The John B. Murphy Memorial on the Near North Side would be designated as an official Chicago Landmark under a recommendation introduced to City Council today by the Commission on Chicago Landmarks.

Located at 50 E. Erie St., the memorial was built in 1926 for the American College of Surgeons (ACS) to honor one of its founders, John B. Murphy, who was a leading surgeon committed to improving the surgical profession and teaching standards.

Marshall & Fox designed the memorial in the French Renaissance style with an ornate, limestone facade and bronze doors that depict key figures in the history of medicine. The interior consists of a 1,000-seat auditorium, an anteroom and a grand lobby.

The adjacent Richard H. Driehaus Museum purchased the memorial from the ACS in 2022 and started work to add a learning center, library and seminar rooms, among other improvements that align with the designation, which would protect all exterior elevations of the building, as well as the lobby, anteroom, and auditorium from major alteration or demolition.

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