Tacoma Building

building, Chicago, Illinois, United States

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July 14, 2026

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The Tacoma Building, constructed in Chicago, Illinois, between 1886 and 1889, was a significant development in skyscraper architecture. Designed by William Holabird and Martin Roche, it was one of the first buildings to utilize a complete steel skeleton as its framework. This innovation was a crucial step beyond earlier uses of metal supports in buildings. The building is a notable example of the influential Chicago School of commercial architecture.1

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William Holabird
Their Tacoma Building (Chicago, 1886–89) established the use of a total steel skeleton as a framework for building skyscrapers—a significant advance over the pioneering use of metal supports in the Home Insurance Building by William Le Baron Jenney (Chicago, 1884–85).
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Their Tacoma Building (Chicago, 1886–89) established the use of a total steel skeleton as a framework for building skyscrapers—a significant advance over the pioneering use of metal supports in the Home Insurance Building by William Le Baron Jenney (Chicago, 1884–85).
Read More