Irving Park, Chicago

Coordinates: 41°57′N 87°43.8′W / 41.950°N 87.7300°W / 41.950; -87.7300
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Old Irving Park, Chicago
)

Irving Park
Community area
Community Area 16 - Irving Park
The Whistle Stop Inn, a Chicago Landmark
The Whistle Stop Inn, a Chicago Landmark
Location within the city of Chicago
Location within the city of Chicago
Coordinates: 41°57′N 87°43.8′W / 41.950°N 87.7300°W / 41.950; -87.7300
CountryUnited States
StateIllinois
CountyCook
CityChicago
Neighborhoods
list
Area
 • Total3.23 sq mi (8.37 km2)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total51,940
ZIP Codes
parts of 60618, 60630, 60641
Median household income 2018$64,598[1]
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

Irving Park is one of 77 officially designated Chicago

railroad tracks on the west, Addison Street on the south and Montrose Avenue on the north, west of Pulaski Road stretching to encompass the region between Belmont Avenue on the south and, roughly, Leland Avenue on the north. It is named after the American author Washington Irving
.

Old Irving Park, bounded by Montrose Avenue,

Italianate homes, a few farmhouses, and numerous bungalows
.

The

Montrose
.

History

Beginnings

Irving Park's development began in 1843 when Major Noble purchased a 160-acre (65 ha) tract of land from Christopher J. Ward, upon which Noble established a farm. The boundaries of that farm today would be Montrose Avenue to the north,

suburban
communities which had recently opened for settlement, they decided to subdivide their land and create an exclusive settlement, seven miles (11 km) from the city.

An agreement was reached with the Chicago and

Northwestern Railroad allowing their trains to stop in Irving Park if the developers would build a station. This was done, and this station, still at the same location, continues to serve neighborhood residents today. The original name chosen for the new suburb was "Irvington" after the author Washington Irving
, but it was discovered that another town in Illinois had already used the same name, so the name of Irving Park was adopted.

The original developers all built substantial mansions along Irving Park Boulevard between 1870 and 1874. All have since been razed, with the exception of the Steven A. Race mansion, which was moved at the turn of the century and now stands at 3945 N. Tripp Avenue. Another early home, built for Erastus Brown, father of John and Adalbert, also remains at 3812 N. Pulaski Road although greatly altered. The Great Chicago Fire of 1871, which was watched from the cupolas of several area homes, brought a new influx of residents who built many unique, but slightly less pretentious homes.

In 1872, the area's first

Catholics and Baptists
had been established.

Annexation to Chicago and subsequent development

The 1880s found residents beginning to miss some of advantages they had left behind in the city, and in 1889 the community, along with the rest of

streetcar
service along major streets were some of the improvements to occur during the first year after annexation.

Over 200 homes had been built in the original subdivision within the first twenty years. Several additions to Irving Park had greatly increased the original 240-acre (97 ha) suburb.

Milwaukee Road Railroad
, which is still in active use today. Gray's first home built in 1856 at 4362 W. Grace survives today in a remarkable state of preservation and is the oldest house in Irving Park. Gray later built a lavish mansion on the northwest corner of Milwaukee and Lowell to reflect his new-found wealth and it was a community showplace. Indoor plumbing with gold fixtures, exotic woods and expensive marbles highlighted his home. It was razed around the year 1915.

Three subdivisions east of Pulaski led to the development of the area in the late 1890s. West Walker is located between Montrose Avenue and

Chicago Landmark district, dubbed by hallowed journalist Mike Royko as "Polish Kenilworth
" due to its heavily ethnic hue.

In 1910 the residents of Irving Park established their own park district and created eight local parks, the largest of which is

terra cotta details were constructed primarily north of Irving Park Boulevard. The depression and war years saw many of the larger homes converted into rooming houses and two family homes. The prosperity following the war was diminished when it was learned that the Northwest Expressway (Kennedy)
would cut directly through the heart of Irving Park. This resulted in the displacement of many residents, and loss of many homes and businesses. During the 1960s condominiums replaced several larger homes along Keystone, Kedvale and Keeler north of the expressway.

The 1970s provided baseball fans in the area with their own home grown amateur baseball team, the Irving Park White Sox. Founded in 1971 by two Irving Park residents, the late Robert Boomer and William Supernaw, this three time Chicago park champion became one of the top men's baseball clubs in the Chicago area well into the 1980s. They played their home games at Henry Horner Park located at Irving Park and California Avenue.[citation needed]

Present day

The early 1980s saw a rebirth for Irving Park as a wider audience discovered the beautiful homes and rich history of the area. The Irving Park Historical Society was formed in 1984, to help preserve the neighborhood's heritage and its irreplaceable architecture, which has survived since the late 19th century. Since the society's inception many homes have been restored and many more restorations are in progress. A survey by volunteers of the Irving Park Historical Society documented several hundred buildings in use which predate 1894, many dating as far back as the 1870s. Some remain intact while many have been modified or remodeled. Others retain just a hint of their former Victorian splendor.

Serbian Community

During the 1990s the neighborhood saw an influx of

restaurants
along Irving Park Road. It is said to have about 2,650 Serbian families living in Irving Park as of 2015. Totally the number of Serbians living in the neighborhood is well over 3,000.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
193066,783—
194066,553−0.3%
195064,881−2.5%
196058,298−10.1%
197054,883−5.9%
198049,489−9.8%
199050,1591.4%
200058,64316.9%
201053,359−9.0%
202051,940−2.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[1][2]

Neighborhoods

Old Irving Park

'Old Irving Park' aka 'Grayland' is a neighborhood within the Irving Park

Community Area of Chicago, comprising its historical core. Its borders are Montrose to the north, Addison to its south, Pulaski Road
to the east and Cicero to the west, those of the original two farms that developed here in the 1870s.

The Villa

Main article: Villa District

The Villa district (

St. Wenceslaus church, a majestic Romanesque Revival-Art Deco
hybrid draws many of the visitors touring the area, this historic church is actually a few blocks south of the district's formal boundaries.

Independence Park

'Independence Park' is a neighborhood within Irving Park that was developed in the 1800s. It shares its name with a park of the same name. Its borders are Irving Park Road to the north, the Kennedy Expressway to the west, Elston Avenue and Central Park[3] Avenue to the east, and Addison Street to the south.

West Walker

'West Walker' is an area bounded by Irving Park Rd to the South, Central Park Ave to the East, Montrose Ave to the North and Pulaski St to the West. The 'West Walker Triangle' is an enclave within West Walker that comprises the area bounded by Irving Park Road to the south, Pulaski Road to the west, and Elston Avenue to the northeast.

California Park

'California Park' is a neighborhood located in the eastern portion of Irving Park that began development in the 1920s. Understated single-family homes and family-owned businesses are a common feature. Its borders are Montrose Ave. to the north, Addison St. to the south, Kedzie Ave. to the west, and the Chicago River to the east.

Kilbourn Park

Kilbourn Park (Milwaukee to the north, Belmont to the south, the

Union Pacific/Northwest rail line to the east, and Cicero to the west) is a primarily middle class residential and industrial area. Although technically part of the Irving Park community area, the neighborhood is more akin to neighboring Avondale
in terms of both its built environment and the sociology of its residents.

Avondale Gardens

Avondale Gardens (also known as Merchant Park) (Addison to the north, Belmont to the south, the

City of Chicago.[4]

Little Cassubia

Little

Kaszub
people living in the area, who also founded the Roman Catholic Parish of Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Education

Chicago Public Schools operates public schools in the area. The Kedvale campus of Disney II Magnet School is located in the Old Irving Park neighborhood.[5]

Chicago Jewish Day School is in the community area.[6]

Politics

The Irving Park community has supported the

2012 presidential election
, Irving Park cast 13,415 votes for Barack Obama and cast 3,323 votes for Mitt Romney (78.03% to 19.33%).[8]

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Community Data Snapshot - Irving Park" (PDF). cmap.illinois.gov. MetroPulse. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  2. ^ Paral, Rob. "Chicago Community Areas Historical Data". Archived from the original on March 18, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  3. ^ "GIPNA - Welcome to the Greater Independence Park/Irving Park Neighborhood Association". GIPNA - Greater Independence Park Neighborhood Association. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  4. ^ "Chicago Landmarks - Landmark Details". webapps1.cityofchicago.org. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  5. ^ "Kedvale". disneyiimagnet.org. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  6. ^ Home. Chicago Jewish Day School. Retrieved on July 18, 2019. "3730 N California Ave, Chicago, IL 60618"
  7. DNAInfo. Archived from the original
    on September 24, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  8. DNAInfo. Archived from the original
    on February 3, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  9. ^ "'Chicago always lives in my heart' — Aimee Garcia". Chicagoly. Joe Coughlin. December 18, 2016. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  10. ^ Smith, Ryan (November 8, 2019). "A Queen Anne built in 1892 will become landmark in Irving Park". Curbed. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  11. ^ Crawford, Matt (March 2019). "Landmark Designation Report: John Nuveen House (3916 N. Tripp Avenue)" (PDF). Commission on Chicago Landmarks. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  12. ^ Bojko, Szymon. Polish-American and Polish Artists in Contemporary American Art, Oficyna Wydawnicza Kucharski, 2007, p. 249–55. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  13. ^ Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: m-t0627-01000; Page 18A; Enumeration District 103-2459; [Charles Nergard in the 1940 United States Federal Census via Ancestry.com
  14. ^ National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 1225; Page: 3; Enumeration District: 103-3659 Charles Nergard in the 1950 United States Federal Census via Ancestry.com
  15. ^ Hernandez, Alex (November 27, 2019). "Wilco Frontman Jeff Tweedy's Irving Park Home Hit By Gunfire". Block Club Chicago. Retrieved March 25, 2024.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Irving_Park,_Chicago&oldid=1215546438#Old_Irving_Park"