This building was one of the first in the new movement in 1917 to centralize the Northwestern professional schools in one consolidated location on Chicago Avenue. The building that would house the Northwestern Medical and Dental schools lacked funding until the largest gift ever donated to the school at the time was given to Northwestern by the wife of Aaron Montgomery Ward. She believed in the mission of service that was true of Northwestern at the time. She eventually donated 8 million dollars and the building was constructed in 1926. 

          The Ward Building served a great purpose, which was to anchor the centralized Chicago campus and house the medical and dental schools of Northwestern. Its neighbors directly adjacent to Ward, Wieboldt Hall of Commerce and Levy Meyer Hall, served this same purpose, but the Ward Building is typically the one that receives the most praise for being the largest and prominent structure in the Chicago campus. The iconic architect James Rogers designed the building and after its construction, it continued to receive great praise by students, staff, and critics alike. In 1927, The American Architect journal praised the building's design: “The Montgomery Ward Memorial Building itself is a decided step forward in the development of scholastic buildings in this country.” It was known in Chicago and the world at large as the world's first academic skyscraper. Despite its large size, critics still noted that the design itself was efficient and economical. 

          The building continued to be praised years after its initial opening and is recognized as an iconic feature of the Chicago Campus. Today it houses the Feinberg School of Medicine and it has officially been granted landmark status by the Chicago City Council. In the summer of 2014, former Mayor Rahm Emanuel petitioned the Council to designate a portion of Northwestern’s Chicago campus as a landmark district. It was highly recommended by the Commission on Chicago Landmarks and was approved by the city's Department of Planning and Development. The Commission on Chicago Landmarks formally recommended the Chicago campus stating that “The buildings reflect Northwestern University’s importance to the history of Chicago and represent significant examples of work by a nationally-prominent architect.” With these glowing recommendations and the approval of the City Council, it received its landmark status later on in 2014.