Chicago History Podcast

Send us Fan Mail For many coming into the city from the west, the drive on the Eisenhower Expressway under that massive building at Van Buren is truly a sight to behold, but few seem to know much about its history. Today we’re talking about Chicago's Old Main Post Office. Originally released in September 2021. Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffee and help offset prod...

Send us Fan Mail The Chicago White Sox have called three primary sites home since the team’s founding in 1900, and each plot of earth carries layers of history older than the game of baseball.  Show your love of this podcast for the cost of 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/prici...

Send us Fan Mail Originally released January 15, 2022.  In 1988, two attractive young students attending a prominent suburban Chicago religious school disappeared, setting off a frenzied search that lasted months before the truth about what happened to them was revealed. Want to start a podcast of your own? Do it through Buzzsprout like I did and you can get a $20 gift card! https://www.buzzsprout...

Send us Fan Mail Some of histories biggest rock acts first performed in the Chicago area at music venue in a suburban strip mall in Schaumburg. This is the story of B'Ginnings. Show your love of this podcast for the cost of 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&amp...

Send us Fan Mail Genealogist Nicka Sewell-Smith joins me to discuss her connections to Chicago and "The Women Who Built Chicago" bus tour, launched for Women's History Month in partnership with Ancestry, which highlights overlooked women's contributions. Tickets for the bus tour : https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dilla-and-ancestry-present-the-women-who-built-chicago-bus-tour-ticke...

Send us Fan Mail Jun Fujita was a pioneering Japanese-born photographer who made his way to Chicago to become widely regarded as the first Japanese American photojournalist. Hear more about Fujita's life in Chicago from Graham Harrison Lee, Fujita's great-nephew and author of the book Jun Fujita: Behind the Camera . Preorder a copy of the second printing of the book from the publisher (a...

Send us Fan Mail An unbearable loss pushes one man past the breaking point, ending in murder. Listener discretion is advised. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! Buy more than one and get a personalized video thank you. https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Leave me a voice message - just click on the microphone in the lower right corner here: https://www.chicagohistorypod.com Up...

Send us Fan Mail Here's a FROM THE ARCHIVES episode originally released on Feb 18, 2023. Many towns in the Chicago area were established to be all-white, keeping out Blacks, Asians, Jews, Native Americans, and others, allowing minorities to work in those towns but not live there. Those individuals also needed to be gone by sundown. Find all things Ernest Crim III at ernestcrim.com . Signed co...

Send us Fan Mail Chicago’s cold weather can be brutal, and it has been for more than 150 years since it started being tracked. Here are ten of Chicago's coldest days. Show your love of this podcast for the cost of 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...

Send us Fan Mail In the late 1940s and well into the 1950s, Chicago was plagued by fires that had one key thing in common – they took place at often unsafe, threadbare hotels, injuring and even killing those who were already down on their luck. This is the story of Chicago’s Skid Row Flophouse Fires. Originally released in January 2022. Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffe...

Send us Fan Mail On a cold and snowy day in December 1972, United Airlines flight 553 crashed into a neighborhood near Midway Airport, resulting in 45 deaths. The tragedy was soon followed by conspiracies. Was the plane brought down to silence those who might jeopardize powerful people in the government? Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! Buy more than one and get a personalized video...

Send us Fan Mail Author Rob Miller (one of the founders of Chicago's Bloodshot Records) joins me to discuss his new book, “The Hours Are Long But The Pay Is Low: A Curious Life in Independent Music.” www.robmillerwriting.com Get Rob's book here: https://www.press.uillinois.edu/books/?id=p088964 Save 30% with the following code: F25UIP Get your  Brick of Chicago 2026 Calendar! Purchasing...

Send us Fan Mail Please enjoy this FROM THE ARCHIVES + EXTRAS episode from the summer of 2022. One man was robbed more than 190 times, knocked unconscious at least four times, and had an eardrum burst aboard Chicago’s L, each time with Chicago cops nearby watching, all in the name of public transportation safety. This is the story of Chicago’s Mass Transit Decoy Squad of the 1970’s. Show some love...

Send us Fan Mail The Spyglass Murder of Margaret Gallagher, the killing and dismemberment of Judith Mae Andersen, the execution-style murder of Chicago Alderman Ben Lewis, and the roadside disappearance of Tammy Jo Zywicki are all part of this episode on Chicago's unsolved murders. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Leave me a voice mes...

Send us Fan Mail Halloween is coming! Enjoy this episode about Chicago's ghoulish past, including tales of forgotten cemeteries, grave robbers, mob graveyards, and more. Expanded and re-recorded from the original, released Oct. 2020.. Pamela Bannos / Hidden Truths : https://hiddentruths.northwestern.edu/ Want to help support the podcast? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohi...

Send us Fan Mail Chicago has had its share of bizarre incidents resulting in death, including the Pain Fireworks Company Explosion of 1914. Show your support of the show for the cost of a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Leave me a voice message - just click on the microphone in the lower right corner here: https://www.chicagohistorypod.com Want better sleep? Try the most delici...

Send us Fan Mail Here's one originally released in August 2021 that you may not have heard. Enjoy. He was the son of one of the wealthiest men in Chicago, and on one fateful night he was shot under mysterious circumstances. Was Marshall Field Jr.'s death an accident or something much darker that was covered up by powerful forces? Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://ww...

Send us Fan Mail If you're planning on walking through Lincoln Park anytime soon, you may be curious about all the statues you'll find. With the help of contributor Connie Fairbanks, we discuss the story behind many of the creations you'll see, and tell you about the ones that were once there but are no longer. You can purchase Chicago's West Loop: Then and Now by Connie Fairba...

Send us Fan Mail In August of 1925, an opulent cinema opened on Broadway just north of Lawrence Avenue. Joining me today to discuss the history of that theater is Robert Loerzel, one of the authors of the recently released book The Uptown: Chicago's Endangered Movie Palace . https://www.robertloerzel.com/blog/ Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.c...

Send us Fan Mail The return of One on Every Corner, where we discuss a neighborhood drinking establishment, the neighborhood around it, and more. Joining me for this episode is writer Leigh Giangreco and Four Moon Tavern owners Matt Kozlowski and Robbie Lane. @leighgiangreco.bsky.social‬ Four Moon Tavern - @fourmoontavern on Insta Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee: https://ww...

Send us Fan Mail There is more to Chicago than the Bean, The Loop, and Navy Pier. Joining me in this episode to discuss his photography, what he loves most about Chicago, and the recently-released book "Chicago: The Loop & Beyond" is Nenad Spasojevic. Nenad Spasojevic - https://www.nenadspasojevic.com/ Insta: nenad.spasojevic Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee: h...

Send us Fan Mail In what was then primarily farmlands 39 miles outside of Chicago, a gun battle erupted between federal law enforcement agents and an outlaw on the run, resulting in chaos and death. This is the story of Baby Face Nelson and The Battle of Barrington. Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffee and help offset production costs: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicago...

Send us Fan Mail The 103th anniversary of one of the most violent labor battles in the U.S. is June 21-22, 2025. This is the story of the Herrin Coal Massacre of 1922. *Originally released as episode 508 in June 2022. Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffee and help offset production costs: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Looking for gift ideas for the history ne...

Send us Fan Mail It is a Chicago Landmark called an “exemplification of the cultural, economic, social, and historical heritage of the City of Chicago.” With the help of author Keir Graff, today we’re discussing Chicago’s Fine Arts Building. Chicago's Fine Arts Building: Music, Magic, and Murder by Keir Graff https://amzn.to/4kNSjud Order a SIGNED COPY from Exile in Bookville (based in the Fi...

Send us Fan Mail 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 thi...