Did you know…? August, 2020
Surprise! I’m talking about Olson Park Waterfall! (R.I.P.) The summer months for many Chicago folks means an excursion to Wisconsin. And once upon a time, folks could get a taste of it at the northwest corner of Pulaski and Diversey! Walter Olson, the owner of the Olson Rug Company, built a little piece of the […]
Did you know… ? July, 2020
Surprise! I’m talking about Riverview Park! (R.I.P.) Absence makes the heart grow fonder – Sextus: I firmly believe in this, and not just with relationships! It’s with people’ing as a whole. When the doors are safely flung open again, perhaps next spring, I believe there will be a huge resurgence of social entertainment. So, I […]
Did you know…? June, 2020
Now that we’re all in Phase 3, and we’re looking to stretch our legs some more, I thought it would be a fun opportunity to share this fascinating bit of history with you! Many of us are familiar with Chicago’s flag, but the Y, be it direct or reversed, is just as much a symbol […]
Did you know… ? May, 2020
Surprise! I’m talking about 60707, which is part Elmwood Park and part Chicago! Not every zip code in Chicago starts with 606, but it used to when it started out. Also, there were a lot fewer zips, and they were far more numerically clustered. It’s kind of like when I was growing up, the (312) […]
Did you know…? April, 2020
Surprise! It’s the North Park Nature Center, part of Chicago’s North Park Village; once upon a time, it was “the largest municipal sanatorium in the country”. With the scary stuff going on right now, I thought it would be nice to share some of our history that has become something beautiful. Read more… Did you […]
Did you know…? March, 2020
Surprise! I’m talking about the brick that comes from the Chicago River! It’s got an interesting history and that wabi sabi appeal that has people clamoring for it worldwide! Yes, yes, you thought I was talking about how Chicago has been dying the river green since the 60’s. Well actually, it’s two plumber families who […]
Chicago and Its Candy History!
(From Did You Know…? ) The series from the History Channel called “The Food that Built America” , that you really should get a chance to check out, talked about how chocolate has a fascinating history in Chicago- going all the way back to the World’s Fair. That’s when Milton Hershey visited and got the […]
Did you know…? January, 2020
Surprise! It’s Kimball Avenue! “We’ve all made our share of typos — ‘your’ vs. ‘you’re’ anyone? — that can easily be fixed these days with a backspace or two. But in the dark ages before spell check, the city made a whopper of a misspelling that’s gone uncorrected for more than 100 years…” Read more… […]