Home to Chicago's Polish Village, impressive examples of architecture, and the legendary Olson Waterfall, Avondale is often called "the neighborhood that built Chicago." Images of America: Avondale and Chicago's Polish Village sheds light on the little known history of the community, including its fascinating industrial past. From its beginnings as a sleepy subdivision started by a Michigan senator, it became a cultural mecca for Chicago's Polish community, playing a crucial role in Poland's struggles for independence. Many people from all over the world also called Avondale home, such as Scottish proprietors, African American freedmen, Irish activists, Swedish shopkeepers, German tradesmen, Jewish merchants, Filipino laborers, and Italian entrepreneurs; a diversity further enriched as many from the former Soviet Bloc and Latin America settled here. Avondale would be unrecognizable today from its humble origins, but the strong sense of community these neighbors have will never change.

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.

Chronicles the experiences of immigrants in two iconic South Side Polish neighborhoods in Chicago to demonstrate how Poles created new communities in an attempt to preserve the customs of their homeland.

Avondale, a culturally and ethnically diverse area in Chicago with a rich history, has recently begin to feel the effects of the gentrification of its neighbor, Logan Square. Different groups and industries have moved up and down Milwaukee Avenue, and that is no different for the local art community in Chicago as well. Avondale currently faces the threat of change and displacement as it is located directly next to Logan Square, a neighborhood that has gone through almost a complete transformation. This means less affordable housing for lower-income families and individuals. It also means businesses, some of who have been open for several generations, would have to close due to rising and unaffordable rent. There are already established arts organizations and spaces in the community, some with a longer history than others, however if they do not work together to address the issues in their community, especially with the possibility of more development and economic inflation for rents, gentrification will be inevitable, increasing the risk of displacement and loss of culture. In an article from 2004, there was already skepticism about what would become of the culture in Avondale. "With two-thirds of the area's Polish population living in the suburbs and those suburbs rapidly becoming main entry points for new immigrants, neighborhoods like Avondale Polish Village may soon become a thing of the past." (Eng, Monica. Chicago Tribune;) This not only speaks of the Polish community, but the many other ethnic groups residing in Avondale, such as the Mexican and Puerto Rican communities. While the threats to Avondale's artistic and cultural history and future might be at best slowed, the displacement and the disappearance of those who are currently still there can and should be fought. This includes both the residents of the community as well as the businesses and organizations. How can new artists and spaces moving into these communities help the currently existing organizations, businesses and residents work together to prevent the negative effects on community of such as such as displacement due to rising residential and retail rent prices?

The Kashubs, a regional autochthonous group inhabiting northern Poland, represent one of the most dynamic ethnic groups in Europe. As a community, they have undergone significant political, social, economic and cultural change over the last hundred years. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Kashubs were citizens of Germany. In the period between the two World Wars they were divided between three political entities: the Republic of Poland, the Free City of Danzig and Germany. During the Second World War, many Kashubs were murdered, and communist Poland subsequently tried to destroy the social ties that bound the community together. The year 1989 finally brought about a democratic breakthrough, at which point the Kashubs became actively engaged in the construction of their regional identity, with the Kashubian language performing a particularly important role.<BR> This volume is the first scholarly monograph on the history, culture and language of the Kashubs to be published in English since 1935. The book systematically explores the most important aspects of Kashubian identity - national, regional, linguistic, cultural and religious - from both historical and contemporary perspectives.

The essential guide to eating your way through the Windy City. In Globe’s newest approach to food by city, Chicago Food Crawls will take the reader on a fun, tasty culinary tour. Discover the hidden gems and long-standing institutions of Chicago neighborhoods. Experience more than 13 crawls, each featuring 3-8 establishments, centered on a neighborhood or theme. Each tour is the complete recipe for a great night out, the perfect tourist day, a new way to experience your own city, or simply food porn and great stories to enjoy from home.

From a rural farming community to an artistic and financially successful district of one of the country's biggest cities, this is the history of Chicago's Logan Square. The community now called Logan Square began as a patchwork of farms, hay fields, subdivisions, and small towns in rural Jefferson Township. Subsumed into the rapidly expanding city of Chicago at the end of the 19th century, the elegant residences lining the boulevards would gain prominence as a Midwest Gold Coast. Over time, a shifting kaleidoscope of peoples would call Logan Square home, including Yankee farmers, Scandinavian proprietors, German tradesmen, African American freedmen, Polish shopkeepers, Jewish merchants, Filipino laborers, and Cuban refugees - a diversity further enriched with the many nations of the former Soviet Bloc, as well as Latin America and the Caribbean, that would later settle here. Like many other Chicago neighborhoods, change is the one constant, as the arts have brought a renaissance to this working-class corner of the city. The photographs that appear in this book were compiled by the authors from a variety of private and institutional collections.

The neighborhoods that make up Chicago’s rich cultural landscape have been defined by the restaurants that anchor them. In Local Flavor, the popular food writer Jean Iversen chronicles eight beloved local eateries, from Chinatown on the South Side to Rogers Park in the far North, tracing the story of how they became neighborhood institutions. Iversen has meticulously gathered the tales, recipes, and cultural traditions that define Chicago’s culinary past and present. Rich with firsthand accounts from local restaurateurs, their families, long-time customers, and staff, Local Flavor is a community-driven look at Chicago through a gastronomical lens. Including recipes for popular dishes from each restaurant that readers can try at home, Local Flavor weaves together ethnography, family, and food history into a story that will enthrall both food and Chicago history lovers.

Pacyga chronicles more than a century of immigration, and later emigration back to Poland, showing how the community has continually redefined what it means to be Polish in Chicago.

The Chicago Food Encyclopedia is a far-ranging portrait of an American culinary paradise. Hundreds of entries deliver all of the visionary restauranteurs, Michelin superstars, beloved haunts, and food companies of today and yesterday. More than 100 sumptuous images include thirty full-color photographs that transport readers to dining rooms and food stands across the city. Throughout, a roster of writers, scholars, and industry experts pays tribute to an expansive--and still expanding--food history that not only helped build Chicago but fed a growing nation. Pizza. Alinea. Wrigley Spearmint. Soul food. Rick Bayless. Hot Dogs. Koreatown. Everest. All served up A-Z, and all part of the ultimate reference on Chicago and its food.