To those of us who only take public transportation northwards, 95th and Dan Ryan can seem pretty far from home. However, to the intrepid traveler, it’s just a 15-minute ride on the 95 bus west from the Red Line station, or a 20-minute Metra ride from downton’s LaSalle Street Station, to one of Chicago’s best-kept secrets. Running between 88th and 107th streets west of the Dan Ryan, Beverly is a neighborhood comfortably nestled between some of Chicago’s only hills. Home to the Beverly Arts Center and formerly home to the famous South Side St. Patrick’s Day parade, the neighborhood boasts a strong Irish population, evidenced by the names of numerous pubs. An eclectic mix of restaurants and small businesses line the main roads, and along the side streets one is met with a smorgasbord of suburban architecture. Foodies, art lovers, and historians alike can find something worthwhile in Beverly. Read the rest of this entry »

To those living on the North Side, the general consensus seems to be that, unless you go to the University of Chicago, there’s not much reason to travel south of the Loop. Of course, this is all a lie. Vibrant arts communities have sprung up in Bridgeport and Pilsen, and neighborhoods like Bronzeville and the South Loop are riding the wave of gentrification that’s swept much of the South Side over the past decade. South Shore’s native daughter Michelle Obama has brought increased attention to that area, a well-to-do middle class neighborhood with plenty of cultural offerings. And even Beverly, an area so far south it boasts actual hills, maintains a vibrant local scene, as evidenced by its arts center and longstanding record shop. These are facts all too often ignored by city residents and unnoticed by outsiders. And yet, South Side communities persist and thrive. In light of this, we here at the Chicago Weekly, who dedicate our newspaper each week to spotlighting cultural developments throughout Chi-Town’s southern half, bring you a sampling of some of the best that Chicago’s South Side has to offer. Enjoy!

With the success of Barack Obama has come increased scrutiny of Hyde Park such as rarely seen before. Right-wing smears have painted the public consciousness with images of Louis Farrakhan, William Ayers and ivory tower socialists run amok. Yet many cite the University of Chicago’s reverence of the Great Books, its vaulted economics program, and former professor/neocon forefather Leo Strauss as proof that the school is a bastion of traditional, conservative thought. What the debate misses entirely, however, is the cultural vibrancy of the neighborhood itself. Liberal or conservative, Republican or Democrat, anyone can (and everyone should) take the time to get to know the neighborhood and sample the best it has to offer. Read the rest of this entry »

Historically known as Chicago’s “Black Belt,” “Black Metropolis,” or even “Black Ghetto,” Bronzeville has long been the center of Chicago’s African-American culture. Famous residents have included Ida B. Wells, Gwendolyn Brooks, Sam Cooke, Lou Rawls, and Louis Armstrong. The ’50s and ’60s saw a disastrous urban renewal program replace the area’s theaters and tenements with squalid public housing high-rises and vacant lots, but recently the area has experienced a renewal, particularly along 47th Street by the Green Line and Red Line stops. Read the rest of this entry »

The South Loop stands today as the best example of gentrification on the move in Chicago. Cranes consistently dot the horizon, as high-rises sprout and come to fruition, housing the city dwellers who are flocking back to urban areas. But the South Loop is a strange place unto itself—rundown blocks border high-end restaurants and shiny new apartments. Walking through the various parts of the neighborhood is like walking through a timetable of decades of development, from one of the city’s original residential neighborhoods, to its decline and recent revitalization. The neighborhood is also home to the city’s one-time printing mecca, Printers’ Row, but recent developments now threaten to whitewash its storied history. For the meantime, both the old and the new stand juxtaposed in odd and often interesting combinations. Read the rest of this entry »

Chicago’s Chinatown district has changed a substantial amount since the late 1800s and early 1900s, when the beginnings of a Chicago Chinatown were born. In the late 1800s, most of the Chinese immigrants in Chicago lived near Clark and Van Buren in downtown Chicago. However, Chinese-Americans faced substantial housing discrimination in Chicago, and established Chinatown as a safe haven Today, Chinatown continues to expand as a neighborhood, recently spilling over into the neighborhood of Bridgeport to the south. The hustle and bustle of the Chinatown neighborhood is hard to miss, as the streets of Chinatown are lined with hole-in-the-wall restaurants and delectable bakeries, frequently busy and serving a diverse group of customers. There is also no shortage of grocery stores and specialty stores. From its summer festivals to the countless number of gift shops, Chicago’s Chinatown may not be the biggest Chinatown in the country, but it certainly is one of the most vibrant. Read the rest of this entry »

In 1893, the World’s Columbian Exposition brought economic prosperity to Woodlawn. Unfortunately, it left economic hardship in its wake that would persist for much of the next century, especially as a sudden racial succession turned the neighborhood from 87% white in 1930 to 89% black in 1960. Racial issues and class tensions, particularly with its northern neighbor the University of Chicago, only exacerbated its economic problems, and admittedly they’re far from resolved, even today. With the school’s continued expansion south of the Midway Plaisance, these issues will only continue to influence the identity of the neighborhood. But whatever its future may hold, there’s much to appreciate in this historic area. Read the rest of this entry »

Historically, Bridgeport has been known both as a working-class Irish neighborhood and a home to well-connected politicians, including both Mayors Daley. However, there is another side to Bridgeport: a diverse, artistic neighborhood that welcomes outsiders without losing its strong community feel. A study, conducted by the Chaddick Institute at DePaul University, ranked Bridgeport the fourth most diverse neighborhood in the city. In addition to the Polish and Lithuanian communities that have quietly coexisted with the South Side Irish for decades upon decades, Bridgeport is now home to Chinese, African-Americans, and hipsters. Mayor Daley has moved out, and the neighborhood has moved on. Read the rest of this entry »