Images of America Sale

July 24, 1915 was supposed to be Chicago's social event of a lifetime, but turned into a tragedy unlike any other.

More than 7,000 people living in the Chicago area and Michigan City, Indiana, eagerly anticipated Saturday morning, July 24, 1915. This particular Saturday was going to be anything but a routine summer day. Plans had been carefully made for it to be the social and entertainment event of the year, and for some, a lifetime. The fifth annual midsummer excursion and picnic had been organized by the employees of the Western Electric Company's Hawthorne Works. Thousands of carefree merrymakers would enjoy a festive day including a lovely cruise across Lake Michigan to an awaiting parade and day-long picnic. The day would conclude with an evening cruise back to Chicago. For thousands of hard-working immigrant laborers and their families and friends, it was going to be a day to remember.

Instead, the day's scheduled event turned into a tragedy never before seen. The SS Eastland, while still tied to the wharf, rolled into the Chicago River with more than 2,500 passengers on board. Nearly 850 people lost their lives, including 22 entire families. The ensuing struggle for survival, and the resulting death, heroism, cowardice, greed, and scandal gripped the city of Chicago.

or more than 150 years, Marshall Field's reigned as Chicago's leading department store, celebrated for its exceptional service, spectacular window displays, and fashionable merchandise.

Few shoppers recalled its origins as a small dry goods business opened in 1852 by a New York Quaker named Potter Palmer. That store, eventually renamed Marshall Field and Company, weathered economic downturns, spectacular fires, and fierce competition to become a world-class retailer and merchandise powerhouse. Marshall Field sent buyers to Europe for the latest fashions, insisted on courteous service, and immortalized the phrase "give the lady what she wants." The store prided itself on its dazzling Tiffany mosaic dome, Walnut Room restaurant, bronze clocks, and a string of firsts including the first bridal registry and first book signing.

Through an extensive collection of never-before published images, author Dolores Haugh chronicles the tale of this impressive chapter of Chicago history.

Every summer from 1904 to 1967, for 63 years, Riverview - the world's largest amusement park - opened its gates to millions of people from all walks of life. For three generations, the Schmidt's family park offered rides, shows, food, and music to men, women, and especially children. Riverview survived depressions, two World Wars, labor disputes, Prohibition, and a World's Fair that threatened to take a great deal of its business. Riverview Amusement Park tells the story of Riverview's growth from 22 acres and three rides to 140 acres and more than 100 attractions. Through an extensive collection of never-before published images, author Dolores Haugh chronicles the tale of this impressive chapter of Chicago history. Known as the "Roller Coaster Capital of America," Riverview remained a Chicago landmark until it was unexpectedly closed in 1967.

Relieve the excitement of State Street's Christmas parade through these historic photographs, many of which have never been published ... until now!

State Street, that Great Street. The name itself stands the test of time, remembered by anyone who lived in or visited Chicago. It is the main artery of the heart of the city. It is where memories were made and kept. This book vividly recreates, for the first time, a Christmas holiday trip down State Street. You will visit many of the major shops and stores that existed during the 1940s and beyond, viewing old display windows and getting reacquainted with famous Christmas characters such as Weiboldts's Cinnamon Bear, Montgomery Wards's Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and the crown jewel of State Street, Marshall Fields's Uncle Mistletoe. Get into the Christmas spirit, taste the charm of holiday dining in State Street's fine restaurants, and the go back to that magical wonder of a child's first holiday trip to State Street, complete with a visit to Santa.

The Chicago World's Fair lifted a city, state, and nation and helped visualize a lift post-Great Depression. Revisit the Fair in this visual history!

It took six years and cost $100 million, but on May 27, 1933, the gates swung open on the biggest birthday party the city of Chicago had ever seen. The Century of Progress Exposition, better known as the 1933-34 Chicago World's Fair, commemorated the amazing progress that had been made since the founding of the city just 100 years earlier.

Many of America's largest companies joined with countries from around the world to showcase their histories and advertise their newest products. The road to opening day was not an easy one, with the Great Depression making it look like the fair might never be built, but thousands of small investors stepped forward to help close the financial gap. The fair went on to an unprecedented second season, and when the gates finally closed after the last of the 39 million visitors went home, it had achieved something quite rare among world's fairs: earning a profit.

This collection of rare photographs, previously unpublished, highlights the major attractions of the fair and the astonishing changes made between seasons. This book is a must-have for fans of Chicago, Illinois, and Great Depression-era history.

Route 66 goes through the heart of Illinois: between the great cities of Chicago and St. Louis, there are 300 miles of adventure, history, culinary delights, and quirky attractions.

This is the "Land of Lincoln" and roadside giants. There are cozy motels, cozy diners, and Cozy Dogs. Interstate 55 will speed travelers to their destination, but Route 66 offers something more. It goes through the hearts of the towns, wandering onto old brick pavement far from the roar of the interstate. Historic restaurants like Lou Mitchell's in Chicago, the Palms Grill in Atlanta, and the Ariston Cafe in Litchfield still keep their coffee pots warm. Waitresses, pump jockeys, gangsters, cops, and politicians all gave the "Main Street of America" its distinctive personality, and their stories are within these pages. So slow down, take the next exit, and head toward the beckoning neon in the distance. Come explore Route 66 in Illinois - where the road began.

Chicago's Motor Row earned a spot in the National Register of Historic Places by pioneering a new way to market an invention that was remaking America--the automobile.

John F. Hogan is a veteran broadcast journalist and corporate executive. He was a reporter and editor for WGN Radio and Television in Chicago and director of communications for one of the nation's largest electric utilities. John S. Maxson, a lifelong antique car enthusiast, retired as president of the advocacy organization for businesses on Chicago's North Michigan Avenue. Jay Leno, who contributed the foreword, was host of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Jay Leno Show from 1992 until 2014. One of the country's most respected authorities on automobiles old and new, he currently hosts Jay Leno's Garage.

Baby Ruth, Milk Duds, Juicy Fruit, Cracker Jack, Milky Way, Tootsie Roll, Lemonheads - whatever your favorite candy may be, chances are it came from Chicago.

For much of its history, the city churned out an astonishing one third of all candy produced in the United States. Some of the biggest names in the industry were based in Chicago: Curtiss, Brach, Tootsie Roll, Leaf, Wrigley, and Mars. Along with these giants were smaller, family-based companies with devoted followings, such as fundraising specialist World's Finest Chocolate and the Ferrara Pan Candy Company, maker of Red Hots and Jaw Breakers. At its peak, the Chicago candy industry boasted more than 100 companies employing some 25,000 Chicagoans. This fascinating photographic history travels through more than 150 years of the candy tradeand explores its role in the growth and development of the city. Packed with vintage images of stores, factories, and advertisements, this mouth-watering book reveals how Chicago candy makers created strong bonds between people and their favorite treats.

Discover the world-famous Chicago "L" - in all its grit and glory.

The thundering "L" is one of Chicago's most enduring icons. Operating 247 since 1892, it is not only an antique but a working antique. More than 10 billion people have ridden the "L," which now carries half a million people a day over 222 miles of track. The heavy, rumbling "L" has a light side too. It is sought out by tourists, featured in major motion pictures, enjoyed by wide-eyed kids, photographed by admirers, and studied by historians. Meanwhile, both the Smithsonian Institution and the Chicago History Museum have recently enshrined Chicago "L" cars as the showpiece of major permanent exhibits. The Chicago "L" shows how the early "L" lines helped to build Chicago as well as how today's "L" helps to revitalize neighborhoods and tie the city together. Over the past 100 years, the "L" has survived numerous attempts to tear it down. Today its future is secure. New services are being added and new lines planned. This educating and entertaining book brings the tenacious "L" to life.

Illustrating the first 75 years of Chicago's influential Polish neighborhood.

Polish Downtown is Chicago's oldest Polish settlement and was the capital of American Polonia from the 1870s through the first half of the 20th century. Nearly all Polish undertakings of any consequence in the U.S. during that time either started or were directed from this part of Chicago's near northwest side. Chicago's Polish Downtown features some of the most beautiful churches in Chicago - St. Stanislaus Kostka, Holy Trinity and St. John Cantius - stunning examples of Renaissance and Baroque Revival architecture that form part of the largest concentration of Polish parishes in Chicago. The headquarters for almost every major Polish organization in America were clustered within blocks of each other and four Polish-language daily newspapers were published here. The heart of the photographic collection in this book is from the extensive library and archives of the Polish Museum of America, still located in the neighborhood today.

An entertaining romp through the charming history of a beloved Chicago neighborhood.

The town of Pullman, the brainchild of George M. Pullman, began as a small community on the far south side of Chicago. In 1879, Pullman, builder of the well-known Pullman Sleeping Car, purchased land just west of Lake Calumet and surrounding the Illinois Central Railroad, to build his model town in 1880. Pullman was the first planned model industrial town, and its center was Pullman's railroad car business. Employees lived in well-constructed housing on pleasantly landscaped streets, with all the necessary conveniences, including a bank, library, theater, post office, church, parks, and recreational facilities. In fact, Pullman was presented an award for the ""World's Most Perfect Town"" in 1896.

From its early days as the farmer's companion to over a quarter century as the nation's premier rock-and-roll station, WLS has touched the lives of millions of listeners

Many well-known celebrities, like Gene Autry, owe their careers to the Big 89, through the famous Saturday night program The National Barn Dance. Local personalities such as Dick Biondi, Larry Lujack, and John Records Landecker became household names thanks to Chicago's 50,000-watt blowtorch. The images in Chicago's WLS Radio scan the entire history of the station, featuring engaging hosts, the biggest stars, and lots of fun. The book also covers WLS's move in the 1990s to become a leader in the news and talk format.

The war years ushered in changing times for Chicago. The city became an important military center as thousands of troops trained or passed through en route to the war fronts, while Chicago's civilian population engaged in manufacturing war materials. As defense plants sprang up all over Chicago, African-American tenant farmers, who migrated from the South, and women replaced the male labor force.

Prairie Avenue evolved into Chicago's most exclusive residential street during the last three decades of the 19th century.

Chicago's wealthiest citizens--Marshall Field, Philip Armour, and George Pullman--were soon joined by dozens of Chicago's business, social, and civic leaders, establishing a neighborhood that the Chicago Heraldproclaimed, "a cluster of millionaires not to be matched for numbers anywhere else in the country."

Substantial homes were designed by the leading architects of the day, including William Le Baron Jenney, Burnham and Root, Solon S. Beman, and Richard Morris Hunt. By the early 1900s, however, the neighborhood began a noticeable transformation as many homes were converted to rooming houses and offices, while others were razed for construction of large plants for the printing and publishing industry. The rescue of the landmark Glessner House in 1966 brought renewed attention to the area, and in 1979, the Prairie Avenue Historic District was designated. The late 1990s saw the rebirth of the area as a highly desirable residential neighborhood known as the South Loop.

William H. Tyre is executive director of the Glessner House Museum, H. H. Richardson's masterpiece of residential design that features an extraordinary collection of original English and American arts and crafts furnishings.

Sodaro's book reveals the deadly 1967 tornado that struck towns of Belvidere and Oak Lawn in northern Illinois and left a 16 mile long path of destruction.

The morning of April 21, 1967, was crisp and clear, marking the arrival of spring. As the day progressed, dark clouds covered the skies over Oak Lawn, and a deadly tornado touched down in the village just before 5:30 p.m. Cutting through the intersection of 95th Street and Southwest Highway and striking elsewhere, the storm left mountains of debris and over 30 people dead in its wake. Oak Lawn Community High School, St. Gerald Catholic Church, and the Fairway Super Mart were among the structures damaged or destroyed by the high winds. After the disaster, rescue workers and volunteers poured into Oak Lawn to search for survivors, while Christ Community Hospital and other institutions treated more than 400 injured people. The immense cleanup, which took weeks to complete, saw debris hauled out or disposed of in controlled fires. Despite the scope of the devastation, many of the affected structures were repaired or rebuilt within 12 months.

For the first time, the magnificent architecture of Chicago, spanning well over 200 years of building, is shown here in one collection.

Chicago's architecture has been called the most important in the United States by the American Institute of Architects, and perhaps no other type of architecture has had as significant of an impact on the city's look, feel, and character as classical architecture. Chicago's connection to classical architecture dates back to the famed 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, with its gleaming ""White City"" of ornate Beaux-Arts buildings. After the fair, the ""Plan of Chicago,"" developed by Daniel Burnham, the fair's lead architect, paved the way for the further spread of classical building not only in Chicago, but throughout the country. In the 21st century, Chicago still retains its classical look, much of which is either directly or indirectly linked to Burnham and the 1893 fair. Burnham's renowned plan influenced what Chicagoans now see in Grant Park, for example, as well as in other structures, homes, government and office buildings, monuments, hotels, schools, and museums-all inspired by Greek and Roman architecture. For the first time, these structures-spanning well over 200 years of building-are shown here in one collection.

Kelly Pucci explores the dark history of this historic prison, located only three miles from the Chicago Loop, that was used as a POW facility during the Civil War.

Thousands of Confederate soldiers died in Chicago during the Civil War, not from battle wounds, but from disease, starvation, and torture as POWs in a military prison three miles from the Chicago Loop. Initially treated as a curiosity, attitudes changed when newspapers reported the deaths of Union soldiers on southern battlefields. As the prison population swelled, deadly diseases--smallpox, dysentery, and pneumonia--quickly spread through Camp Douglas. Starving prisoners caught stealing from garbage dumps were tortured or shot. Fearing a prisoner revolt, a military official declared martial law in Chicago, and civilians, including a Chicago mayor and his family, were arrested, tried, and sentenced by a military court. At the end of the Civil War, Camp Douglas closed, its buildings were demolished, and records were lost or destroyed. The exact number of dead is unknown; however, 6,000 Confederate soldiers incarcerated at Camp Douglas are buried among mayors and gangsters in a South Side cemetery. Camp Douglas: Chicago's Civil War Prison explores a long-forgotten chapter of American history, clouded in mystery and largely forgotten.

The historic Great Lakes Naval Training Station was authorized as a "training ship on land" in 1904.

The base opened on July 1, 1911, and the first class of 300 U.S. sailors graduated four months later in a grand ceremony attended by Pres. William H. Taft as guest of honor. It has since sent to the fleet over four million sailors, serving the nation through all the conflicts of the 20th century. Today Great Lakes is the sole remaining navy boot camp in the United States. Anchored by the stately Building One, the entire 43-building complex was designated as Great Lakes Naval Training Station on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. This book, with over 200 vintage images, explores its colorful and important history.