John Wellborn Root (January 10, 1850 – January 15, 1891) was an American architect who was based in Chicago with Daniel Burnham. He was one of the founders of the Chicago School style.
Born~Died Jan 10, 1850 ~ Jan 15, 1891Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 6:33 PM
While in Liverpool, Root studied at a school in Claremount, near Liverpool.3 His later design work was said to have been influenced by the pioneering work of Liverpool architect , who designed and built the world's first two metal-framed, glass curtain-walled buildings, (1864) and (1866).
This page is based on “John Wellborn Root” from English Wikipedia, (r1363431776) CC BY-SA 4.0 used under the license. The original authors are listed in its page history.
After Root returned to the U.S., he earned an undergraduate degree from New York University in 1869. After graduation, he took a job with the architect James Renwick Jr. of Renwick and Sands of New York as an unpaid apprentice. Later he took a position with John Butler Snook in New York. While working for Snook, Root was a construction supervisor on the original Grand Central Depot, predecessor to Warren and Wetmore's Grand Central Terminal. Root was greatly influenced by the architecture of Henry Hobson Richardson.
Chicago and career
In 1871, Root moved to Chicago, where he was employed as a draftsman in an architectural firm. He met Daniel Burnham and two years later in 1873, the young men formed the firm of Burnham and Root; they worked together for 18 years.5 During the economic downturn in 1873, Root earned extra income on jobs with other firms and as the organist at the First Presbyterian Church.
Mature years (after 1873)
Root developed the floating raft system of interlaced steel beams, to create a foundation for tall buildings that would not sink in Chicago's marshy soil. Root's first use of this revolutionary system was for the Montauk Building in 1882. He later transferred use of the steel frame to the vertical load-bearing walls in the Phenix Building of 1887, in imitation of William LeBaron Jenney's Home Insurance Building of 1885.
Root married Mary Louise Walker in 1879, but she died of tuberculosis six weeks later. In 1882, he married for a second time, to Dora Louise Monroe (sister of Harriet Monroe). Their son John Wellborn Root Jr. also practiced in Chicago as an architect. Root's sister-in-law, Harriet Monroe, authored the biography, John Wellborn Root: A Study of His Life and Work (1896).7
Kruty, Paul (1998). Frank Lloyd Wright and Midway Gardens. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illiniois Press. p. 84. ISBN 0-252-02366-8. ↩
Bey, Lee; Williams, Amanda (2019). Southern exposure : the overlooked architecture of Chicago's South Side. Evanston, Illinois. ISBN 978-0-8101-4098-1. OCLC1084323347. ↩
While in Liverpool, Root studied at a school in Claremount, near Liverpool.3 His later design work was said to have been influenced by the pioneering work of Liverpool architect Peter Ellis, who designed and built the world's first two metal-framed, glass curtain-walled buildings, Oriel Chambers (1864) and 16 Cook Street (1866).4
After Root returned to the U.S., he earned an undergraduate degree from New York University in 1869. After graduation, he took a job with the architect James Renwick Jr. of Renwick and Sands of New York as an unpaid apprentice. Later he took a position with John Butler Snook in New York. While working for Snook, Root was a construction supervisor on the original Grand Central Depot, predecessor to Warren and Wetmore's Grand Central Terminal. Root was greatly influenced by the architecture of Henry Hobson Richardson.
Chicago and career
In 1871, Root moved to Chicago, where he was employed as a draftsman in an architectural firm. He met Daniel Burnham and two years later in 1873, the young men formed the firm of Burnham and Root; they worked together for 18 years.5 During the economic downturn in 1873, Root earned extra income on jobs with other firms and as the organist at the First Presbyterian Church.
Mature years (after 1873)
Root developed the floating raft system of interlaced steel beams, to create a foundation for tall buildings that would not sink in Chicago's marshy soil. Root's first use of this revolutionary system was for the Montauk Building in 1882. He later transferred use of the steel frame to the vertical load-bearing walls in the Phenix Building of 1887, in imitation of William LeBaron Jenney's Home Insurance Building of 1885.
Root married Mary Louise Walker in 1879, but she died of tuberculosis six weeks later. In 1882, he married for a second time, to Dora Louise Monroe (sister of Harriet Monroe). Their son John Wellborn Root Jr. also practiced in Chicago as an architect. Root's sister-in-law, Harriet Monroe, authored the biography, John Wellborn Root: A Study of His Life and Work (1896).7
Kruty, Paul (1998). Frank Lloyd Wright and Midway Gardens. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illiniois Press. p. 84. ISBN 0-252-02366-8. ↩
Bey, Lee; Williams, Amanda (2019). Southern exposure : the overlooked architecture of Chicago's South Side. Evanston, Illinois. ISBN 978-0-8101-4098-1. OCLC1084323347. ↩