This building is located at  117  Church Street Champaign, Illinois.  It was originally built in 1905 . It The builders were Charlie and Elizabeth Russell.  The architect was unknown.  Its appearance was like standard early 20th century  commercial.store front.

     A simple retail layout.  Commercial Design.  The building was constructed entirely for retail. It featured large glass display windows on the.ground floor to showcase goods to people walking by on west Church Street.

     Open Floor Plan. The interior lacked a stage,sloped floors or theater seating.  It was just a wide, flat open commercial space designed to hold store counters and merchandise

     Two Story Brick Structure. It was built as a sturdy multi story commercial block.  The ground floor was used for commerce, while the upper floor provided space for storage or offices.      

    Early Retail Shops (1905–1915) 

     General Merchandise  and Retail.Stores.  Charles and  Elizabeth Russell built the           structure as a multi-story commercial  and retail block

     The First Retailers :The ground floor was divided into small storefronts that housed local retail stores and shops serving downtown Champaign

In 1915, Charles Fenton Hamilton had a large portion of Russell Building rebuilt. Construction of the new theater began in spring of 1915. The theater would be large enough to stage the best productions on the road. The.general Contractor for the job was A.W.Stoolman.. The plastering was done by a Danville firm.  Frank Price had the decorating contract. J.W. Swartz of Urbana had the electrical contract. Roy Gallagher of Urbana had the steam fitting,, plumbing and and heating contract. The scenery was by Knox and Luny of Saint Louis. A Chicago firm furnished the leather upholstery chairs for the lower floor and the first balcony.

     The house could seat 1420 people.(700 seats in the lower floor and the rest divided between the two balcolnies. The auditorium was wide but not very deep. The stage was unusually large.  It was 34 feet deep and 70 feet wide

     The Belvoir opened on November 23, 1915.  The staff included owners manager  C.F. Hamilton Eugene Russell treasurer\business manager,Emil Loehr stage manager Elmer Murphy in charge of properties, and Billy Casad in charge of orchestra.

     The 1918-1919 season opened on.Monday  September 9 1918 with a change in the name of theater. The old Belvoir became the Rialto.

     Thae Rialto  Theater was a historic  movie  palace located at 123 West Church Street in Champaign, Illinois.  It was constructed in 1905 as the Russell Building.  In 1915 it was repurposed into a theater called Belvoir. In 1918, it was renamed the Rialto in September

     The original theater construction in 1915 was A.W. Stoolman.  The original theater was completely gutted and rebuilt from the ground up.

       The Eagle Creek Reservoir Dam is one of the largest dams in Indiana.  It measures 75 feet tall and 5,100 feet long.It is located on the southwest edge of the reservoir near west 38th Street and Dandy Trail.  It was built primarily for flood control following a devastating local flood in 1957.  Construction took place from 1966 to 1969.  This allowed the reservoir valley to fill with water.  This reservoir is a 1,300 acre lake.

 

financiale Cattle Bank building is located at 102 E. University Avenue Champaign, Il. It was built in 1858. It is  the oldest documented commercial building in.Champaign, Illinois. It was built by William N.Coler and William G. Hubbard. They were prominent local businessmen, attorneys and real estate developers.

     The specific individual who was the architect is unknown.  Mr. Coler and Mr. Hubbard may have had a role in the design of the building.

     The building style is Italianate.

Key Visual Features

     Flat Rooflime: features a low pitched roof hidden behind a   prominent, decorative cornice

      Tall Windows:  Uses narrow, vertically elongated windows  with openings common to the mid Victorian era.

       Brick Masonry: Built using local, red clay bricks fired  directly in early Champaign.

Chronological History of Occupants

     The Cattle Bank (1858-1861).  Built originally a branch of  the Grand Prairie Bank of Urbana,  it operated as a financial hub for regional livestock ranchers until.an agricultural      collapse forced its cloxure.

      Mineral Water Manufactory   ( 1865–1870’s)

      Following the Civil War, local entrepreneur Nicolas Miller  adapted the space into a production facility for manufacturing carbonated mineral water
         Early Pharmacy and Grocery (1870-1893)  The property was leased out and functioned as   a combined neighborhood drugstore and grocery market

     McGraw Grocery (1893-1936)  Purchased by the McGraw      family, the building served as a staple downtown grocery shop for over 4 decades

    Kuesink’s Drug Store (1936-1951). Local pharmacist William Kuesink bought the property and converted it back into a    pharmacy , serving the community for 15 years.

     Heimlich here’s Sundries (1951-1971). The final commercial business to occupy the space was a community drugstore and sundries shop.  It operated continuously until a catastrophic fire gutted the interior in 1971ending the building’s retail era.
 

     

     The Champaign City Building (City hall) is located at 102 N. Neil Street Champaign, Il.  Cornerstone was laid in 1935.  Construction was completed in 1937. It was built as a New Deal Project.  It was partially funded with a federal Grant from the Public Works Administration.  Construction costs were $210,000.  The architect was George Ramey.  Building style was Art Deco.

     Main tower spans 6 floors.  Open opening, the city Council chambers were on the 5th floor.  They are now on the first floor.

     The exterior walls are clad in  light toned blond brick.  This was chosen to make the building stand out from the red brick buildings throughout downtown Champaign.

     Bedford limestone is used extensively for structural trim  and detailing.

     The pyramidal shaped roof capping  the six story tower is clad in copper.  This was deep brown color when it was installed.  Over the years this converted to a light green color

     Reinforced concrete was used

     Basement and footings.  The heavy weight of the building’s stone and brick facade rests entirely on massive, poured in place reinforced concrete footings.

     Retaining walls

    The underground basement level, which houses.mechanical equipment and city archives, utilizes reinforced concrete walls to hold back the surrounding soil and resists ground water pressure

Internal.skeleton

   Floor slabs: the floors separating the basement, main level, and upper chambers are constructed of reinforced concrete slabs.  This provides fire proofing between floors and prevents the building from vibrating.     

    Support columns: hidden behind the decorative interior plaster, a skeleton of reinforced concrete or concrete encased steel  columns transfers the weight of the upper floors and copper roof  structure down to the earth

     

     

     The Virginia Theater is located at 203 West Park Avenue Champaign, Illinois. Construction was begun early in 1921 and it opened on December 28, 1921. The builder and general c was contractor was Almond Whitfield Stoolman.  Building costs were $400,000.  The architect was C. Howard Crane and the architectural firm of Gill and Jackson. The architectural style was a blend of Spanish Renaissance and Italian Renaissance Revival.

     The building’s exterior feature classic brick facade accessory cream colored terra cotta details.

Key Exterior Elements

     The arched windows: Three large, two story arched windows dominate the upper facade framed by ornate terra cotta molding.

     The Marquee: A prominent, brightly lit Art Deco canopy hangs over the sidewalk, which was added during a 1939 RKO remodel to  replace the 1921 original.

       The Materials: Red-brown pressed brick forms the main structure, contrasted sharply by the white tile accents.

     The Cresting: ornamental terra cotta shield motifs and a decorative corn ice line the very top edge of the building.

    Seating was 817 main floor and balcony 646 seats.  During reeling the number of seats was reduced.

Timeline of theater ownership

Charles CC Pyle and A.W. Stoolman.(1921-:1930)

     The promoter was CC Pyle.  He partnered with A.W. Stoolmam.  They were joint owners

RKO Pictures (1930- 1967) The major Hollywood studio held a       long-term commercial lease and operational control over        the venue for nearly four decades

The Stoolman–Julian.family (1967–1968) A.W. Stoolman’s        Elizabeth Virginia Stool man and her husband briefly                 reclaimed direct control

     

     Harper Hall also known as the Chemical Laboratory is located on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign.  It  was built between 1877 and 1878. It was designed and built by Nathan Clifford Rocker and John Mills Van Osdell.

     Nathan Clifford Rocker was a professor at the University.  It was his very first major architectural work.  He went on to design many other famous campus buildings.

     John Mills Van Osdell was a well known Chicago architect.  He worked with Rocker to create the building plans

     It is a 3 story  red brick facade designed in the historic Second Empire and Italianate styles.

  

Features of the building

     Mansard Roof

It is a classic slate roof with two angles on each side. The lower section is much steeper than the upper section.

     Patterned slate shingles

Roof was durable colored slate tiles arranged in a pleasing geometric design.. Most of the shingles are black,but red and green tiles are used to create a beautiful pattern.

     Building layout

There is a I shaped layout. This set up helped morning  natural window light for early science students

     Italianate Exterior

The outside walls feature  gorgeous red brick accents and large arched windows that give the hall a grand classic look

In 1896, the roof  caught fire and had to be replaced. In 1991 to 1992, the building underwent a major renovation.  This was a 3.5 million dollar project.  The inside of the building was completely rebuilt.  The exterior was restored to its original 1870’s look

Haker Hall has served many different purposes over it 140 year history, transitioning from a science labarotory, to a law school, and eventually into an administrative hubs.

     1877-1902 Chemical Laboratory

The building was originally built to be the  university’s first dedicated chemistry building.  It was state of the art space filled with laboratories and classrooms for students learning the chemical sciences

     Law School 1902 to 1927.

The building became the home of the college of the law. It was renamed for Oliver A. Harker, a law school dean in 1941

     Department.of Entomology

In 1926,the building was changed so it could be used for the studies of insects.

     Department of Botany

In 1930, the Botany.Department moved into parts of the second floor.

     General Classrooms

For many years , the ground floor and other rooms were used as general.spaces for student classes

     University of Illinois Foundation

In 1992, the building beca!e the main home for the University’s fund raising group.  The Foundation utilized the space for decades before relocating to a new headquarters.

     This building is located at 41 East University Avenue Champaign, Il.  It was built in 1913. The architect was Joseph Royer.  It is three stories.  The style is 20th Commercial . The exterior is constructed of red brick accented by white terra cotta detailing

Key structural and decorative element of the exterior include:

     Facade material: A classic red brick exterior paired with intricate white terra cotta details.

      Structural Division: Four vertical piers that split the front facade into three distinct bays with the two outer bays being slightly bowed

      Ornamental Detailing:

      Terra Cotta medallions crowning  each pier and detailed scrolled shields marking the top of the first floor

     Window details:  Every window features molded terra cotta silks and lingerie

      Roofline: The original ornate terra cotta has been replaced for nice has been replaced by a white brick pediment

Transportation and utilities era (1913-1985)

     Illinois Traction System

     Operated its main corporate headquarters and Champaign       depot here from 1913 to 1928.

    Illinois Power and Light Company: Established office in             building after the railroad was consolidated into a utility          subsidary in the 1920’s.

   Illinois Terminal Railroad

    Continued utilizing the facility as its corporate                       headquarter and inter urban passenger station after  absorbing it’s in 1928, until Tran service ceased at this   locationin 1936

    Illinois Power Company

     Maintained its regional corporate offices throughout the upper levels of the for decades   until relocating in 1985

Modern Commercial and Retail  era (1985-to present)
      Kane and Company Spa and Salon purchased the building in 2000 and transformed the   

     6000 square first floor into a prominent local salon and       day spa.

     Commercial Office Tenants  The upper levels have been           subdivided into professional office space hosting various         local services including Susan W. McGrath law office and     financial consultants

     Currently the first floor is vacant.

    The upper levels have been converted to luxury apart units

     This six story landmark building is located at 17 E. University Avenue, Champaign, Il.

     This hotel opened its doors on March 11,1915. Inman was advertised as  premier fireproof luxury hotel in downtown Champaign.

     The building was commissioned by George Inman.  The builders were  the English Brothers. The architects Nelson were Spencer and Harry Temple.  Originally, the building had 5 floors in a c shape to optimize sunlight and air flow.  There were 120 guest rooms.   A six floor was added in 1916.

     The 1915 construction costs were over $200,000. Renovation in 2022 was approximately $24,000 per room.

     List of uses due the years

     1915–1974:  Luxury Commercial Hotel

      Premier 120 room regional lodging

     1915 to mid 1900’s: Commercial Hub

     Billiard hall, Turkish bath,barbershop, drug store

      1965–1978 Television Studio (WICD TV

      Broadcast headquarters on the 2nd floor.

      1975-1987 Residential Arts School

       National Academy of the Arts student housing

       1989-2021 Senior living community

       (Inman Place 55+ independent senior apartments)

     2022- Present: Mixed use complex

     Residential apartments, Airbnb short term rentals,                     Farren’s Pub