For over 40 years, the name Sears invoked an image of a tall black tower in Chicago’s skyline. Although still commonly referred to as the Sears Tower, London-based insurance broker Willis Group Holdings, Ltd. obtained the naming rights to the building on July 16th 2009. Sears’ legacy as one of Chicago’s mail-order giants, however, goes back further than the construction of the Sears Tower in 1974. | Chicago Architecture Center