I'm presenting a talk about Japanese and Japanese-American presence in and around Hyde Park, so I wanted to gather the relevant links in one spot. Sources for more reading My History of the Japanese presence on the South Side, the Detention Center and the South Side Japan Town, and the Urban Renewal On my substack … Continue reading Japanese Community on the Southside of Chicago
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J. Y. Scammon
In researching the article about the Confederate monument in Oak Woods Cemetery, I stumbled into the fact that Chicago harbored Confederate sympathizers. It made me question my assumption that Hyde Park had been Lincoln country. I was glad to find that, while I can’t prove the general attitude in what was then a small town, … Continue reading J. Y. Scammon
Binga Dismond, someone worth remembering
When I was researching Amos Alonzo Stagg and Stagg Field, I realized that, while Stagg is famous for football, but he was a huge presence for track and field too, especially promoting the Olympics movement. He also respected talent. Henry Binga Dismond (1891-1956) was one of his track stars in 1915-1917, a Black man competing … Continue reading Binga Dismond, someone worth remembering
Clara Louise Burnham, A Woman of the Century
(A repeat post) As we head to the November 5, 2024, election and the signs are that women's votes will make a difference, I thought I'd repost this. Illinois was the first state to ratify the 19th Amendment, though in their rush, there was a technical problem that had to be redone. It took over … Continue reading Clara Louise Burnham, A Woman of the Century
Deco Arts Building
Last year, I took a class at the Newberry Library. Turned out to be a bit different than I thought, but it was a writing class that asked us to talk about a corner in Chicago and what it meant to us. So, here’s one of the things I wrote. One day in 1975, I … Continue reading Deco Arts Building
When History Gets It Wrong
Confederate Monument in Chicago Misinformation metastasizes through the information ecosystem in ways large and small. My pet peeve is the number of people who attended the 1893 Columbian Exposition—27million individuals did not attend the fair. That number is everywhere, but it’s a misunderstanding of another stat. There were 27 million daily entrance tickets sold but … Continue reading When History Gets It Wrong
Bur Oaks of Wooded Island
Before the Columbian Exposition, Frederick Law Olmsted said the area in Jackson Park was not promising, with its boggy swales and sand ridges covered with "vegetable mold.” J. Francis Murphy made a watercolor sketch of what it looked like just before work began in January 1891. Olmsted and fair manager Daniel Burnham worked out the … Continue reading Bur Oaks of Wooded Island
An Itinerary for CAC Open House in Hyde Park
Written for a friend who told me what was already in her plans, so I supplied her with links to background information on her way. 1. South Side Entertainment District along Cottage Grove.and 63rd Street It grew because of the Cable Cars, so you can see a couple photos and see why it was there … Continue reading An Itinerary for CAC Open House in Hyde Park
Nonviolent resistance gets a test in Hyde Park
In February 2024, I wrote up how James Farmer tested his detailed plan on how to implement Gandhi’s tactics of nonviolent resistance in Chicago in 1943, long before the Montgomery Bus Boycott or later and more famous lunch counter sit ins. It’s been mentioned before, but I found the detailed strategy in the Chicago Defender. … Continue reading Nonviolent resistance gets a test in Hyde Park
The Elms: A Once Famous Hotel Lost to Urban Renewal
I bumped into this headline while searching for something else, and I decided I had to take a look at the Elms Hotel. It hadn’t hit my consciousness when I was researching Grand Hotels for my talk for the Historical Society https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkPBikpIv2I “Hotel Register Worth Weight in Gold, Carelessly Burnt” Hyde Park Herald It flourished … Continue reading The Elms: A Once Famous Hotel Lost to Urban Renewal
Patricia L. Morse 