Chicago
In the City:
Chicago Landmarks. A map-based site from the Department of Planning and Development with descriptions and photos of historic sites throughout the city. Sites also are searchable by name and architect. [ccr]
Chicago Loop Project. An excellent collection of images and maps that focus on scenes and buildings in the Loop (Chicago's downtown core). Included are images from a 1893 Rand McNally birds-eye view, 1939-41 WPA maps, and photos from the 1970s and 1980s by Bob Thall. From the University of Illinois at Chicago. [ccr]
http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ahaa/imagebase/ca/loop/index.html
Journey Through Calumet. Explore a snapshot of the people behind the Calumet region's social assets (community strengths) through photos, video, maps and stories gathered by researchers from Chicago's Field Museum . [dr]
Industrial Heritage Archives of Chicago's Calumet Region. Brief histories plus searchable archives belonging to three organizations: the Pullman State Historic Site, the Calumet Heritage Partnership, and the Southeast Chicago Historical Society. [ml]
http://www.pullman-museum.org/ihaccr/
Old Chicago in Postcards. A great collection of historical images assembled by Pat Sabin, searchable in several ways including by neighborhood/street location.
http://patsabin.com/illinois/
The History Files. From the Chicago Historical Society; various historical themes are explained and illustrated. They include: Fort Dearborn, the Stockyards, the 1933 World's Fair, and several more. [ccr]
from pioneer days to the Century of Progress (Chicago's 1933 world's fair), with some interesting photos. From the Chicago Public Library. [ccr]
http://www.chipublib.org/digital/lake/CFDIntro.html
Drainage in Chicago. For almost two hundred years, Chicago has been coping with drainage, sewage, and disease. A history with maps, photos, and bibliography, from the Chicago Public Library. [ccr]
http://cpl.lib.uic.edu/digital/sewers/sewers.htm
Early history of Chicago. From the Chicago Public Library, an early history of Chicago, with photos. [ccr]
Chicago Timeline. Brief descriptions of numerous historical events, from 1673 when Marquette and Joliet visited the place to 2005 when the White Sox won the World Series. From the Chicago Public Library. [ccr]
http://www.chipublib.org/004chicago/chihist.html
Deaths, Distrubances, Disasters, and Disorders. A collection of short descriptions, with some photos and references, of major historical calamities in Chicago. Prepared by Ellen O'Brien and Lyle Benedict of the Chicago Public Library. [ccr]
The Chicago Fire. An impressive collection of historical accounts, images, and maps telling the story of the great 1871 conflagration. Provided by the Chicago Historical Society and Northwestern University. [ccr]
Graveyards of Chicago. Hundreds of photos of gravesites from many cemetaries, with short commentaries. Created by Matt Hucke. [ccr]
City in a Garden. This site contains brief descriptions of ten distinctive parks and plans that contribute to Chicago's cultural landscape, along with modest maps. By Perspectives Film and Video. [ccr]
http://www.archfilms.com/tour/map.html
Historic Places. Descriptions and photos of 24 sites in the loop and south of the loop that are listed on the Historic Register. Includes a clickable map of the loop. From the National Park Service. [ccr]
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel/chicago/chimap.htm
Pullman Virtual Museum. Text, images, and maps cover the history of this classic company town on the South Side of Chicago. Created by the Pullman Preservation Alliance in cooperation with the Newberry Library. [ccr]
http://www.pullman-museum.org/
Geographers' Perspectives on Chicago: Here is a series of short articles written by geographers in preparation for the 2006 AAG meetings. Topics include: Chicago: Mapping's Metropolis; Chicago and its Inland Sea; Immigrant Metropolis; A Decade of Urban Change, and Green Chicago.
http://www.aag.org/annualmeetings/Chicago2006/chicago.cfm
Elsewhere in the Metropolitan Area:
Wright buildings in Oak Park. Between 1889 and 1913, Frank Lloyd Wright designed 25 houses and other buildings in Oak Park. Here are photos and short descriptions of many of them, with a clickable map. Created by Oak Park Tourist. [ccr]
Gifford Park. A map-based historical photo tour of this Elgin neighborhood. Created by the Gifford Park Association. [ccr]
Illinois and Michigan Canal. In 1848 the completion of the Illinois and Michigan Canal connected two large systems of waterways, the Great Lakes and the Mississippi. Although slightly commercialized, this map based "driving tour" presents some nice photos and descriptions of places along the canal, stretching from LaSalle/Peru on the west, through Utica, Ottawa, Marseilles, Seneca, Morris, Channahon, Joliet, Lockport, and Lemont. [ccr]
Digital Atlases, Searchable Digital Archives, and Other Sites Useful for Exploring Places:
Digital Atlas of Chicago and Cook County. One of several census-based urban atlas projects by William Bowen of the California Geographical Society and the Department of Geography at California State University Northridge. Dozens of well-designed maps utilize 1990 census data. Topical categories include population and race, ancestry and nationality, income and poverty, and adult educational attainment. [ccr]
http://130.166.124.2/chipg1.html
Encyclopedia of Chicago. Short histories and descriptions of places, people, and organizations in the Chicago area, including some photos and maps, searchable via an alphabetical index. Included are pages on virtually every one of the hundreds of suburban communities, from Addison and Algonquin to Zion and Lake Zurich, and scores of neighborhoods within the city, from Albany Park to Washington Park. A separate section containing historical maps and maps created by the encyclopedia staff is excellent. Created by the Chicago Historical Society, the Newberry Library, and Northwestern University. [ccr]
