This 45-minute self-guided walking tour explores the bizarre history beneath Wicker Park’s elegant surface. Led by a longtime resident, you will discover the neighborhood’s transition from a wealthy enclave to a gritty artist hub and its modern gentrification.
Key Highlights:
- Radical History: Learn about labor leader Lucy Parsons and the search for hidden bombs in the park.
- Beer Baron Row: Hear tragic tales of murder and madness tied to grand Victorian mansions.
- Quack Medicine: Discover how Theophilus Noel’s “Vita-Ore” empire funded iconic local architecture.
- Mob Intrigue: Visit the former Russian Baths where mobsters met in steam rooms to avoid FBI wires.
- Massacre Connections: See where the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre was planned and its getaway car destroyed.