John R. Schmidt

Jun. 6, 2013

On the Ground in Chicago, 1934

Jun. 6, 2013

Yesterday I challenged readers to identify the location of a 1933 aerial photo of Chicago. Here's the photo.

We are on the North Side, looking south on Ashland Avenue from about Addison Street. The Ravenswood 'L' (Brown Line) crosses Ashland in the foreground. The large building with the tower a few blocks south is Wieboldt's Department Store, and just beyond it Lincoln Avenue crosses on a diagonal. Looking further south, you'll notice that Ashland is interrupted by the Chicago River. The current bridge over the river wasn't completed until a few years later.
 
The picture is from a book titled The Plan of Chicago, 1933, and is meant to illustrate the widening of Ashland. Many buildings along the street had their front sections sliced off to accommodate this project.

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Beyond The Mic

Jun. 5, 2013

Many Hands Made Light Work

Jun. 5, 2013

Last week - from Wednesday to Saturday - hundreds of WBEZ and Vocalo listeners banded together with our partners at Chicago Cares and 18 other Champions to participate in our very first Day of Service.  Volunteers paved new areas for beautification, painted school murals and displays, planted gardens in needed areas, cleaned community homes and had a party for a group of assisted living seniors.  It was astounding.

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Photo of the Day

Jun. 5, 2013

Waterfall at the Starved Rock: Photo of the Day - June 5, 2013

Jun. 5, 2013

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Chris Bentley

Jun. 5, 2013

Cincinnati unearths old river instead of digging Deep Tunnel

Jun. 5, 2013

Rust, population loss and billions of gallons of sewage overflows — Cincinnati’s South Fairmount neighborhood can now count at least one of these former challenges as an economic opportunity.

A plan to repurpose about 30 acres of brownfields and vacant lots into one of the nation’s boldest experiments in green infrastructure won the approval of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Monday.

It is an innovative solution to a common problem throughout the Midwest, where many cities, including Chicago, have combined sewer systems that collect stormwater runoff and sewage in the same pipe.

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Leah Pickett

Jun. 5, 2013

Social media and porn stars: just like us?

Jun. 5, 2013

In the olden days of pornography, the lives of the performers were mostly limited to what we saw acted out on film.
 
Of course, rabid fans knew who Linda Lovelace was hooking up with offscreen and whether Jenna Jameson actually dated women in real life; but on the whole, porn stars existed as larger-than-life projections of what their audiences wanted them to be.
 
They played to the fantasies of millions, then disappeared back into their private lives.

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Cheryl Raye-Stout

Jun. 5, 2013

No sweep for Blackhawks

Jun. 5, 2013

With the latest NHL Championship banner hanging over their heads in Los Angeles, the Blackhawks knew they would have a fight on hand in Game 3. The Kings controlled most of the action and skated to a 3-1 win at the Staples Center. Now the Hawks lead in the series has been cut two games to one.

Kings goalie Jonathan Quick rebounded well after being pulled in Game 2, but the Hawks didn’t challenge him as much as they did at the United Center.

It didn’t take Los Angeles long to get on the scoreboard in the first period. Justin Williams was able to bounce the puck off Corey Crawford and it went over the Blackhawks goalie’s left shoulder.

The Kings were able to take a 2-0 lead over the Hawks in the second period. LA defenseman Slava Voynov broke his stick on his shot and scored his fifth goal of the playoffs.

The penalty kill was strong again for the Hawks and they really needed it in the second period after Duncan Keith nailed Kings Center Jeff Carter in the mouth with his stick. Keith was assessed two minor penalties and his teammates successfully killed off the four minutes of power play.

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Lee Bey

Jun. 5, 2013

A last look at shuttered Evergreen Plaza

Jun. 5, 2013

Chicagoan Katherine Hodges' Flickr stream is one of my favorite destinations on the website.

Using the name "Katherine of Chicago," she has an eye for capturing empty, lonely and semi-loved urban place—not to mention odd signage, overlooked spots and dead shopping malls. 

The Plaza, formerly the Evergreen Plaza mall, closed last week. Most of the 61-year-old shopping center at 95th Street and Western Avenue will be demolished and replaced by a new mall. I figured Katherine and her camera would make her way there before they shut the doors and soft-soaped the windows. In the photo above of the ghostly escalator and the ones below, Katherine captures the last days of one of the first shopping malls in America. We'll take a look. But first, a quick email Q&A:

Q: Dead and dying malls and retail spaces are often the subject for your work. What's the attraction?
 
A: I'd been interested in abandoned buildings, inside and out, for some time before I got into retail. And I suppose I find dying malls and stores an equally compelling example of places that aren't considered useful anymore.

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John R. Schmidt

Jun. 5, 2013

Wings Over Chicago, 1933

Jun. 5, 2013

I enjoy flying into Chicago at night. The city is laid out before me like a giant Rand McNally map. The distinctive orange street lights pretty much define the city's borders. The various expressways are easily identified, as are the major diagonal streets. It's a fun way to pass the time while circling O'Hare.

So let's take a plane trip over the Chicago of eighty years ago. If you were an airplane pilot, could you find your way around the city in 1933?

The idea is to determine the approximate location of the plane when this photo was taken. If you can identify the arterial street running up the right side, it shouldn't be too difficult. But unlike the "Where in Chicago?" quizzes, I'm not going to tell you what section of the city this is.
 
Send is your guess as a comment. I'll provide the answers in tomorrow's post.

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