Archive for 'History of Chicago' Category
John Kinzie: Traitor, Spy, Murderer, and Founding Father
23 October 2007John Kinzie’s tale is a convoluted one, full of corruption and intrigue, treason, multiple marriages, betrayal, and murder.
Milking A Tall Tale: Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow and the Great Chicago Fire
8 October 2007I feel sorry for Mrs. O’Leary’s much-maligned cow. For 136 years, she’s been blamed for the Great Chicago Fire, despite Alderman Burke’s 1997 resolution to clear the Irish lass and her bovine of any wrongdoing. She certainly wasn’t responsible for the extent of the damage.
The fire actually did start in the poor woman’s barn on […]
Preserve Chicago Landmarks Contest
22 September 2007Last year American Express launched a $5 million over 5 years initiative called Partners In Preservation to help preserve historic sites in the United States. Chicago is known for its architectural importance and is home to many historic and cultural landmarks, and this year the Chicagoland area was chosen as the recipient.
25 local landmarks […]
Chicago Jazz Festival
28 August 2007If you ever need proof that Chicago loves jazz, just think of how the Chicago Jazz Festival began.
This weekend is the 29th year of the official fest, but the first music gathering in Chicago dedicated to jazz was in 1974. Duke Ellington had passed away that summer so local musicians held a memorial concert in […]
Can’t Keep A Good Church Down
29 July 2007Old St. Patrick’s is the oldest public building in Chicago, but it hasn’t been easy to get that title. Three times in its extended history it’s narrowly escaped destruction.
The building itself was dedicated on Christmas Day, 1856. The parish had begun ten years earlier, founded by Irish immigrants who had escaped political and religious persecution […]
