Chicago History Today

On this date, a little-known, 36-year-old newspaper editor gave a speech before the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.  The next day he was the party’s candidate for President of the United States. The economy was in bad shape in 1896.  The country was arguing about how to solve the problem.  Put simply, it was about Gold vs. […]

It’s summer.  We’re all enjoying the great outdoors, and some of us are going to the beach.  Back in the 1960s, when people around Chicago went to the beach, they had to deal with alewives. An alewife is a kind of herring.  It’s about 7 inches long and weighs a few ounces.  You mostly find them off […]

1968–Lawrence Avenue @ Luna Avenue, view east 2026–the same location Our location is a short-block east of Central Avenue. A trolley bus moves along Lawrence in 1968, on its way to the western terminal at Austin Avenue. The parking lot for the new Jewel supermarket is just visible on the intersection’s southwest corner. In 2026 […]

The body builders were in Chicago for the annual Mr. America competition. Thirty-nine men flexed and posed at Lane Tech Auditorium When it was over, the title was awarded to 21-year-old Steve Reeves of Oakland. An army veteran of World War II, Reeves had started developing his body three years earlier. Now he had 212 […]

A seiche is a large wave that rolls through a lake because of a sudden change in air pressure or a seismic disturbance. Chicagoans learned the definition on this Saturday morning. A storm squall near the southern end of Lake Michigan caused a five-foot wave to rise near Michigan City around 8:00 a.m. Moving west […]