Everything is just bigger and better in Manhattan, isn’t it? Ripped from the musty archives of New Homes Magazine is this interesting piece of information about The Manhattan, 431 S Dearborn St, a former office building and city landmark that was converted to lofts in the 1990s.
“The Manhattan was built in 1891 as an office building and immediately earned a number of firsts: tallest building in the U.S., the first tall building to use steel skeleton construction throughout and the first building with a structurally sophisticated wind-bracing system. Visitors to the 1893 World’s Columbian exposition were awestruck by the building, which they dubbed ‘Hercules.'”
What’s it like inside? A little different from many loft developments because it’s a former office building, not an industrial space. Apparently it’s a soft-loft building with finished ceilings and shallow “railroad”-shaped floor plans that admit a lot of light. Second, third and fourth bedrooms are bigger than your typical master bedroom, apparently. The brick, terra cotta and limestone building also features bay windows.
And get this – when sales opened at The Manhattan around 1996 or 1997, studios were priced at $59,900. Four-bedrooms were priced up to $279,900.