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

Send us Fan Mail When it was built, it was called the “largest, safest, and modern hotel west of New York City,” but when a fire broke out there one early June morning, dozens of lives were senselessly lost. Today we’re talking about the LaSalle Hotel Fire of 1946. Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffee and help offset production costs: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagoh...

Send us Fan Mail Thomas Edison called him “one of the greatest businessmen in the USA.” He was a self-made mogul who amassed enormous wealth while bringing electricity and more to the masses and helped get the Civic Opera House in Chicago built before his empire came crashing down. This is the story of Samuel Insull: The World's Greatest Failure. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee...

Send us Fan Mail Today we are circling back for another look at the renaming of Chicago! Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could Talk , a podcast about the downfall of Edgewater Hospital in Chicago: https://ifthewallscouldtalkpodcast.com/ Chicago To Appomattox: The 39th Illinois Infantry in the Civil War by Jason Bake...

Send us Fan Mail 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? #Chicago #ChicagoHistory #MarshallField #DepartmentStoreHeirs #TrueCrime #MysteriousDeaths Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https:...

Send us Fan Mail Cicadas, the L, sirens, and a few pints - all part of the fun of recording guest John F. Lyons, author of the book Joy and Fear: The Beatles, Chicago and The 1960s   out in the real world. Listen as I talk with John about The Beatles in Chicago: The Later Years. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could...

Send us Fan Mail A German kid from Chicago's north side gets caught up in sabotage, submarines, explosives, treason, and more, but it wasn't a movie - it actually happened in 1942. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could Talk , a podcast about the downfall of Edgewater Hospital in Chicago: https://ifthewalls...

Send us Fan Mail While many may think of the Ku Klux Klan as being primarily a Southern concern, in the first part of the 20th century larger cities to the north also had factions of the KKK, including Chicago, which grew to be one of the largest in the country. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could Talk , a podcast...

Send us Fan Mail No sport is more closely identified with Chicago than 16-inch softball. Enjoy the history of 16" softball along with some insights about the game from a few guys who know it best - the 16" Softball Hall of Fame co-founder Al Maag, Hall of Fame President Ron Kubicki, and Hall of Fame Vice President Ray Topps. #Chicago #History #ChicagoHistory #ChicagoSports #16InchSoftbal...

Send us Fan Mail They seemed like a suburban couple living a normal life but in reality they were responsible for a string of car thefts and bank robberies in the Chicago area in the early 1990s that left two people dead. This is the story of The Bearded Bandit - Jeff Erickson - and his wife Jill Erickson. #Chicago #History #ChicagoHistory #TrueCrime Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee!...

Send us Fan Mail It has been called the Second Chicago Fire, The Little Chicago Fire, and simply... the Chicago Fire of 1874. How did this fire compare to the one three years earlier? Let's find out. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could Talk , a podcast about the downfall of Edgewater Hospital in Chicago: http...

Send us Fan Mail During a time of tuberculosis and cholera taking a deadly toll on Chicago's children, "Fresh Air" sanitariums were built to help provide children and mothers relief from the heat, with access to food, milk, and health services. One of those buildings was built on a man-made island, and both the building and island are still in use today. Want to help support the sho...

Send us Fan Mail Damen Avenue was once called Robey Street. Garfield Park used to be Central Park. Streets, ballparks, buildings, and more have been renamed throughout Chicago's history. Here are the stories behind some of those old and new names. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could Talk , a podcast about the...

Send us Fan Mail The podcast series If The Walls Could Talk, created by Todd M. Ganz and Stephani Young, does a deep dive into Chicago's Edgewater Hospital and details a history involving Medicare fraud, unnecessary surgeries, mentally ill people being bussed in from other parts of the city, embezzlement, suicides, and worse. I had the opportunity to speak with Stephani and Todd about their e...

Send us Fan Mail He was "the common's man's mayor" who served five terms and was loved by many. Sadly, the bullet of a disturbed man changed history forever for Carter H. Harrison and the city of Chicago. Want to help support the show? Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory Check out If The Walls Could Talk , a podcast about the downfall of Edgewater Hospi...

Send us Fan Mail In 1966, Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley announced that the first week of June would be known as “Puerto Rican Week.” One day after the celebrations ended,  an incident near Division Street and Damen Avenue set off three days of upheaval between local Puerto Rican residents and Chicago police. This is the story of the Division Street Riots of 1966. National Museum of Puerto Rican A...

Send us Fan Mail It was an industry that at one time employed 700,000 workers, including 200,000 here in the Chicago area. Italians, Poles, Mexicans, African Americans, and others willing to put in a long and sometimes dangerous day’s work found good pay and a career working at the steel mills. Then gradually, it went away… but not before one fateful Memorial Day protest turned deadly. YouTube Sho...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I'm joined by Kelli Marshall, host of Chicago Movie Tours ( chicagomovietours.com ) and screenwriter Gregory Widen ( Backdraft, Highlander, The Prophecy ) to discuss the 30th anniversary of Backdraft (1991). Shot here in Chicago in 1990 and released on May 24, 1991, Backdraft set the tone for firefighting movies and TV shows and was a huge boost for Chicago fi...

Send us Fan Mail An extended EXTRAS episode with a few more stories I was not able to include in the Chicago's Original Chinatown 1870-1912 episode. Please listen to the main episode first. WARNING: This episode contains stories of violence, including some we would refer to now as hate crimes. Parental guidance is suggested as well as for sensitive listeners to skip this one. #ChicagoHistory...

Send us Fan Mail Chicago's Chinatown at Cermak and Wentworth is a vibrant community and a big part of Chicago's history. But what about the original Chinatown based in the south loop? And how did the earliest Chinese immigrants make their way to Chicago? #ChicagoHistory #ChineseAmericans #AsianAmericans #ChicagoChinese #TranscontinentalRailroad #AAPI #AAPIHeritageMonth For More Info Abou...

Send us Fan Mail Here are some extras from episode 205 of the podcast. As always, be sure to listen to the full-length episode before enjoying this. PARENTAL GUIDANCE IS SUGGESTED. This episode deals with fire and the death of children and teachers. #ChicagoHistory #ChicagoFires #OurLadyOfTheAngels Reference Materials Used For This Episode Include: To Sleep With The Angels by David Cowan and David...

Send us Fan Mail More from the vault - here are some extras that didn't make the cut of episode 109 about The Blues Brothers for the  40th anniversary of the film last year. If you haven't listened to episode 109, check that one out first and then come back here for this one. Enjoy. #ChicagoHistory #ChicagoMusic #TheBluesBrothers #JohnBelushi #DanAykroyd #ArethaFranklin #DonPorcher #Andy...

Send us Fan Mail BONUS MATERIAL! Here are a few more things from Episode 212 - School By Radio: The 1937 Polio Outbreak in Chicago that were not included in the original episode. Enjoy! Support the show

Send us Fan Mail BONUS EPISODE! Here are some extras for episode 108, including a connection to Ernest Hemingway. As always with bonus material, have a listen to the original episode first otherwise these extras may not make much sense. Was she a good girl gone bad, as some news reports would have you believe, or was Wanda Stopa a naïve, lovestruck woman taken advantage of by an older man and driv...

Send us Fan Mail BONUS EPISODE - Here are some stories from episode 225 that didn't make the final cut. Please listen to episode 225 first if you haven't already then circle back to this one. Enjoy! #NorgeSkiClub #CountrysideOpry #RosemontHorizon Support the show