Happy New Year, Chicago. If you were up past midnight, you might be a bit sleepy, so we decided to give you some stories on Chicago history to help you ease into 2025.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
A postcard of the Edgewater Beach Hotel and Apartments, designed by Benjamin Marshall.
|
Everyone in Chicago knows the work of architect Benjamin Marshall, even if his name doesn’t carry the weight of Louis Sullivan or Frank Lloyd Wright. It’s hard to imagine the city without Marshall’s enduring contributions — the South Shore Cultural Center, the Blackstone Hotel, the Drake Hotel and many historic buildings on East Lake Shore Drive. He also designed the Edgewater Beach Hotel and Apartments, the Cuneo Mansion in Vernon Hills and the Mayslake Peabody Estate in Oak Brook.
Marshall’s career thrived even though one of his early commissions ended in tragedy — the Marshall-designed Iroquois Theater was destroyed by fire one month after it opened in 1903, killing more than 600 people. He built his reputation by making places of luxury and ambience from a vocabulary of classic styles, including Tudor, Italianate and French Revival. Last year marks 150 years since Marshall’s birth — and 80 years since his death.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Abe Saperstein and members of the Harlem Globetrotters.
|
The Harlem Globetrotters may have a New York name, but they’re a Chicago team. The players and founder Abe Saperstein disrupted the game of basketball and gave it a whole new look when they were founded in the 1920s. A new book, “Globetrotter: How Abe Saperstein Shook Up the World of Sports,” reveals the history and legacy of the storied team.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Democratic National Convention, 1896. (Courtesy of Chicago History Museum)
|
Since the 19th century, Chicago has hosted 14 Republican National Conventions, the most recent in 1960. In 2024, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted her nomination at the 12th Democratic National Convention in Chicago. While researching a story on historic political conventions in Chicago — from Abraham Lincoln’s nomination at the Wigwam to the “smoke-filled room” that chose Warren G. Harding — we quickly realized the Chicago History Museum had already done an exemplary job on the topic. We reached out, and the museum graciously granted WTTW News permission to sift through their research collection.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
The Apollo’s 2000 Theater in Little Village is being designated a Chicago landmark. (WTTW News)
|
For nearly 35 years, Javier Galindo and Lidia Galindo Corral have welcomed artists from all over the world to the Apollo’s 2000 Theater in Little Village. They’ve hosted politicians from all levels of government — including then-Vice President Al Gore — and gathered community members for wrestling, fashion shows and quinceañeras. The building, known as the Marshall Square Theatre when it opened in 1917, is now being designated a Chicago landmark.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
(Courtesy of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi of Michigan and Indiana)
|
Chicago is home to one of the largest urban Native American populations in the United States. More than 65,000 Native Americans live in the greater metropolitan area, representing about 175 different tribes. And while November marked Native American Heritage Month, many locals say they don’t confine celebrating their traditions, culture and achievements to just one month. “Every month is an honor Native American month, because it’s what we live. It’s our lives,” said Matthew Wesaw, Tribal Council chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi of Michigan and Indiana.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
What’s one Chicago thing you’d like to accomplish or explore in 2025?
|
|
|
Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published.
|
|
|
|
|
|
10:00 PM
|
|
|
|
Want more WTTW News content? Follow WTTW on Instagram to check in with us daily, go behind-the-scenes, and more.
|
Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry
|
|
|
|
|
