John R. Schmidt

How the NATO peoples settled Chicago, Part 3

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 17, 2012

May. 17, 2012

Today we conclude our capsule look at how peoples from the 28 NATO countries helped build Chicago.

Belgium—As early as 1854, the government of Belgium identified 83 Belgians as living in the city of Chicago. What there was of a Belgian neighborhood in the city later developed in the few blocks around St. John Berchmans Catholic Church in Logan Square. Since the 1960s that concentration has dispersed.

Germany—Germans were the first ethnic group to come to Chicago in great numbers. In 1850 one-sixth of the city’s population carried the “born in Germany” label. By 1900 a full 25% of Chicagoans were either first- or second-generation German.

They settled on the North Side and up the Lincoln Avenue corridor. They built churches, schools, social halls. They printed books and newspapers, and organized political clubs. They were determined to keep their culture. When one nativist mayor closed the saloons on Sunday, the city’s Germans rioted.

Then came World War I, and a national wave of anti-Germanism. The local Germans became more assimilated.

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How the NATO peoples settled Chicago, Part 2

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 16, 2012

May. 16, 2012

Today we continue the capsule stories of how people from the 28 NATO countries helped build Chicago. The final part will be posted tomorrow.

Albania—Chicago has never had a large Albanian population, and no real Albanian neighborhoods. The most prominent local person of Albanian ancestry was probably comedian John Belushi, who grew up in Wheaton.

Croatia—Because Croatia didn’t become independent until 1991, Chicago’s Croatians were commonly classified as “Yugoslavians.” Most of the local community life was centered around a few parishes, such as St. Jerome’s in Armour Square. Mayor Michael Bilandic and Alderman Ed Vrdolyak are the city’s most famous Croatians.

Denmark—Most of the Chicago’s earliest Danish immigrants settled along the axis of Milwaukee Avenue, close to other Scandinavians. By 1910 there were nearly 20,000 Danes in the city, the majority of them located near North Avenue in Humboldt Park.

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How the NATO peoples settled Chicago, Part 1

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 15, 2012

May. 15, 2012

How about something on the impending NATO summit that's free of controversy? For the next three days, I’ll be doing capsule summaries of how the peoples from the 28 countries each did their part to build Chicago.  

Bulgaria—The first Bulgarians settled in Chicago during the first years of the 20th Century. Their numbers were not great, though distinct enclaves developed in Lincoln Square and Albany Park. Immigration has increased in the last 20 years and some sources claim that over 100,000 Bulgarians currently live in metro Chicago.

Canada—In 1880, Canadians were Chicago’s third-largest immigrant group, after the Germans and the Irish. Most of them were English-speaking and could easily assimilate into the local culture.

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Finding your way in Chicago's present

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 11, 2012

May. 11, 2012

How well did you find your way around 1955 Chicago?

We are on Western Avenue at the intersection with Lincoln, just north of Lawrence. The Western station of the Ravenswood "L" (Brown Line) is in the distance. The massive building behind the streetcar is now Dank Haus, Chicago's German American cultural center. 

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Finding your way in Chicago's past

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 10, 2012

May. 10, 2012
How well could you find your way around the Chicago of the past?
 
Today's photo is from 1955. The place is the North Side--in this case, somewhere north of North Avenue and east of the Chicago River. The streetcar is long gone, but many of the landmarks remain today.
 
If you think you know the location, send in your guess as a comment.  I'll post a contemporary photo tomorrow.

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The first Mother's Day

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 8, 2012

May. 8, 2012

This Sunday is Mother’s Day. Chicago first celebrated the holiday 103 years ago Wednesday–May 9, 1909.

The American version of Mother’s Day was started by Anna Marie Jarvis, after the death of her own mother in 1905. To honor all mothers, Jarvis asked people to wear white carnations on the second Sunday in May. The first observances were held in Grafton, West Virginia, where her late mother had lived.

By 1908 Mother’s Day was being celebrated in Philadelphia, San Francisco and a few other places. Meanwhile, Jarvis worked to spread the holiday. She sent pamphlets to women’s clubs in various cities, asking for help.

In Chicago, the Mother’s Day cause was taken up by Sarah Warrell. On May 4, 1909, the Tribune ran a short interview in which she described the holiday.

Warrell called on ministers, teachers, and charitable institutions to get out the word. Wearing the white carnation was the first step. Then people should use the holiday for positive action, to help the aged, the sick, and the needy.

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The Haymarket incident

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 4, 2012

May. 4, 2012

Haymarket Square was located on Randolph Street just east of Halsted, about where the Kennedy now comes through. On this date in 1886, the site became infamous.

Chicago was having labor troubles that spring. On May 3, two striking workers had been killed in a confrontation with police at the McCormick Reaper Works. A local anarchist group called for a mass protest meeting at Haymarket Square the following evening.

Something like 2,000 people came to the rally. Mayor Carter Harrison was one of them. He saw things were peaceful and left.

The speakers continued for three hours. Light rain began falling. People drifted away. By 10:30 about 300 stragglers remained in the square.

Samuel Fielden was the final speaker. He climbed on the wagon that was being used as a stage and began his remarks. A few police officers had been on hand during the rally. Now a larger contingent arrived.

The police halted.

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Ronald Reagan's Chicago home

By: John R. Schmidt | May. 2, 2012

May. 2, 2012

Before Barack Obama, only one U.S. President had called Chicago home. As a boy, Ronald Reagan lived on the first floor of the building at 832 East 57th Street.

The Reagans moved into their apartment in January of 1915. They’d come to the city from the western Illinois village of Tampico. Jack Reagan, Ronald's father, got a job selling shoes in the Loop. His wife, Nelle, stayed home with the two boys, 6-year-old Neil and little Ron–called “Dutch”–who was going on 4.

The University of Chicago was a few blocks east, but the area where the Reagans settled wasn’t fashionable. Nor was the building–their flat was lighted by a single gas lamp, which operated when a quarter was deposited in a timer. They probably picked the location for its easy access to the Cottage Grove streetcar line.

After living in tiny Tampico, Chicago was a brave new world for Dutch Reagan. He was excited to see all the people and activity. When a horse-drawn fire engine clanged by his apartment window, he decided there could be no finer profession than Chicago fireman.

All was not pleasant for Dutch. He came down with bronchial pneumonia and nearly died.

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