History in South Loop

Lake-Shore Park (or Lake Park) was the home of the Chicago White Stockings (now the Chicago Cubs) from 1878 through 1884, when the team moved to (the first) West Side Park.  Lake-Shore Park was located on the same site as the former Union Base-Ball Grounds (Area bounded by Michigan Avenue on the west, Randolph Street on the north, and Washington Street on the south), which were destroyed in the Chicago Fire.  Since 1901, the area has been known as Grant Park.  Led by Cap Anson, the White Stockings won the National League pennant in 1880, 1881, and 1882.  The fence in right field was less than 200 feet from home plate, so balls that cleared the wall were automatically scored as ground-rule doubles.

On the evening of Monday, April 2, 2012, Anthony Davis, a graduate of the Perspectives Charter School at 1930 South Archer Avenue, indelibly etched his name into the national sports consciousness by leading his Kentucky Wildcats to an NCAA basketball championship and being named the “Most Outstanding Player” of the tournament.  His rise to stardom was one of the most remarkable sports stories of the decade.  Davis stood a mere six-feet-one inches tall when he started his sophomore season at a high school that lacked a gymnasium, and he played in a league that never attracted serious attention.  But a timely growth spurt changed his destiny, and by the start of his junior year he stood an imposing six-feet-eight inches tall.  Better yet, he was still swishing three-pointers and dribbling like a point guard in the open court.  He journeyed from complete obscurity in 2009 to top-ranked national basketball prospect in 2010.  After a successful run with a local travel team, he stole the show at the scout-heavy Nike Global Challenge, where he poured in 23 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in just 27 minutes on the floor.  He ultimately committed to the University of Kentucky in November of 2010 (following a pay-to-play scandal in which his father allegedly sought cash from prospective universities in return for his son’s commitment).  In his freshman year at Kentucky, Davis led the Wildcats to an undefeated Southeastern Conference season and won enough hardware to fill a museum.

The 23rd Street Grounds was the baseball park at which the Chicago White Stockings (the precursors of today’s Chicago Cubs) played their home games from 1874 through 1877.  The first two seasons they played in the National Association, and the second two seasons they played in the National League.  The field was located between 22nd Street (now Cermak Road) and 23rd Street and between State Street and what is now Federal Street.

Promoter Leo Seltzer introduced the world's first Roller Derby at the old Chicago Coliseum on August 13, 1935.  More than 20,000 people attended the event, which was dubbed the "Transcontinental Roller Derby" at 1513 South Wabash Avenue.

Overzealous security guards used pepper spray to break up a fight, causing a panic in which 21 patrons were stampeded to death and 50 more injured on February 17, 2003.  Once people smelled the pepper spray and were unaware of its source, they began running to the exits.  The exit doors opened inward and, as people rushed out, those climbing the stairs were pinned and crushed. The pile of bodies climbed to more than six feet high at the bottom of the staircase, as more than 1,500 people tried to exit.  Club owners Dwain Kyles and Calvin Hollins were ordered to shut down E2, which was located at 2347 South Michigan Avenue.  Both the club and the restaurant beneath it remain closed today.  Kyles and Hollins were found guilty of as many as 11 building code violations, according to a city-issued court order.  They were sentenced to two years in prison after being acquitted of involuntary manslaughter, but guilty of indirect criminal contempt.

Founded in 1950 by brothers Leonard and Phil Chess, Chess Records was the preeminent blues label in the 1950's and 60's.  It also released R&B, gospel, rock 'n' roll, and jazz records.  It was here, at 2120 South Michigan Avenue, that the Rolling Stones famously recorded an instrumental titled "2010 South Michigan Avenue" during their first U.S. tour in 1964.  Other Chess artists included Chuck Berry, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters, and the Flamingos.  The now-defunct record company was designated a Chicago landmark on May 16, 1990.

Before moving to this location in 1955, Chess Records operated at 4750 S. Cottage Grove Avenue in the heart of Bronzeville.

First Ward Aldermen Michael "Hinky Dink" Kenna and "Bathhouse" John Coughlin collected more than $50,000 each year at a rowdy fundraising event held here at 1513 South Wabash Avenue, the former site of the Chicago Coliseum. Thousands of people attended what was the city's biggest party, including prostitutes, gangsters, politicians, businessmen, and gamblers. At the 1908 ball, "revelers slopped up 10,000 quarts of champagne and 30,000 quarts of beer," according to the Chicago Tribune.

A "Mickey Finn" was an early 20th century "roofie" named after the man who ran the Lone Star Saloon and Palm Garden Restaurant from 1896 to 1903 on what is now the southeast corner of South State and 11th Streets in the South Loop (and what was then known as "Whiskey Row").  Finn's house girls spiked unsuspecting bargoers' drinks with an incapacitating drug, took them to a back room or an alley, and robbed them.  Victims wouldn't remember anything (or even how they got there) after waking up.  Finn, an Irish pickpocket, came to Chicago in 1893 and robbed drunks at the World's Fair.  Even though he was close with First Ward Aldermen Michael "Hinky Dink" Kenna and "Bathhouse" John Coughlin, the city revoked his liquor license after one of his barmaids ("Gold Tooth" Mary Thornton) revealed what was happening to a special investigatory commission.  Mayor Carter Harrison ordered the closure of the saloon on December 16, 1903.  Finn briefly left Chicago, but later returned and opened another bar, this time without the funny business.  Today, any drink with knockout powers is called a "Mickey Finn."  It's also known as "slipping a Mickey."