Architect Christian Albert Eckstorm began his career in the office of Henry Ives Cobb, a designer of many prominent civic buildings. Among Cobb’s more notable works were the Chicago Historical Society Building (CL) at 632 North Dearborn Street (today the Excalibur Club), the Newberry Library (CL), and the original plan for the University of Chicago campus, including many of its early buildings. Eckstorm was the chief draftsman in Cobb’s office during the late 1890s; when Cobb left Chicago for New York in 1902, he started his own firm.

Like his mentor, Eckstorm was expert at interpreting historic architectural styles for various building types. Eckstorm’s works included many prominently located industrial buildings, like the Pugh Warehouses (now called the North Pier Terminal Building), and several well-known high rises, including the Patten Building of 1905 (CL, NR); the Mallers Building of 1912 (CL) at Madison and Wabash avenues; the Garland Building of 1915 (CL) at Washington and Wabash avenues; and, the three buildings owned by Columbia College and detailed in this report: the Harvester Building at 600 South Michigan Avenue, the Musical College at 624 South Michigan, and the Sherwood School of Music at 1014 South Michigan (all CL, Historic Michigan Boulevard District).