77 Photographic Views of Chicago, Illinois, 1930

 

Although originals of these old photographic views of Chicago in about 1930 are difficult to find, you can now get them on a cd-rom prepared from original items held in a private collection.

The photographs were published as "Pictorial Chicago" in about 1930.  An introductory note to the collection stated:

"All phases of life in this great city are portrayed.  These pictures testify to Chicago's Commercial and Industrial power and to its beauty.  They bespeak the industry, effort, and foresight of those who have helped to build within so short a span of years -- Chicago - The Wonder City"

The cd-rom isn't mass produced but is compiled individually and personally for each purchaser so there are very few copies in  existence. You can get one of them here.

A few sample images, greatly reduced in size, are set out below, followed by a complete list of all the views.

The Union Station and Jackson Boulevard, 1930 (reduced in size)

Michigan Boulevard, Looking North from Adams Street, 1930 (reduced in size)

Air View, Looking Northeast from Chicago's Loop, 1930 (reduced in size)

Wacker Drive and Chicago River Bridges, 1930 (reduced in size)

The Chicago Daily News Building and Plaza, 1930 (reduced in size)

These rare views show you how much Chicago has changed in the last 75 years.  Compare these views with what you can see today ...

The 77 views, similar to the above but much larger, with their page numbers on the cd-rom are:

5. Cook County Criminal Courthouse
6. Boat House, Douglas Park
7. Administration Building, Garfield Park
8. Boat Harbor, Jackson Park
9. Jackson Park and the Midway from the Air
10. Sheridan Road and Oak Street Beach
11. Jackson Park Bathing Beach
12. Sheridan Road and Boat Harbor
13. The Drake Hotel
14. The Stevens Hotel, with Blackstone Hotel at Right
15. The Edgewater Beach Hotel
16. The Field Museum
17. John G. Shedd Aquarium
18. The Federal Building, East Wing
19. City Hall and County Building
20. Elks' Memorial at Lincoln Park
21. The Union Station and Jackson Boulevard
22. The Merchandise Mart - World's Largest Building
23. Municipal Tubercolosis Sanitarium
24. Buckingham Fountain, Grant Park
25. Boulevard Link Bridge, Looking North
26. Boulevard Link Bridge, Looking South
27. Boulevard Link Bridge and Wacker Drive at Night
28. The Historic Water Works and the Palmolive Building at Night
29. The Civic Opera House
30. The Palmolive Building from Fourth Presbyterian Church
31. Michigan Building, North from Bridge, Wrigley Building at Left
32. Boulevard Link Bridge and Wrigley Building
33. The Bankers Building
34. The Board of Trade Building at the Head of La Salle Street
35. Marshall Field & Company State Street Building
36. Michigan Boulevard, Looking North from Van Buren Street
37. Michigan Boulevard, Looking North from Adams Street
38. Air View, Looking Northeast from Chicago's Loop
39. Chicago's Loop from the Air, Looking Southeast
40. Wacker Drive and Chicago River Bridges
41. Sheridan Road at Lake Shore Drive
42. The Chicago Daily News Building and Plaza
43. Passavant Memorial Hospital
44. Northwestern University Buildings, McKinlock Campus
45. The Top of Tribune Tower
46. Temple Sholem
47. Elizabeth Cudahy Memorial Library at Loyola University
48. Fourth Presbyterian Church
49. Rockefeller Chapel, University of Chicago
50. The Curtain and Orchestra Pit, Chicago Civic Opera House
51. Mundelein from the Air, Hines Chapel at Center
52. Hines Chapel, Mundelein
53. Harriet Hammond McCormick Memorial, Y.W.C.A.
54. The Racquet Club
55. South Shore Country Club
56. Medinah Country Club
57. Olympia Fields Golf Club from the Air
58. The Chinese City Hall
59. Wm. Hale Thompson Pumping Station
60. The Ghetto on a Busy Day
61. Baseball in Lincoln Park
62. The Chicago Stock Yards from the Air
63. A Neighbouring Oil Refinery from the Air
64. The Chicago Riding Club
65. A Chicago High School - The Roosevelt
66. The Chicago Stadium
67. South Water Market - Chicago's Produce Distributing Center
68. Illinois Women's Athletic Club
69. One of Chicago's Apartment Hotels
70. Chicago's Lake Front from the Air
71. The University of Chicago from the Air
72. Buildings of Sears Roebuck & Company from the Air
73. Boulevard Link Bridge from the Air
74. Interior of Chicago Stadium During a Boxing Exhibition
75. The Chicago National League Baseball Park - Home of the "Cubs"
76. Shipping in the Chicago River
77. Field Artillery Armory, Illinois National Guard
78. Navy Pier - World's Largest
79. A Section of Wacker Drive Showing Upper and Lower Levels
80. Arlington Race Track from the Air
81. Curtiss Airport from the Air

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This cd-rom is in standard PDF format using Adobe Acrobat (or similar) PDF reader software.  These days most computers come with Adobe Acrobat reader software as standard but if you haven't got it on your system it can be downloaded free of charge from www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

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