Send us a text

Chicago is known for industry – stockyards, steel mills, and more, but this city had another that thrived for nearly 150 years. Today we’re discussing the Rise and Fall of Chicago’s Brickyards.

Get out and see the city with Will Quam on a Brick of Chicago tour!

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Items related to this episode (purchasing anything through these links helps support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

Brick: A World History by James W. P. Campbell and Will Pryce

https://amzn.to/4kcGRYC

Contemporary Brick Buildings by Philip Jodidio

https://amzn.to/3Hn4qPH

Want better sleep? Try the most delicious alternative to melatonin and sleeping pills that helps you fall asleep, stay asleep, and wake up feeling refreshed. MoonBrew. Use the code below for 15% off.

https://moonbrew.co/TOMMYHENRY

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com) 

Support the show

Support the show

Send us a text

Chicago's Buckingham Fountain is being turned on for the season on Saturday, May 10, 2025, so this seems like the perfect time to discuss the history of how the fountain came to be in this enhanced and re-recorded version, with an all-new section about Queen Elizabeth II's historic 1959 visit to the city.

Switch On Summer:

https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/events/switch-summer-night-out-kick-buckingham-fountain-0

Edward H. Bennett Digital Collection:
http://edwardbennett.lakeforest.edu/exhibits/show/edward--h--bennett-collection-/chicago/grant-park

Chicago History Podcast Clothing, Mugs, Totes, & More (your purchase helps support the podcast):
https://www.teepublic.com/user/chicago-history-podcast
https://chicago-history-podcast.creator-spring.com/

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):
https://www.chicagohistorypod.com
https://www.facebook.com/Chicago-History-Podcast-107482214277883
https://www.instagram.com/chicagohistorypod/

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com)

Gear used in the recording of this podcast:
Shure SM-58 Microphone: https://amzn.to/3dYzfJZ
Zoom H6 Recorder: https://amzn.to/3qaI2uB

Support the show

Send us a text

Discussing their book "Don't Go: Stories of Segregation and How To Disrupt It" are authors Tonika Lewis Johnson and Maria Krysan.

Folded Map Project:

https://www.foldedmapproject.com/

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Further reading (purchasing these items through these links helps support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

Don't Go; Stories of Segregation and How To Disrupt It by Tonika Lewis Johnson and Maria Krysan

https://amzn.to/3ERFNtM

Cycle of Segregation: Social Processes and Residential Stratification by Maria Krysan and Kyle Crowder

https://amzn.to/4jxVDc0

Send me an email - Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com)

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com) 

Support the show

Send us a text

ORIGINALLY RELEASED IN OCTOBER 2020.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Lincoln Park had a “High Bridge” which rose 75 feet over the south lagoon's water. As welcoming to sightseers as the big beautiful bridge was, it also had a dark appeal, quickly earning it the dubious name “Suicide Bridge.”

Viking Ship at Good Templar Park in Geneva, IL:
https://vikingship.us/

Amazon Affiliate Links (anything you buy - not just this stuff - through these links helps benefit the show at no cost to you):

Lincoln Park (Images of America)
https://amzn.to/3Ei6iZ3 (Hardcover)
https://amzn.to/4ls3zgd (Kindle - FREE with Kindle Unlimited)

Join Kindle Unlimited here: https://amzn.to/2WsP1GH

Hidden History of Lincoln Park by Patrick Butler and Michelle Smith
https://amzn.to/4cyTk5U
Lincoln Park 1000-piece Puzzle
https://amzn.to/4cyTl9Y

Chicago History Podcast Clothing, Mugs, Totes, & More (your purchase helps support the podcast):
https://www.teepublic.com/user/chicago-history-podcast
https://teespring.com/stores/chicago-history-podcast

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):
https://www.podpage.com/chicago-history-podcast/
https://www.facebook.com/Chicago-History-Podcast-107482214277883
https://www.instagram.com/chicagohistorypod/

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com)

Gear used in the recording of this podcast (purchases made through these links help support the podcast):
Shure SM-58 Microphone: https://amzn.to/2DsouQo
Zoom H6 Recorder: https://amzn.to/3gSxrjF

Support the show

Send us a text

It is Women's History Month! Here's a look at five pioneering women in Chicago's history: Chicago founder Kitihawa du Sable, women's suffrage activist Grace Wilbur Trout, Vivian Gordon Harsh, Chicago's first Black librarian, Union activist Rev. Addie L. Wyatt, and Elisabeth A. Martini, Chicago's first woman architect.

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Further reading (purchasing these items through these links helps support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

Reverend Addie Wyatt: Faith and Fight for Labor, Gender, and Racial Equality by Marcia Walker-McWilliams

https://amzn.to/445GABt

Chicago Architecture: Histories, Revisions, Alternatives by Charles Waldheim (editor) and Katerina Ruedi Ray (editor)

https://amzn.to/43qSkOI

Send me an email - Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com)

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com) 

Support the show

Send us a text

Just in time for St. Patrick's Day 2025, here's a little history about Chicago's connection to preserving Irish music, originally posted in March of 2022.

He served as a Chicago policeman for more than 32 years and was Chicago’s chief of police for four, but Francis O’Neill is probably better known for his efforts in preserving the music of his homeland. Today we’re talking about Police Chief Francis O’Neill – Chicago’s Savior of Irish Music.

Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffee and help offset production costs:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Amazon Affiliate Links (anything you buy - not just this stuff - through these links helps benefit the show):

Chief O'Neill's Sketchy Recollections of An Eventful Life in Chicago by Francis O'Neill, edited by Ellen Skerrett and Mary Lesch
https://amzn.to/3MJoRon
Beat Cop, The : Chicago's Chief O'Neill and the Creation of Irish Music by Michael O'Malley
 https://amzn.to/3M0DS3v
Harvest Saved, A: Francis O'Neill and Irish Music in Chicago by Nicholas Carolan
https://amzn.to/3KE2UFg
O'Neills' Music of Irish by Francis O'Neill and James O'Neill
https://amzn.to/3KEAuLy
Dance Music of Ireland: O'Neill's 1,001 by Francis O'Neill and James O'Neill
https://amzn.to/3MKdVqA
Irish Folk Music: A Fascinating Hobby (1910) by Francis O'Neill
https://amzn.to/3MJzGH3
Black Police in America by W. Marvin Dulaney
https://amzn.to/3J7OMDR

Podcast art by John K. Schneider - reach out to him for your creative needs. angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com

Chicago History Podcast Clothing, Mugs, Totes, & More (your purchase helps support the podcast):
https://www.teepublic.com/user/chicago-history-podcast
https://chicago-history-podcast.creator-spring.com/

https://www.chicagohistorypod.com

Support the show

Send us a text

Originally released in September of 2021, this episode has been enhanced with additional music and sound effects.

Sixteen years before Al Capone came to Chicago and long before anyone could blame violence on video games, three boys just out of their teens became robbers and worse in Chicago with brazen acts of thievery and wanton killings. Today we’re discussing the Automatic Trio and the Car Barn Murders.

Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee!
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Need music for YOUR projects? Audiio has got you covered. Try a free trial here:
https://audiio.com/pricing?oid=1&affid=481

Amazon Affiliate Links (anything you buy - not just this stuff - through these links helps benefit the show):

The Gangs of Chicago: An Informal History of the Underworld by Herbert Asbury
https://amzn.to/3zlYL3D
Murder and Mayhem on Chicago's South Side by Troy Taylor
https://amzn.to/3BeIjmg (paperback)
https://amzn.to/3kkBVmK (FREE with Kindle Unlimited)

Join Kindle Unlimited here: https://amzn.to/2WsP1GH

Second City Sinners: True Crime From Historic Chicago's Deadly Streets  by Jon Seidel
https://amzn.to/3g5n1js
Unknown Chicago Tales by John R. Schmidt
https://amzn.to/3x6GgPh

So many Chicago movies and documentaries can been found here:
https://amzn.to/38F6heh

Chicago History Podcast Clothing, Mugs, Totes, & More (your purchase helps support the podcast):
https://www.teepublic.com/user/chicago-history-podcast
https://chicago-history-podcast.creator-spring.com/

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):
https://www.chicagohistorypod.com

Art by the amazing John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com)

Support the show

Send us a text

For Black Americans seeking to escape enslavement in the first half of the 1800s, Chicago was often an important stop on their path to freedom. Today we’re discussing the Underground Railroad in Illinois.

Network to Freedom Listings:

https://www.nps.gov/subjects/undergroundrailroad/ntf-listings.htm

Graceland Cemetery (Chicago) Underground Railroad Activists

https://www.gracelandcemetery.org/underground-railroad-activists/

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Further reading (purchasing these items through these links helps support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

Onward to Chicago: Freedom Seekers and the Underground Railroad in Northeastern Illinois by Larry McClellan

https://amzn.to/4gQxpaP

Underground Railroad: A Captivating Guide to the Routes, Places, and People that Helped Free African Americans During the Nineteenth Century and the Life of Harriet Tubman by Various

https://amzn.to/4icYkil

Fleeing for Freedom: Stories of the Underground Railroad as Told by Levi Coffin and William Still by Willene Hendrick

https://amzn.to/41kbQtl

Path to Freedom: The History of the Underground Railroad for Kids (History Just for Kids) by Sara Michaels

https://amzn.to/3EQbQKl

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com) 

Support the show

Send us a text

While not from here, their connection to this city is undeniable and Chicago’s influence most certainly contributed to their rise as one of the most successful musical acts of all time. Today we’re talking about the Jackson Five.

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Further reading (purchasing these items through these links helps support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

Michael Jackson: The Magic, The Madness, The Whole Story by J. Randy Taraborrelli

https://amzn.to/4hDOfen

Gary, the Most American of All American Cities by S. Paul O'Hara

https://amzn.to/4hZtKbS

M-D-L-T on Soul Train:

https://youtu.be/tDCjHOoL1Sg?si=cCzPKcwoKkCF4YsD

Renaldo Domino:
https://chicagoreader.com/music/chicago-soul-dynamo-renaldo-domino-breaks-out-his-sugary-sweet-pipes-on-never-thought/

https://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/January-2020/You-Should-Know-Renaldo-Domino/

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com) 

Support the show

Send us a text

This is a revised, expanded, and re-recorded version of an episode that was originally released in 2020.

William "Big Bill" Thompson was a larger-than-life character who served as Chicago mayor for three terms and is viewed as one of the most corrupt politicians this great city has ever seen.

Robert Loerzel's piece on Eugene Williams in the August 2019 Chicago Magazine:
https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/August-2019/Searching-for-Eugene-Williams/

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Further reading (purchasing these items through these links help support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

City of Scoundrels: The 12 Days of Disaster That Gave Birth To Modern Chicago by Gary Krist
Paperback - https://amzn.to/42sfVya
Kindle - https://amzn.to/40KwjZh

Big Bill of Chicago by Lloyd Wendt and Herman Kogan
Paperback - https://amzn.to/4ggZOqe

Big Bill Thompson, Chicago, and The Politics of Image by Douglas Bukowski
Paperback - https://amzn.to/4hvIMG1

Al Capone's Beer Wars: A Complete History of Organized Crime in Chicago During Prohibition by John J. Binder
Hardcover - https://amzn.to/4aSKXB7

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com) 

Support the show