Forgotten Chicago: Examining Vintage Postcards

The back of this postcard reads "Chicago's most famous hot dog." Postcard published by Sunburst Souvenirs, Evanston, IL.  The Chicago-style hot dog is a perfect example of how many different ethnic and historical influences can come together to create something uniquely Chicago.   The Chicago-style hot dog consists of an all-beef wiener on a steamed poppy-seed bun topped with what is known as the “Magnificent Seven”: mustard, relish, chopped onions, two tomato wedges, a pickle spear, two sport peppers, and a sprinkling of celery salt. The frankfurter aficionados behind the Hot Dog Chicago Style website ( www.hotdogchicagostyle.com ) state that adding these toppings in the order listed here is crucial to ensuring that you can taste all the ingredients in every bite. The Chicago dog was not invented by a single person but rather evolved during the 1920s through the 1950s, according to Bruce Kraig, author of Hot Dog: A Global History (as told to WBEZ in 2017)....

A 3-D image of the Marina City towers on State Street and the Chicago River at night. The back of the postcard indicates that the towers are 60 stories tall and boast 896 apartments. The buildings also have 20 floors of auto parking and a 600-boat parking area. At the time of the printing of this postcard in the 1960s, Marina City also had a movie theater, shops, restaurants, a swimming pool, a skating rink, and a 3-acre park. The total cost of construction was $36 million.  Postcard published by Aero Distributing Co., Inc., of Chicago. Photo by Bill Engdahl with Hedrich Blessing Photographers.  The postcard is a Curteichcolor 3-D natural color reproduction.

 The grounds of the Edgewater Beach Hotel. Postcard published by Curt Teich Co., Chicago.  Seeing the pink high-rise Edgewater Beach Apartments on Sheridan Road near Bryn Mawr Avenue makes one think of the famed Edgewater Beach Hotel structures that once stood nearby. In its heyday in the 1920s through the 1940s, the hotel was a popular spot with honeymooners and visiting celebrities alike. You could also eat one heck of a salad or sandwich there. Arnold Shircliffe, who worked as the catering manager at the hotel, wrote A Book of Salads in 1926 and The Edgewater Sandwich Book in 1930. A sampling of recipes from these cookbooks shows that Shircliffe knew how to elevate these everyday convenience foods into works of art. He also had very different ideas about salads and sandwiches than what we typically eat today. The Colonnade Room at the Edgewater Beach Hotel. Postcard published by Max Rigot Selling Agency of Chicago.  A Book of Salads was referred...

This unique postcard shows an image of the Sears Tower before it was built. The image of the Sears Tower appears to be computer and/or artistically generated, and the building does not have its iconic flashing twin antennas. The Sears tower was built in 1973 and was the world’s tallest building for over a decade. The official name of the tower today is Willis Tower. This happens to be one of my favorite postcards.   The back of this postcard indicates that it was released by Aero Distributing Co., Evanston, and was published by Curteichcolor 3 -D Natural Color Reproduction. The postcard also reads that the tower will be 110 stories tall and house 8,000 tenants with 7,000 Sears employees. 

The Stock Yard Inn, located near the Union Stock Yards. Postcard published by Max Rigot Selling Co., Chicago.  In the Sirloin Room at the Stock Yard Inn, customers could pick their own steaks and brand their initials onto the meat with a hot iron. The restaurant offered this option so that diners could verify that the cooked steak on their plate was the piece of meat they had selected. The sprawling, Tudor-style hotel and restaurant was located at 42nd Street and Halsted Street, next to the International Amphitheatre and the Union Stock Yards. Cattlemen would stay at the hotel to conduct business, often after dropping off livestock at the yards. The Sirloin Room at the Stock Yard Inn. Postcard from the Chicago in History Postcards website.  The Stock Yard Inn was also popular among tourists. Several U.S. presidents stayed at the inn and held events at the adjacent amphitheater. A 1955 advertisement that appeared in the Chicago Tribune indicates that th...

On this postcard, the bridge is called Suicide Bridge instead of its official name High Bridge. Postcard publication is unknown.  A tall pedestrian bridge that was built over the Lincoln Park Lagoon in 1894 was later dubbed “Suicide Bridge” after the structure became a popular place for people to take their own lives . It is believed that about 100 people jumped off of the bridge during its 25 years. Located south of Fullerton and east of Lincoln Park Zoo near Webster Avenue (originally called Asylum Place), High Bridge allowed pedestrians to cross from Lincoln Park to the lakefront. At 75 feet--or four stories--tall, the bridge was built high enough to allow sailboats to pass underneath. It was so high that people standing on the bridge on a clear day could see as far as the stockyards, Jackson Park, and the steel mills.   High Bridge was featured in a chase scene in the 1916 film Cousin Jim . The stuntman hired to jump off the bridge refused to do it because h...

Passenger boats at the Goodrich Docks at Michigan Ave. and the Chicago River offered daily trips to cities in Wisconsin and Michigan. In 1913, Goodrich Steamship Lines charged one dollar to travel from Chicago to Milwaukee. It was a dollar and fifty cents to travel from Chicago to Grand Haven, MI, and Muskegon, MI, and two dollars to travel from Chicago to Grand Rapids, MI. The Goodrich Transportation line was in operation on the Great Lakes since the 1850s, and it lasted for more than 80 years.   The back of the postcard reads that there are a fleet of four ships that travel to various communities in Wisconsin and Michigan. The postcard was sent to a clock company at 10 S. Wabash in Chicago on January 31, 1913.