Look Back, Chicago!

Category: Chicago Landmarks

Yondorf Hall: From Locality to Liquor Store to Landmark

Brown Line riders: you pass this building every day. In fact, you probably passed it this morning. In the middle of that long stretch between Armitage and Sedgwick, the tracks wind around a giant building at the intersection of North and Halsted. The building is one of the last behemoths still standing from Chicago’s post-fire,... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
May 12, 2015 at 11:00 am •

Chicago Landmarks: Jackson Boulevard Historic District

In the 1870s, Chicago was still a growing city, mostly made up of European immigrants coming to the new city that provided endless opportunities for a prosperous life. Hundreds of residential row houses, large apartments and other homes were built on the expanding West Side. The neighborhood continued to be popular into the 20th century.... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
January 2, 2015 at 10:00 pm •

State Street Ghost Sign: Boston Store

At 2 North State Street in downtown Chicago, you’ll find a Sears department store. Although Sears, Roebuck and Company has its origins in the Windy City, this building was actually built for a rival store. Chicago’s Boston Store (not the same chain that began in Milwaukee in 1897) was founded just after the Great Chicago Fire... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
January 20, 2014 at 11:00 am •

Forgotten Chicagoans: F. J. Dewes

Atop the building at 319 W. North Avenue in Old Town reads the name “F.J. DEWES.” The building was once home to the F. J. Dewes Brewing Company. Owned by Francis J. Dewes, the company lasted fifteen years under this name, opening in 1882 and changing to City Brewing Company in 1898 and Standard Brewery soon after.... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
October 22, 2013 at 10:02 am •

Forgotten Chicagoans: Henry Worthmann

Above the doorway on the building at 1859 W. Chicago Avenue in West Town reads “H. WORTHMANN BUILDING.” Henry W. Worthmann was born around June 18, 1857 in Hanover, Germany. He arrived in the United States in 1882 and he became a naturalized citizen in 1888. That same year, he married his wife, Agnes. He soon... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
July 11, 2013 at 10:11 am •

Forgotten Landmarks: C.C.P. Holden Building

The top of the building at 1029 W. Madison Street on the Near West Side bears the name “1872 C.C.P. HOLDEN.”. Charles C. P. Holden was one of Chicago’s original settlers, arriving in Chicago with his family in 1836, a year before the city was chartered. A well-known Chicago political figure, railroad magnate and real estate developer,... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
June 14, 2013 at 9:35 am •

Where the Chicago Daily News Still Delivers

Many Chicagoans will tell you that the two major long time rival newspapers in town are Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times. There was once a third, however: the Chicago Daily News. The Daily News, founded in 1875, was a pioneer in American newspapers. Unlike its rivals, it was an afternoon paper. It became one... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
May 28, 2013 at 2:30 pm •

Forgotten Landmark: Mrs. Lincoln's Home

Tucked away on a small building at 1232 W. Washington Boulevard on the Near West Side hangs this old forgotten historical marker from 1937. It reads: Mrs. LINCOLN’S HOME On this site stood the home Mrs. Abraham Lincoln bought in 1866 and occupied for about a year with her son “Tad.” The Hyde Park history website had... Read more »

By Neil Arsenty,
April 25, 2013 at 3:00 pm •

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