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Perkins & Will

Lincoln Park, 1964
This architecture firm was founded in 1935 by Lawrence B. Perkins and Philip Will, Jr., who began his career designing houses. By 1950, the firm had a staff of 50, and it specialized in designing schools and colleges. A New York office opened in 1952. By 1970, the firm was nationally prominent, designing large office buildings and a variety of other structures. By the 1980s, when it employed about 250 people around the country, Perkins & Will ranked as Chicago's leading architecture firm in terms of local construction volume. At the beginning of the century, it employed about 100 architects in Chicago, working on such projects as the Chicago Park District Headquarters and the Halsted Street Sky Bridge downtown.

This entry is part of the Encyclopedia's Dictionary of Leading Chicago Businesses (1820-2000) that was prepared by Mark R. Wilson, with additional contributions from Stephen R. Porter and Janice L. Reiff.

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