Signs of Maxwell Street

Known as the Ellis Island of Chicago, the Maxwell Street neighborhood and market served as the meeting ground and launching point for generations of families and businesses since the 1800's. Being the birthplace for many of the city's cultural staples, from the Chicago hot dog to the Chicago blues, the legacy of Maxwell Street as a melting pot of peoples from around the world is undeniable. But as downtown development expanded and the University of Illinois Chicago grew with it, Maxwell Street was chosen for demolition. As neighborhood leaders, UIC, and city officials faced off over saving the neighborhood and preserving its legacy, volunteers who would eventually go on to start the Maxwell Street Foundation banded together to brave the infringing construction zones to save what they could of the area's history. The neighborhood relics they collected have since been preserved in the decades after the old market's destruction in 1994, and are now in search of a new home. This video is a call to action for institutions who are interested in helping to share this history. These signs tell the story of America's longest continually held street market, the people who made it special, and the lasting cross-cultural bonds that were formed there as a result. Although a new iteration of the market remains nearby, the history of the old neighborhood lives on through these signs. #chicagohistory #maxwellstreet #loyolachicago #loyolaSOC