When Potter Palmer built more than 50 large houses on Chicago's Near North Side between 1889 and 1891, the area had ready access to the city's water and sewerage systems. Palmer hired an army of specialized workers to install plumbing and gas fittings, bells and speaking tubes, sewerage and cold-air ducts, steam warming and ventilation, furnaces and electrical connections. These excerpts from Palmer's account books, show the many skilled craftsmen who worked to install these systems in the houses. These systems added thousands of dollars to the costs of the buildings.

Creator: Potter Palmer
Source: Chicago Historical Society (ICHi-37473)