1916c. 1916–1970 · Bronzeville, Chicago
The Great Migration and Bronzeville
From 1916 hundreds of thousands of Black Southerners moved to Chicago for industrial work, urged on by the Chicago Defender newspaper. Hemmed by restrictive covenants into a narrow South Side belt, they built Bronzeville, a 'Black Metropolis' of banks, newspapers, churches and jazz clubs. Tension over housing and space erupted in the 1919 race riot, which began at a segregated beach and left 38 people dead.
Sites
- Site 1: Victory Monument, 35th Street and King Drive1920s memorial to the Black 8th Illinois Regiment, centre of the landmark district.Map ↗
- Site 2: Chicago Bee and Overton Hygienic buildings, State StreetHeadquarters of Black-owned businesses from the 1920s, one in Art Deco style.Map ↗
- Site 3: 1919 memorial boulder, lakefront at 29th StreetBoulder and plaque of 2009 recalling Eugene Williams, whose death began the riot.Map ↗
Guides who take you there
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Also in Chicago
More from the Interwar
Read more: reference. Summary written by History-Tours.com.