Jolyn Robichaux House
8455 S. Michigan Ave.
About the House
The original owner of the home was William McMahon, an attorney who commissioned architect Milton A. Schwartz to design it in 1958. In 1969 the house was purchased by Joseph and Jolyn Robichaux. 8455 South Michigan Ave. is a Contemporary Style house situated on a corner lot bounded by South Michigan Ave. to the west, East 85th St. to the south and an alley to the east. The bi-level portion of the building is situated to the western edge of the site, with the single-story portion located to the east. The two sections of the house are separated by single-story intermediate space, set back slightly from 85th St. by a recessed entrance court. The building is flat-roofed at all areas. Kitchen and living areas are located to the east end of the building, with bedrooms located at the western, split-level end of the house.
The building is primarily clad in vertical wood siding. The upper level of the bi-level portion of the house overhangs the lower level slightly and this lower level is clad in cream-colored face brick laid in a running bond pattern. A wide and low chimney extends upward from the eastern end of the south facade and is similarly clad in cream-colored brick. At the upper level’s west elevation, the roof structure with exposed beams, the north and south walls and floor structure extend outward from the plane of the wall, recessing the rectangular west facade and giving the upper level the illusion that it is an open box.The west elevation has four windows, two at the upper level and two at the lower level, just at grade. The windows at the upper floor are narrowed picture windows and are flanked and connected horizontally by ornamental louvers. The lower level windows are situated directly below the upper level windows, but are narrower and consist of four small casement windows.
The small entry courtyard is shielded from public view by a decorative concrete screen block wall with an artful bronze gate that appears to be handmade. The interior courtyard walls are composed of window walls, with double-doors serving as the main entrance to the house. The roof overhangs the window walls, creating a protective eave over the front stoop. At the east end of the courtyard, the southern wall extends outward to the face of the eave, providing extra privacy for the interior of the house at that end of the courtyard.
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About Jolyn Robichaux
(1929-2017)
Jolyn Robichaux was a successful African American businesswoman who led and expanded Baldwin Ice Cream, one of the largest African American-owned businesses in the city. Baldwin Ice Cream was established by Kit Baldwin and six African American postal employees in 1921 as an ice cream parlor. When Kit Baldwin died in 1961, Joseph and Jolyn Robichaux stepped forward and purchased the company. At the time, the company operated an ice cream parlor at 5316 S. State St. and distributed ice cream to supermarkets throughout Chicago’s African American communities.
Joseph Robichaux died in 1971 and Jolyn, a widowed mother of two, took over as chief executive of Baldwin Ice Cream. She is credited with greatly expanding the company’s sales beyond Chicago’s African American neighborhoods by convincing major grocery chains to carry Baldwin Ice Cream to stores throughout the city and then farther afield throughout the Midwest. She employed many women as executives in the company and she was one of the few female African American executives leading a large food manufacturing company in the country. Robichaux worked with the National Labor Relations Board and was awarded the “National Minority Entrepreneur of the Year” from Vice President George H.W. Bush in 1985.
