My Genealogy Hound

Chicago, Illinois, Potter Palmer Mansion, historic photo

A historic photo view of the mansion house built by Potter Palmer. Palmer began with a very successful dry goods store that he established and that later evolved into the huge Marshall Field Department Store. His greatest success and source of much of his wealth came when he built the famed Palmer House hotel that was considered to be the finest hotel in Chicago. His original Palmer House hotel opened on September 26, 1871 but it lasted less than two weeks as it burned down during the Great Chicago Fire on October 9, 1871. Palmer began again building a new Palmer House hotel on a much grander style and advertised as being fully fireproof. The new Palmer House hotel opened in 1875 and remained until it was replaced with the more modern Palmer House hotel in the early 1920's. Some of his great wealth was channeled into the building of the elegant mansion seen here. Located on Lake Shore Drive facing Lake Michigan, the home was built during 1882-1885 at a cost of over one million dollars. After the death of Potter Palmer in 1902, his much younger widow, Bertha, continued to live here until her death in 1918. The home passed through several owners until it was demolished in 1950. Today, multi-family housing has been built on this same location. See the additional historic photos of this home below.

Potter Palmer, born May 20, 1826, New York City, New York; died May 4, 1902, Chicago, Illinois.

Bertha Matilde Honore Palmer, born May 22, 1849, Louisville, Kentucky; died July 25, 1918, Osprey, Florida.

Potter and Bertha Palmer married in 1870, he was 44, she was 21.

The Potter Palmer Mansion, Chicago, Illinois as viewed from the front. See the additional photo below.

The Potter Palmer Mansion, Chicago, Illinois on Lake Shore Drive facing Lake Michigan.

These photos were produced by Detroit Publishing Company, 1900-01.