September 2022 Bulletin
Hyde Park Historical Society Bulletin
September 2022 www.hydeparkhistory.org, 773-493-1893
Upcoming Events
Walking the Point – Saturday, September 10, at 11:30 Jack Spicer will conduct a landscape walking tour of Promontory Point. Easy walking and talking. Meet at the Point plaque across from the 55th Street underpass.
Walking the Point – Sunday, September 11, at 11:30 Bill Swislow leads a tour of the 150+ art carvings on the limestone promenade and steps at the Point. Learn about Swislow's research into these carvers and the history of art on the revetment. The walk is mildly strenuous. Please wear appropriate shoes. Meet at the Point plaque across from the 55th Street underpass.
Hyde Park Book Club – Monday, September 19, 7:30pm via Zoom. The book selection is Time for Frankie Coolin by Bill Granger (1941-2012), a Chicago journalist who wrote for the UPI Chicago bureau, the Chicago Tribune, and the Chicago Sun-Times. Granger published more than twenty novels and lived most of his life in Chicago, on the city's South Side. We will be joined for the discussion by Bill Savage, who called the book “Granger’s great and under-read novel…” Register here.
Hyde Park Book Club – Monday, October 17, 7:30pm via Zoom. Christopher Blattman, professor at the University of Chicago and author of Why We Fight: The Roots of War and the Path to Peace will join us. Register here.
Past, Present, and Future of Olmsted Landscapes in Chicago – Tuesday, October 25, 6-7:30pm virtually. With Julia Bachrach – Parks Historian, Duane Savage – Washington Park Camera Club, and, Patricia O’Neal – Heritage Landscapes. Registration information to follow.
When Hyde Park was Happening – Sunday, November 13, 2pm via Zoom. Join Trish Morse and learn about Hyde Park when the Armory was hosting big sports, amusement parks were just across Cottage Grove, the parks were full of winter sports, the Trianon Ballroom was broadcasting dance music, and the most famous jazz musicians were playing at the Sutherland and the Beehive. Details to follow.
Hyde Park Book Club – Monday, November 21, 7:30pm via Zoom. Jeff Deutsch, director of the Seminary Coop Bookstore and author of In Praise of Good Bookstores will join us. Register here.
Hyde Park Book Club Committee:
Carol Vieth
Michal Safar
Dottie Jeffries
Contact: BookClub@HydeParkHistory.org
Web Site: https://www.hydeparkhistory.org/book-club
RECENT EVENTS
Last Call at the Hotel Imperial with Deborah cohen, Monday, August 15
On Monday, August 16, Deborah Cohen joined the Hyde Park Book Club for a discussion of Last Call at the Hotel Imperial, an extraordinary story of journalists UChicago alumnus John Gunther, H. R. Knickerbocker, UChicago alumnus Vincent Sheean, and Dorothy Thompson. In those tumultuous years, they landed exclusive interviews with Hitler and Mussolini, Nehru and Gandhi, and helped shape what Americans knew about the world. Alongside these backstage glimpses into the halls of power, they left another equally incredible set of records. Living in the heady afterglow of Freud, they subjected themselves to frank, critical scrutiny and argued about love, war, sex, death, and everything in between.
The evening’s discussion was wide ranging covering both the narrative and the author’s development of the narrative. It highlighted how these journalists not only reported the story but became part of the story, how their paths constantly intertwined as evidenced by the detailed maps included in the book, and how prolific they were – writing books, news stories and private correspondence – all while traveling through Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The research done by the author to put all this together involved over 60 libraries and research centers.
The discussion was recorded and can be viewed here.
Hyde Park Stories: Harold Washington and His Legacy, A Celebration of His 100th Birthday
The HPHS Hyde Park Kenwood Stories Oral History Program: “Remembering Mayor Harold Washington’s 100th Birthday and Legacy,” ran from 3:00-5:00 PM, Sunday, August 21, 2022 at Augustana Lutheran Church. Featured was a wonderful slide show and commentary about the late mayor and the mission of the Mayor Harold Washington Legacy Committee presented by Andrea Smith, member of the Legacy Committee, the group that partnered with the HPHS Oral History Committee to organize the event.
Over 13 storytellers recounted their memories about Harold Washington as a politician and as a resident of Hyde Park before an audience of more than 45 people whose rapt attention lasted to the very end of the program. Jacky Grimshaw, Mayor Washington’s long-time aide, told several stories and provided comments during the slide show. Other storytellers included:
IL St. Rep. Mary Flowers (D), who told a story about when she visited Mayor Washington in his office and looked up to him as a mentor when she was a very young woman. Photo by Damon Smith
5th Ward Ald. Leslie A. Hairston, who told a story of when she campaigned for Mayor Washington as a student at the University of Wisconsin. Photo by Damon Smith
Carol Vieth, HPHS Treasurer, who told stories about Harold Washington as her neighbor while living in Hampton House Apartments. Photo by Marc C. Monaghan
The HPHS Oral History Committee presented a HPHS check to Marsha Howard & Andrea Smith to support the Legacy Committee’s effort to publish a book about Mayor Washington.
Preservation News
Breckinridge Hall – (The Eleanor club), 1442 E. 59th Street
Trish Morse recently published an historical account of this building beginning with the inception of the Eleanor Club in 1898. Much of the history relates to women’s issues, including the proximity to the recently demolished Jackson Park Women’s Garden, the WCE Women’s Building site, and the Cheney-Goode Memorial Bench. The full article can be viewed here.
A photo of the building from 1976 can be viewed here.
In 1967 the University of Chicago bought out the Eleanor Club and turned it into a women’s undergraduate dormitory named after Sophonisba Breckinridge, a founder of the School for Social Service Administration. In 2015 the undergraduates were moved out of the building and its future is unclear. Trish Morse and Jack Spicer recently spoke with Alicia Berg, University of Chicago Assistant Vice-president for Campus Planning, about the future of the building. Ms Berg said there are no current plans for demolishing the building.
HPHS Memberships
The Hyde Park Historical Society strives to make programs and activities as accessible to the community as possible, which means that the website, newsletter, archives, open houses and nearly all programs are free and open to the public. To make this possible- we need your support!
To Become a Member or Renew a Lapsed Membership:
1. Visit www.HydeParkHistory.org
2. Go to “Support Us” and then “Become a Member”
3. Choose whether you would like an Individual or Family membership
Or go directly to: https://www.hydeparkhistory.org/become-a-hphs-member