George Sollitt Constr. Co.

Over a century and a half ago members of the Sollitt family left England on a boat to embark on a trip to Madison, Wisconsin via Milwaukee.  Due to inclement weather, the Sollitt’s were forced to disembark in City of Chicago, Illinois.  The year was 1838, a year after the City of Chicago’s incorporation. The Sollitt's abandoned their original plan and decided that the rapidly growing Chicago would be the ideal location for their carpentry shop.  Their decision soon resulted in growing beyond carpentry as the Sollitt's became a general constructor of both commercial buildings and private residences. The Sollitt family’s early projects included the old Court House, Tremont House and the Palmer House; all of which were destroyed by the great Chicago Fire. Following the fire, the Sollitt's constructed many notable buildings for Chicago’s great business pioneers, including projects for Potter Palmer, Marshall Field and Montgomery Ward. Succeeding generations of the Sollitt family continued to grow the business in Chicago and South Bend, Indiana.

The George Sollitt Construction Company was incorporated in the State of Illinois in 1935.  During the Great Depression, Sollitt and Sollitt affiliated companies constructed projects across the country for the Federal Government and private institutions. Early project included the original football stadium for Notre Dame University,  and numerous projects at Great Lakes Naval Training Station. As a major defense contractor during WWII. Sollitt employed up to 2,500 carpenters at a time on the many projects completed at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station.

In the 1950’s Sollitt constructed the Danly Machine Works complex in Cicero, IL. Fifty years later, in 2001, Sollitt remediated the former location of the Danly complex, then a  “Brownfield Site”, and constructed the 442,000sf Unity Junior High School. In 1983, Sollitt established itself as one of first 100% employee owned construction firms in the Midwest.  This transition helped to promote a new culture at Sollitt that has resulted in consistent rankings in the top contractor lists prepared by Crain’s Chicago Business, Engineering News Record and Midwest Construction.