Fazlur Rahman Khan the Man Behind Chicago’s Skyline

The two critical components behind a “City Dads” group are of course:

1. Dads
2. A City

Here we have dads of all types working dads, stay-at-home dads (SAHDs), step dads, grand dads, just about any type of dad you can imagine… there are over 900 of us after-all. We also have a city, our city is Chicago and it is an amazing place.  There are many things that stand out about our city, but one thing, that it is particularly known for is its skyline:

That skyline wouldn’t be quite as amazing had it not been for a man named Fazlur Rahman Khan.  He was a structural engineer that lived and worked in Chicago from 1955 until he died in 1982. His innovation the “tube” structural system has been used over and over in modern skyscrapers allowing us to build higher and higher into the sky.  For this innovation he has been hailed as the “Greatest Structural Engineer of the 20th Century”.  Today would have been his 88th birthday, and while he is not with us his mark is left all across Chicago.

Now that the weather has warmed up a bit you may find yourself downtown taking in the sights,  If you do here is a list of the buildings he engineered:

• DeWitt-Chestnut Apartments
• Brunswick Building
• John Hancock Center
• Willis (Sears) Tower
• One Magnificent Mile
• Onterie Center

Better yet get a group of Dads together and take a picture of you guys and your kids in front of one of these awesome buildings.

If you want to know more about Mr. Kahn and just what exactly the “tube” structural system is, here is his Wikipedia page.