Bridging Chicago's Bucktown Past and Present

“Once I thought to write a history of the immigrants in America. Then I discovered that the immigrants were American history.”  --Oscar Handlin's The Uprooted

Witnessing a neighborhood in transition

In the late 1970s, I moved and settle into a Chicago neighborhood that was transitioning from a once vibrant working-class neighborhood anchored by heavy industry to becoming a trendy hipster haven with its sidewalk cafes, artist colonies, restaurants, bars and boutique shops. By occupying an apartment on Honore just south of Bloomingdale and near the ‘Get MeHigh Lounge’ gave me an opportunity to bridge Bucktown’s rich history with its present.

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With its boundaries on Fullerton Ave. to the north, Western Avenue to the west, Bloomingdale or North Avenue to the south, and the Kennedy Expressway to the east, Bucktown caught the attention of young professionals in the early 80s with its convenient location and close proximity to the Loop. Thus began Bucktown's upward 1980s neighborhood renaissance.

Damen Stop Blue Line Station

Long considered as a Chicago L Stop classic and a favorite for movie film crews, The Damen Station Blue Line is the jumping off point entering Bucktown. It is also known as ground zero for Wicker Park's wild nightlife scene. Located in the bustling six corner intersection of Milwaukee, North, and Damen avenues, one can see an army of professionals catching the CTA train for the Loop during the day, as well as the night brigade of scrub-women who board the trains at night heading into the Loop to clean the office buildings. A once popular working class ethnic eatery, was the Busy Bee Restaurant just a few doors south of the station. Closed in 1998, it served the neighborhood for over 30 years. 

Chicago’s film industry experienced a revival of sorts and the Damen L Station was used in several movie scenes such as the action hero movies of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Red Heat, and Steven Seagal’s Above the Law. Most recently, it was used in Spike Lee’s Chiraq.

 The Northwest Tower, Noel and Flat Iron Buildings

Walking north on Damen from the L Station, one encounters Bucktown’s most prominent structure: the iconic Northwest Tower on 1600 N. Milwaukee. Rising 14 stories, it was built in 1928 and plans for its 93 room boutique hotel renovation are nearing completion. Just across the avenue from the Tower, is the landmark former Noel State Bank Building now occupied by Walgreens. The neo-classical style structure was built in 1920 and after a bank failure, Fairfield Savings and Loan took over in the late 1920’s and thrived several decades as a bastion for working class immigrants aspiring to the middle class American dream. The ‘F’ in Fairfield Savings was rendered into a capital key, with the catchy slogan: “Fairfield Savings: Your key to happier living.” I briefly once worked there as a bank security guard.


Walgreens Restores Chicago's Historic Noel State Bank Building into Flagship Store:

Across the intersection, is the Flat Iron Arts Building as Wikipedia describes it:

“The Flat Iron Building is located in the Wicker Park district of West Town, Chicago, Illinois. The building is located at the intersection of Milwaukee Avenue, North Avenue, and Damen Avenue. Since the 1980s, it has served as an artists colony, and features visual artists and musicians of all disciplines. The building was the historic centerpiece of the annual Around the Coyote arts festival held in the neighborhood each summer. It is located across the street from the Northwest Tower.”

The 606 Bloomingdale Line Map

Walking Through History: The 606 Bloomingdale Trail

 

  Churchill Field Park

 

Heading northward on Damen Avenue, one approaches an overhead former train bridge that was once commonly referred to as the Bloomingdale Line but now transformed into a high-line recreational trail.  Here begins a walking tour story of a manufacturing corridor and the various companies that lined its route and that once empowered Eastern European working class immigrants for a shot at the American Dream.

The tour begins by entering the Churchill Access Ramp and as one gazes atop the bridge northward on Damen, one sees Churchill Field Park that was originally named after the Churchill Cabinet Co. Built in 1904. The building still stands on 2111 W. Churchill but now converted to Churchill Loft Condos. It was only one of the more than 350 furniture makers scattered in the City many of them along the Bloomingdale Line. In its heyday, it was billed as one of the largest establishments of its kind fitted out with every modern appliance and furnishing the very best telephone cabinets which can be produced. In the 70s and 80s the company was manufacturing pinball machines.

Just a block west on the line, is the former Samuel Olson Manufacturing Company on 2511 W. Moffat Street which began manufacturing office desks and typewriter furniture in 1907. After an expansion, the factory boasted dedicated floors for machinery and offices, as well as the use of dry kilns that could handle a capacity of 60,000 feet of lumber.

Ringo pounding on Ludwigs

Bucktown has a Beatles connection in the fact that Ringo Starr had his own drum made from the world’s largest drum manufacturer: Ludwig Drums which one can still see the red colored brick building just south of the bridge on 1718 N. Damen.

Here's a Ludwig trailer documentary via Youtube:

 

 

Views of St. Mary of the Angels Church are prominent along the eastern part of the 606

The 606 offers views of neighborhood streets, alleys, churches, residential architecture, and some industrial relics. There is also the “L” – an elevated train line passes above the 606 near its midpoint as if to stamp a Chicago trademark onto this new park.

The 606: Chicago’s Answer to the High Line Provides a Window onto the Windy City

 Saint Mary's Parish Neighborhood 

A great Bucktown neighborhood to explore at street level is descending from the Wood Street Access Ramp   Here the tourist can appreciate the new coexisting with the old,  as bungalows, Victorians, greystones, limestones, and quaint worker’s cottages sit astride condo loft developments. There is also the ubiquitous corner bar, such as the fabulous Club Lucky  on the Northeast corner of Wabansia and Honore streets and described as being one of the coolest and most unique venues in Bucktown and all of Chicago.

By far the most prominent architecture in this neighborhood, is the Saint Mary’s Church Basilica. Situated on the corner of Hermitage and Cortland, it was completed in 1918 and has been acclaimed as one of the finest specimens of Roman Renaissance architecture in the United States. Scheduled for demolition in 1988 because of its age and changing demography, it was rescued by the Prelature of the Opus Dei and fully restored in 1999, the  100th anniversary of the Parish.

In his scholarly seminal book: The Uprooted Oscar Handlin documents some of the difficult challenges these newly arrived Eastern Europeans encountered while erecting these kinds of neighborhood churches during this time period:

"But the immigrants thought it more important still to bring their churches to the United States, to reconstitute in their new homes the old forms of worship. At heavy cost and despite imposing obstacles, they endeavored to do so. Often when a of phase of the struggle was over say, a new edifice dedicated, they would look back with relief and surprise at the height of the difficulties surmounted.

With great hardship and against impressive physical and financial difficulties, the immigrants achieved some degree of success. Out of the scrimped earnings of poor laborers rose monumental edifices capable of serving thousands of communicants."

In one of the opening scenes of Steven Seagal’s very first action movie: Above the Law, Saint Marys Church Basilica and the surrounding Bucktown neighborhood parish is beautifully filmed, and I had the opportunity to witness its production back in 1987 while still living in the neighborhood at the time.

Walsh Park

 

Just a block south of the hi-line trail is the former Felt & Tarrant Calculating Machines building on 1700 N. Paulina. In its heyday of the The "Roaring 20s" the company had a thousand employees producing comptometers with over $3 million in sales.

The Bloomingdale 606 hi-line trail ends at the 2 acre Walsh Park exiting at the Walsh Park Access Ramp near Ashland Avenue. The park is named after Firefighter John P. Walsh, Jr. who died there fighting a spectacular and deadly vacant building fire  on July 7, 1970. The park  is also bordering a former Industrial Corridor alongside Elston Avenue. A proposed ambitious plan for a Chicago River Trail in this area is  gaining much interest and will be the topic for my next Chicago neighborhoods tour.

Biking the 606 trail via Youtube:

Related Links:

 

A history of Wicker Park and Bucktown

 

Bloomingdale Trail Forgotten Chicago 

 

 Bizarre Bucktown

 

Bucktown Neighborhood News 

 

 ABC 7 Chicago Bucktown News