Potter Palmer

Potter Palmer (1826 - 1902) was a Chicago businessman who was responsible for much of the development of State Street.

Palmer was a partner in a dry goods business with Marshall Field and Levi Leiter. In the 1860s, he left the business to strike out on his own as a real estate developer, leasing a building to his former partners. He built several buildings along State Street on property he owned, including the Palmer House Hotel. When his building were destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire, Palmer borrowed two million dollars to rebuild, the largest amount loaned to an individual up to that time.

In 1871, he married Bertha Honoré. Potter built a castle for her on Lake Shore Drive in 1885, leading to the establishment of the "Gold Coast". Prior to that time, Prairie Avenue was the most desirable address in Chicago.

Palmer is buried in Graceland Cemetery