1909

1909 was a seminal year in architectural and urban history, when the seeds of modern city planning were being formally sown — most notably through the first National Conference on City Planning held in Washington D.C. and Daniel Burnham’s influential Plan of Chicago, which established monumental urban design principles that would resonate through the 20th century. This period also witnessed the late flowering of Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau movements alongside the first stirrings of the radical avant-garde, as figures like Frank Lloyd Wright were publishing the Wasmuth Portfolio, bringing his Prairie Style to European audiences and inspiring a generation of architects who would shape Modernism. The buildings completed in 1909 reflect this transitional energy between historicism and modernity, capturing a pivotal moment in the evolution of architectural history.