Bookable
An Apollonaut travel guide
Moments in a longer story.
Selected milestones in the history of 875 North Michigan Avenue and its observation deck.
On this page
Tower, observatory and new names
These dates describe the place you can learn about here. They are not a company timeline for Apollonaut.
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1965
Construction begins
Work starts on the tower designed by Bruce Graham and Fazlur Khan.
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1967
A pause
Work stops after a flaw is found in the concrete-pouring method; John Hancock Mutual Life takes over the project.
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6 May 1968
Topped out
The tower reaches its full height, then the second-tallest building in the world.
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1969
Completed
The building is completed, with offices, homes and an observatory.
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1999
A design award
The tower receives the American Institute of Architects’ Twenty-five Year Award.
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2014
360 CHICAGO
The observatory is renovated and renamed 360 CHICAGO, and TILT opens in the summer.
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2018
A new name
The building takes the name of its address, 875 North Michigan Avenue.
Follow the stories behind the dates
A timeline is a beginning. The longer history introduces the people and places; the sources below provide further context.
Read at the source
Sources & further reading
Links lead to the original publishers.