Boyce Building

The Boyce Building is a historic twelve-story office building at the corner of Dearborn and Illinois Streets in Chicago's Near North Side neighborhood. The facade of light gray Vermont granite and red brick gives the reinforced concrete structure a solid appearance. The building was originally designed by Daniel H. Burnham & Co., and construction took place in several phases between 1911 and 1923. First came a four-story section, which was later expanded with additional floors. Christian A. Eckstrom was responsible for the later phase of construction; he simplified the design and omitted the mansard roof, resulting in a more closed, if less elaborate, look. Inside, the building once housed five printing presses and a mailing room, capable of producing an enormous number of newspapers.

The building is inseparable from the story of William D. Boyce, who built a publishing group in Chicago serving rural communities. The building served not only as the headquarters of his publishing operations but also as the center of the Lone Scouts of America, an organization Boyce founded after handing control of the Boy Scouts of America over to the YMCA. The Lone Scouts were aimed specifically at residents of small towns, who were often overlooked by the growing Boy Scout movement. Boyce spent his final years in the building's penthouse, where he died in 1929. Today, the Boyce Building is the only surviving building associated with his career as a publisher and founder of the Scouting movement, since his earlier sites have been demolished.

As a historic landmark, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. It reflects the economic and cultural significance of the era in which Boyce built his media outlets and organizations. Today the building is home to a variety of modern tenants, including consulting firms and cultural institutions such as the Chicago Humanities Festival. Visitors can admire the building's architectural fabric, which has retained its historic character despite later alterations, such as the removal of a terra-cotta cornice in the 1980s.