269-271 DOUGLAS AVENUE

HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE

The apartment building at 269-271 Douglas Avenue, variously referred to as McBride Flats, McBride Apartments and Miami Apartments, was one of many significant buildings in Elgin erected by members of the McBride family. It was constructed in 1892 for Thomas McBride Jr. and built by Lilley and Palm.

The McBrides were a prominent Elgin family for 100 years, contributing in many ways to the economic development of the town which was founded in 1835. They were purveyors of a variety of products, including farm implements, carriages and automobiles, real estate and pharmaceuticals.

The first McBrides arrived in Elgin in 1850. Thomas McBride Sr. (c.1810-1888) married Rebecca Robinson (1860-1906) in 1846 in Ireland. Shortly thereafter, they left Ireland for the United States, arriving in Elgin with their first two children in 1850. Thomas was initially a produce dealer, later greatly expanding his business interests to include stone, coal, wood, lime, brick, tile, ice, farm produce and livestock. When Thomas Sr. retired in 1877, his business interests were taken over by sons David S. and Thomas Jr., who operated lumber and coal yards at 200 Douglas Avenue and other businesses from their father’s grain and produce office on the corner of Highland and Douglas. In 1889, Thomas Jr. replaced this office building with the substantial McBride Building now known as 57 Douglas Avenue. The street directly east of the Fox River, extending from Kimball Street to Lincoln Avenue, was named after the McBride family.

Rebecca and Thomas Sr. had seven children: David (1848-1904), Henry (1850-1904), John (1852-1922), William (1854-1854), Thomas Jr. (1855-1941), Mary Jane (1859-1937) and Rebecca (1862-1944). Rebecca and Thomas Sr. divorced around 1880; in 1886 he married his housekeeper, Lydia Munson. Thomas Sr. died in 1888, leaving real estate worth $38,068.00. His heirs were his wife Lydia and his children from his first marriage, David, Thomas, Henry, John, Rebecca Burritt, and Mary Jane Fuller.

Thomas Jr. married Salina Switzer (1860-1938) in 1881. They had seven children:  Jennie E. who died in infancy, Elsie R., Fred, Laura McBride Ladd, Thomas Walter, Helen McBride Morgan, and Margaret McBride Norling. When Thomas Jr. died in 1941, he left $100,000 worth of real estate in trust for his daughter, Helen to distribute to his heirs.

For additional information, refer to David Seigenthaler’s article “The McBrides of Elgin”, and Kane County Probate Records, available at Elgin History Museum.

ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE

The McBride Apartment Building is an extravagant structure with elaborate architectural detailing. The annual building report of December 30, 1892 states “Lilley and Palm built the… elegantly finished flats on Douglas Avenue for Thomas McBride. Their front is of red pressed brick and stone and the building is most conveniently arranged. It cost $11,000.”

A number of architectural styles are reflected in the complex detailing. Elements derived from the Italianate Style include wide overhanging eaves supported by brackets, dentils on the cornice and below the porch roof, and rounded windows. Queen Anne era architects used wall surfaces as decorative elements by creating bays, towers, overhangs and wall projections, as well as use of multiple wall surface materials. The exterior cladding of 269-271 Douglas Avenue consists of brick, stone, wood and masonry. Differing patterns of brick courses, horizontal bands, and low-relief designs on lintels are reminiscent of Queen Anne Patterned Masonry sub-type. The projecting porch exhibits details of Queen Anne Free Classic sub-type in its symmetrical construction with round columns.  

Many of the decorative details are similar to those seen on the 1896 Elgin Fire Barn #3 at the intersection of Dundee Avenue and Duncan Street, designed by Smith Hoag, and the 1889 McBride Building at 57 Douglas Avenue.

The 1887 Sanborn Fire Insurance map shows an outbuilding belonging to 279 Douglas at the site where Thomas Jr. built apartments in 1892. The 1891 map shows that lot divided into two parcels, with the same buildings as the 1887 map. The apartment building first appears on the 1897 map, and appears unaltered on subsequent maps up to and including 1950. The name McBride Flats does not appear in city directories until 1900. The 1894 directory lists two tenants at 269, Fred Adams and George Ludlow; and five tenants at 271, N. D. Crosby, J. and J. Foote, William Ludlow, J. Martin and Carl Schulz.

Sources: 2019 Heritage Plaque Application; Audio: TextAloud