Chicago In Black And White

I recently ran across some black and white photographs that I took in Chicago back in 1973, when I was still attending the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). I was commuting to school from our family home in south suburban Country Club Hills (which had neither a country club nor hills), and liked to walk around Chicago on the weekends. The photograph on the left is, of course, of an "L" station in the Loop. When I moved to my first apartment in west suburban Forest Park, I frequently took the "L" downtown on my days off from the Walden Books in west suburban Lombard. And does this photo look like something out of the past to you? Not to me, even though it was taken 49 years ago. On the other hand, back in 1970, when I was 17, did I think photographs from around 1920 looked ancient? No comment.

The photograph on the right is of the clock at the Marshall Fields on State Street, which I suspect was taken in 1973 during the Christmas season, since there seem to be Christmas trees at the entrance to the store (nothing escapes my razor sharp vision). Marshall Fields was bought by Macy's long ago, and for many years after, picketers gathered at the store every Christmas to protest that takeover. And yes, in the background of the photo is Grant Park, which along with Lincoln and Jackson Parks makes Chicago one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Period. It has been about 12 years since I last visited Chicago, and back then it seemed to be thriving. Even my old stamping ground in the South Side Brainerd neighborhood looked to be doing well. Time to head back there soon for another visit.