Neighborhood Strolls - Chicago with Kids - page 213

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one of Chicago 's w ealthiest r esidents; blues musicians Willie Dix on, Muddy
Waters, and Howlin' Wolf; Thomas A. Dorsey, the “father” of gospel music , and
his greatest disciple, singer Mahalia Jackson; Robert Taylor, head of the Chicago
Housing Authority, after whom the CHA's most notorious buildings are named;
and Ralph Metcalfe, the Olympic-gold-medalist sprinter who turned to politics
once he got to Chicago, eventually succeeding Dawson in Congress.
When open housing legislation enabled blacks to live in any neighborhood,
the flight of man y Bronzeville residents to less cr owded areas took its t oll on
the remaining community. Through the 1950s almost a thir d of the housing
became vacant, and by the 1960s the great social experiment of urban renewal
through wholesale land clearanc e and the cr eation of lar ge trac ts of public
housing gutted this once-thriving neighborhood.
In recent years, however, community and civic leaders appear c ommitted to
restoring the neighborhood to a semblance of its former glory. Landmark status
has been secured for several historic buildings in Bronzeville, including the Lib-
erty Lif e/Supreme Insur ance C ompany, 3501 S. K ing Dr ., the first A frican-
American-owned insuranc e c ompany in the nor thern Unit ed Stat es, and the
Eighth Regimen t A rmory, which, when c ompleted in 1915, was the only
armory in the Unit ed Stat es c ontrolled b y an A frican-American regiment. The
former home of the legendary Chess Records at 2120 S. Michigan Ave.—where
Howlin' Wolf, Chuck Berr y, and Bo Diddley ga ve birth to the blues and helped
define rock 'n' roll—now houses a museum and music education c enter, Blues
Heaven Foundation ( & 312/808-1286 ), set up b y Willie Dixon's widow, Marie
Dixon, with financial assistanc e fr om r ock musician John M ellencamp. Ent er-
tainer Lou R awls, who g rew up at 45th Str eet and K ing Drive (formerly South
Pkwy.), is building the Lou Rawls Theater and Cultural Center at the famous cross-
roads of 47th Str eet and King Drive, where Chicago's fabled Regal Theater once
stood and hosted performances by such legends as Count Basie, Duke Ellington,
and Ella F itzgerald. Along Dr . Martin Luther King, Jr., Drive, between 24th and
35th streets, several public art installations now celebrate Bronzeville's heritage
as w ell. The most poig nant of them is sculpt or Alison Saar 's Great Nor thern
Migration bronze monumen t, at K ing and 26th, depic ting a suit case-toting
African-American traveler standing atop a mound of worn shoe soles.
For t ours of Br onzeville, c ontact the Chicago O ffice of Tourism's Chicago
Neighborhood Tours ( & 312/742-1190 ).

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Town Aquarium, a shop located on the west side of the street at 1538 N. Wells St. Don't
miss stopping at Twisted Sister Bakery, 1543 N. Wells St., where you'll find a homey
atmosphere to sit and r est your weary feet, plus surprisingly sophisticated takes on the
usual cakes, cookies, eclairs, and cupcakes.