One of the unique things about Chicago is the way in which predominant architectural styles lend a sense of order and character to certain neighborhoods. From bungalows to workers cottages to two-flats, specific building styles help to form a neighborhood’s identity and tell its story. One of the most prominent, stately and coveted building styles in the city is the Chicago greystone.
Named for the color of the Indiana Bedford limestone used in their construction, greystones first appeared in Chicago in the late 1800s as a sturdier and safer solution to the wood-frame structures that were devoured by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. From 1890 to 1915, these buildings sprung up around the city, in an area now called the “greystone belt,” extending as far north as Chicago’s Andersonville and Lakeview neighborhoods, and as far south as Hyde Park and Woodlawn.