As early as the 1860s there were patents for cast stone archtectural
elements, so it is certainly possible that these columns are cast stone.
The nature of stone carving is such that even using the same design there
will be subtle differences.  This can be seen on a single building where
several carvers carved the same detail (foliate cornice for example, each
carver working a 5 foot long section).  for the same detail to show up on
different buildings, I would say there is a better than average chance that
is a cast stone product (assuming it's not unglazed terra cotta, which I'm
sure you would recognize since it doesn't look like stone up close.)
Michael
-----Original Message-----
From: Anne Sullivan <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
<[log in to unmask]>
Date: Friday, December 11, 1998 7:58 AM
Subject: Re: building stone rEsearch


>re: Anything in your thesis regarding the stone workers (cutters,
>carvers, etc.)
>Michael
>
>
>Michael,
>
>I focused on buIlding stones used in ChIcago after the ChIcago fire.   I
>rEally focused on the quarries, and buildings wheRe the stone was used.
Not
>on carveRs, etc.  BUT, interestingly, a friend just hit gold at the
Illinois
>state archive concerning the construction of the Illiniois  & Michigan
Canal
>(of Joliet Limestone) -- there arE records of equipment, manpoweR,  daily
>records of productivity.  Very interesting -- I've never researched in a
state
>archive for stone, but it makes sense.
>
>OK, one morE story -- heRe in ChIcago there is a tYpical, ubiquitous stone
>column capital found on all our "greystone" walkups.  I had seveRal
students
>do a study of these decorative elements to find a pattern of some sort - if
>there were repeated elements, what scale buildings, what neighborhoods,
etc.
>well, we found that nearly all the capitals weRe identical!  I am now
thinking
>that these must be cast stone instead of carved limestone.  I haven't had
the
>opportunity to shinny up a column to pick at the cornice, but it is quite a
>concept.  Do you think it would have been possible for a carver, or
obviously
>several stoncarvers at one stone yard, carve so many identical decorative
>(floral -- somewhat like a pared down Louis Sullivan design) capitals?
>
>Anne SulliVan