type battles to come.

Carol Shull is a professional who knows her field. Even if she, arguably, applied the National Register criteria correctly, perhaps the criteria themselves or the traditional ways of applying them need to be questioned in light of the special problems inherent in preserving and protecting areas like the Maxwell Street neighborhood.

What makes Maxwell Street important is what also makes it so difficult to save. From its beginnings 150 years ago, the Maxwell Street neighborhood was always a ghetto—The Ghetto, according to a 1910 picture postcard. The neighborhood was always poor and, like many poor urban neighborhoods, it was constantly in flux. A procession of different groups moved in, up, and out. Buildings were enlarged, converted from residential to mixed use, or cosmetically altered to appear more modern and inviting to shoppers. Almost all major alterations to buildings we consider contributing were done during the period of significance and reflect the dynamism of the community during the historic period. Rather than detracting from an understanding of the area's history and significance, they contribute to it by reflecting the type of community Maxwell Street has always been.

Even gaps between buildings have been part of the streetscape for decades. During the blues era, they were an important performance space for blues and gospel musicians.

Of the five buildings Ms. Shull considers noncontributing, one (1230 S. Halsted) was recently demolished. We believe the four remaining should be considered contributing, specifically:

• 1305-09 South Halsted is currently fronted with metal siding but its 1907 façade is most likely intact underneath. The architect, Alexander Levy, is known for quality work—particularly synagogues—and another of his buildings is within the proposed district at 729 West Roosevelt. The Halsted building has a historic reference to the "Goldenberg Furniture Store" in its vestibule terrazzo floor.

• 1311-13 South Halsted was designed by Henry Newhouse, many of whose residential designs are Chicago Landmarks. Though the building was half destroyed by a recent fire, the ornate terra cotta facade is perfectly preserved. (Like its neighbor, it was covered in metal siding for many years.) It has a historic reference, the year "1913" cast in terra cotta, above the upper story windows.

• 1213 South Halsted was constructed in 1898. Historic photos show a dark brick facade with limestone sills, which has been covered by commercial signs since 1955. It was the original home (1904) of the Vienna Sausage Co., today's Vienna Beef, a national meat packer that still markets a Maxwell Street line of sausages.

• 716 West Maxwell is one of the earliest structures in the district (c. 1860s-70s).  It is representative of the flat-roofed frame dwellings that were common on Maxwell Street during that period. Around 1900, it was hoisted onto a brick, one-story foundation and given a brick facade to convert it to a store and flats, a process indicative of Maxwell Street's commercial development. Its historic materials include cast-iron and Bedford limestone.

Although the need to be more inclusive in our selection of historic sites is increasingly being recognized, many institutions have been slow to respond in meaningful ways. As Yale History Professor Max Page wrote to Carol Shull earlier this summer, "The National Register remains dominated by the physical buildings and landscapes of the wealthy and the white. One of the primary reasons that the National Register remains predominantly a list of buildings and landscapes of the elite is because of the requirement of 'integrity' and the way it is abused by those who care little for the past." The City of Chicago and, now, the National Register of Historic Places are squandering a golden opportunity to create a new and more inclusive paradigm. Instead of working to protect important minority cultural monuments, they are rewarding a powerful institution responsible for disrespecting and destroying those monuments.

The current state of the Maxwell Street neighborhood should be compared to the condition of the Beale Street Historic District in Memphis, or the Vieux Carre Historic District in New Orleans, when they were first listed. The fact that Beale Street, listed in 1966 and generally considered a great success, was classified in 1998 as facing a Priority 2 (high) Threat Level shows that even the most successful urban preservation sites will always be at risk. A new paradigm that considers the unique needs and pressures of urban, minority-oriented sites is needed.

As Ms. Shull acknowledged in her letter, the Maxwell Street Historic District nomination was disputed at the state level. It was supported unanimously by the Illinois Historic Sites Advisory Council but opposed by the State Historic Preservation Officer. The architects, historians, archeologists and other professionals on the advisory panel made their recommendation fully aware of, and in spite of, the neighborhood's current condition. As they observed, the tremendous historical importance of the area manifestly outweighs its flaws.

Other than the parties who will profit from Maxwell Street's destruction, our proposal is widely supported by community leaders, musicians, music fans, preservationists and ordinary citizens. It is supported by the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois and other non-governmental historic preservation groups. The student newspaper at the University of Illinois at Chicago has editorialized in favor of our position, as has one of the nation's most prominent and venerable African-American newspapers, the Chicago Defender, which was itself in part responsible for stimulating the migration of African-Americans from the South to Maxwell Street so many decades ago.

The Maxwell Street Historic Coalition's intention in nominating the proposed historic district was to inspire a larger vision of the neighborhood's potential. We will continue to advocate that vision so long as any of the historic Maxwell Street neighborhood remains, in the hope that men and women of generous spirit finally will embrace it and commemorate the area's history in an appropriate fashion.

Sincerely,
 

Charles Cowdery
President
Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition

cc: Carol Shull

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Contact Us

TO REACH US VIA EMAIL:

Chuck Cowdery, President (cowdery@21stcentury.net)
Steve Balkin, Vice President (mar@openair.org)

Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition
P.O. Box 6435
Evanston, IL  60204