Maybe my post wasn't real clear, the original owner of the property was the McCormick factory and at some point it was sold to Mr. Wozniak. I was trying to point out that like the "Company Houses" mentioned by Roadway they also owned the Blue Island building. My bad, I should have been more concise.
Forum: General Discussion

In another thread Roadway mentioned the McCormick Reaper Works and that made me think of Wozniak's. We used to go back to the "old neighborhood" sometimes for a wedding, or some such event held at Wozniak's Casino. That was on Blue Island just east of Western and I remember dad mentioning that the building was originally the executive "get-a-way" for the McCormick Works. I woul
Forum: General Discussion

Thanks for the clarification Frank. I know there was an airstrip at 83rd.St. but didn't know the name and thought it might have been Cicero Field. By the way, Mr. Dickinson died in 1935. I have no idea when the seed concern went out of business; at the time of the fire the building served as a multi tenant warehouse.
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

That was the Dickinson Seed Company. In addition to being an employer that was very good to his people Mr. Dickinson was an early aviator and supporter of local airports, in particular Cicero Field (at 83rd & Cicero?) and he was instrumental in founding the Aero Club in 1910. Dickinson had financed the building of a monoplane which he had named the "American Defender" and after a le
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

Don't know how long Patek stayed in the neighborhood, we moved to Garfield Ridge in 1954. http://forgottenchicago.com/forum/1/5592/soup_to_nuts
Forum: General Discussion

The name Henry C. Lytton below the name "The Hub" was the tip-off for me. He was an early Chicago clothier, and I think they lasted into the 1960's-'70's (?), maybe later. Check the link- http://fishinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/06/52-trade-houses-part-11-henry-c-lyttons.html
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

murphman Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > IS Berlin took up the entire area from the Kennedy > to Kimball along Belmont north to where the > Kennedy exists now. Remember it well, HUGE plant > with blue neon IS BERLIN PRESS emblazoned across > Belmont. Check out historicaerials.com for > overhead view. Also as a footnote Marshall Berlin >
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

My dad was born in 1912 and I remember him talking about one of the crazy things they used to do BITD. There was a deaf mute in his circle of friends and that fellow was fearless, anything the guys wanted to do he was "in" for sure. In particular was the merriment for the Fourth of July when they would gather a few regular items and have a real blast. They would take a wheelbarrow filled
Forum: General Discussion

Time for a road trip Tommy, Little Joe's is in Tinley Park and New Lenox now. Same family as far as I know.
Forum: General Discussion

Mid to late '60's and into the early '70's the guys I ran with were regulars at Jim Ladd's Snappy Service System No.9. Jim only had one 24 hr. snack shop but No.9 looked better up on the sign. It was on the SW side, Archer Ave. at Nottingham and had the typical greasy spoon menu. If I heard "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'" by Nancy Sinatra once I heard it a thousand times in there; the
Forum: General Discussion

We skated at the local parks and sometimes on the Des Plaines river. One year in particular (1962?) was special. Conditions were perfect, very smooth ice, with no snow cover on the river and we skated from about 4800 S., just off Harlem Ave. all the way into Riverside.
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

We bought our first home here in town when we married in '78 and yes, it was municipal well water at that time. The east side of town had softeners at the well, but living on the west side we had our own softener as the water was hard. I know Chicago water is safe but if you drink water from another source for a long time and them sample city water you might detect the same slightly musty odor/t
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

I'm in Orland Township and we get all our water at home from a private well. Our's is 160' deep, just a very slight trace of iron, no sulfur odor, but we do soften it. Some in our area have more of a sulfur problem; I've been told I have "Lake Superior" water fed by under ground river, but don't know if that's fact or fiction. There are suburban communities that require private wells be
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

Not in Chicago proper, but near by at 86th & Roberts Rd the Roberts Park Fire Protection District was out on a call a number of years ago and they suffered a kitchen fire. Didn't burn down the station, but it did do substantial damage to the kitchen. RPFPD serves Hickory Hills, Justice and a portion of unincorporated Cook County.
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

In my neighborhood (Garfield Ridge) An-Jeans Pizzeria was the best by far. Nice quiet neighborhood bar with lots of booths too. When the original owner sold out she stayed in an apartment at the rear of the building and still made the homemade sauce for the new owners. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Another favorite was the pizza at Alferno's which was on north Clark, maybe 2000-300
Forum: General Discussion

Dave, that is a Kaiser Darrin. Henry Kaiser made one of his fortunes during WWII building ships for troop and supply transport, and he built them faster than anyone thought possible. Then there was Kaiser Steel, Kaiser Aluminum, etc. He also saw the pent-up demand for new automobiles so in 1948 he introduced a line of cars called Kaiser-Frazier, big sedans first, then later on ('52??) he came out
Forum: Forgotten Chicago Sightings

nordsider, you are referring to Yugoslav Hall which is at the NW corner of Narragansett & 56th. There is a banquet/meeting room and a small outdoor area too.
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

Polonia Grove had a picnic area that I would estimate covered about 60% of a city block. The grove was along Drake Ave.on the north side of Archer and the hall is on the corner of the next street east, but the name of that one escapes me. I was only in there for Polish weddings, never attended a bash in the picnic grove, but I do remember tall Cottonwood trees and circular benches built around the
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

One of my favorite old haunts is long gone now. I think it was 1962 when the state started to fill in the old Illinois & Michigan canal east of Harlem Ave. We used to visit there from Harlem to past Austin Ave, but the canal was already gone east of about 5900 W. We would venture as far as Central Ave. where we would check out the old boats and autos at an old boat yard. Because of the nuns
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

As far as I know Cuneo printed magazines, books, and in general whatever volume job came along. I suppose the big print house in Chicago years ago was RR Donnelly & Sons, they did the phone books, Look, Life, National Geographic, Sears catalog, hard cover books that they bound in their own bindery, Campbell Soup labels and more. Cuneo was the same type of operation, only on a smaller scale.
Forum: Questions and Answers (Q&A)

Well, as they say, "There's nothing new under the sun", I did a search and Berywn Frank had previously offered much info on Denemark. Sorry for the oversight; still an interesting read at the link.
Forum: General Discussion

http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCars.cfm?SaleCode=SJ12&CarID=r114 I'm posting this link not for news of the vehicle or the auction, but rather because of the Emil Denemark connection. Denemark Cadillac was last located at 47th & Pulaski and certainly had a past I wasn't aware of.
Forum: General Discussion

Not quite what you are looking for, but you might try www.historicaerials.com. Type in 18th and Union Chicago,IL. You can zoom in and see periodic updates of the area from 1938 on. It may show Grandpa's house, but no specific addresses, maybe a family member will have knowledge of the exact location. Ground zero of the image will be 18th and Union streets.
Forum: General Discussion

Happy 175th Birthday to Chicago. I'd like to thank our moderators for starting this website that gives voice to the rich history of our city.
Forum: General Discussion

Kchi, having been on Chicago's mass transit many times in my youth I can say without question livestock did indeed ride along. Or so it seemed.
Forum: General Discussion

I googled it and found out that 6000 people turned out for the last day of toboganning in 2004. Many walk those stairs for exercise and more than a few do run them. From Rt 83 it looks like your basic prairie but on top of the ridge is the real beauty of the area with hiking and riding trails and naturally cross-country skiing in Winter.
Forum: General Discussion

Richard S. mentioned skiing and actually long before they built the slides there was a ski jump at Swallow Cliff FP. I think it was erected in the '20's and from a newspaper account years ago it was described as having been trecherous, not for the faint of heart. First time I went out to the SC slides was 1965 and there was no ski jump then; I don't know when it was removed.
Forum: General Discussion

Swallow Cliff in the CCFPD had slides, but for a number of years they were shut down and then a few years ago they were removed. Swallow Cliff forest preserve is at Rt 83 and Rt 45, west of the Palos area. We have our own toboggan but I think rentals were at minimal cost at Swallow Cliff as long as one had a proper ID. The slides were fun, but that climb up the 117 steps which were built by the C
Forum: General Discussion

Near 26th & California the call was "Rags and old iron" from the horse drawn wagon; into the mid '50's that I know of.
Forum: General Discussion

Last time I saw the sharpener man was in the early '90's in the Garfield Ridge area. Most of them also repaired umbrellas. I worked with an engineer who was from Cuba, he fled Castro in 1961. One time we were reminiscing about our neighborhoods and I mentioned the sharpener man to him and he laughed. They had them in Cuba too!
Forum: General Discussion