With This Beautifully Produced Volume, Chicago's Rich Literary Tradition
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
With this beautifully produced volume, Chicago’s rich literary tradition finally gets its due. Chicago by the Book profiles 101 landmark publications about Chicago from the past 170 years that have helped define the city and its image. Each title—carefully selected by the Caxton Club, a venerable Chicago biblio- philic organization—is the focus of an illustrated essay by a leading schol- ar, writer, or bibliophile. Arranged chronologically to show the history of both the city and its books, the essays can be read in order from Juliette A. ➤ ➤ Kinzie’s 1844 Narrative of the Massacre of Chicago➤ to Sara Paretsky’s 2015 ➤ ➤ ➤ crime novel Brush Back. Or one can dip in and➤ out, savoring reflections on ➤ the arts, sports, crime, race relations, urban ➤planning, politics, and even ➤ ➤ ➤ Mrs. O’Leary’s legendary cow. ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ Cloth, $35 ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ 978-0-226-46850-1 ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ ➤ ➤ % ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ % ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ✶ i ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ ➤ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✶ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ k ➤ i ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ 336 pages, 145 color plates ➤ i ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ i ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ % i ➤ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ k ➤ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ 8 ½ x 9 ½ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ i ➤ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ ➤ OCTOBER 2018 ✶ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ % i ➤ ➤ ➤ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ✶ ✶ ➤ ➤ ➤ Click here to jump to the ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ table of contents. ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ Email [email protected] for more ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ information about ordering or for ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ publicity requests. Bulk discounts are ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ 101 ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ available. ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ✶ ✶ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ T H E ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ C A X T O N ➤ EDITED BY THE CAXTON CLUB ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ CLUB ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ⎩ ⎨ ⎧ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ PUBLISHED BY ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ THE UNIVERSITY OF ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ CHICAGO PRESS ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ 101 ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ T H E ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ C A X T O N ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ CLUB ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ⎩ ⎨ ⎧ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ ➤ The publication of Chicago Illustrated in 1866– 67 was an extraordinary act structing a large tunnel running for a mile under the lake to the crib; clearly of faith in the emergent city. The work was planned for one hundred plates he felt that the work of such men could bear comparison with the great bridges and eventually contained fifty-two. 1 However, this was at a time when in North and other works then being undertaken in other cities throughout the West- America only New York and San Francisco could boast a larger number of pub- ern world. 3 lished lithographic views, eighty or so; towns such as Baltimore, Cincinnati, In general Chicago Illustrated is a paean to the new colossus rising along- Montreal, Philadelphia, Quebec, and St. Louis could muster only twenty or side the lake. As the introductory essay breathlessly puts it, “These views . so such views at that time.2 The publishers, Otto Jevne and Peter Almini, had will contain a comprehensive picture of this marvelous city,” off ering “strik- Chicago Illustrated come to Chicago from Norway and Sweden, respectively; before the publica- ing evidence of the city’s improvement and enterprise.” So they did. tion of Chicago Illustrated they had been chiefly known as ornamental paint- 1830– 1866 ers, a skill that they had learned in their homelands. After the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, they continued to follow their first profession. LiTerary deSCripTion By JameS W. For the images in their new publication, they called on a neighboring busi- Sheahan eSq. ✶ iLLUSTraTionS By The ChiCago LiThographing Co. ✶ ness, the Chicago Lithographing Company, which had been founded about ChiCago: Jevne and aL mini, 1866– 67 1865 by Louis Kurz (1833– 1921) and three others. Kurz was responsible for drawing the images and played an important role in making the lithographic plates. An Austrian artist from Salzburg, he had immigrated to the United David Buisseret States in 1848, coming to Chicago in 1853. The Chicago Lithographing Com- pany did not survive the Fire, but Kurz lived on for many years, undertaking numerous other lithographic projects; he became particularly famous for his (largely inaccurate) Civil War scenes. faCing Street life in downtown Chi- The text for the images was provided by newspaperman J. W. Sheahan cago in the 1860s was a jumble of (1824– 83). Born in Baltimore, he had come in 1854 to Chicago, where for six horses and well- dressed pedes- years he published the Chicago Times and then between 1860 and 1865 the trians. The view depicted here Chicago Post. Sheahan was a very active journalist who, as early as January by Louis Kurz looks from State Street down Lake Street, the main 1872, published an account of the Great Fire titled The Great Conflagration: commercial strip of the time. On Chicago, Its Past, Present and Future; the boosterism is manifest. the north side of Lake are the city’s Sheahan’s text for Chicago Illustrated was relatively pedestrian in com- first iron- front buildings, which were parison to the often very sprightly work of Kurz. Most of his images show destroyed by the 1871 Great Fire. buildings that would be consumed in the Fire. Constituting the best visual At the end is the Central Railroad evidence of their appearance, the plates exude an almost palpable sense of Depot. The telegraph poles have not yet been wired. the hustle and bustle of pre- Fire Chicago, as seen in a plate with a dramatic perspective view at State and Lake Streets of large buildings housing goods of all kinds for sale. At the end of Lake Street, which is filled with people, horse- drawn carriages, supply transports, and more, is the city’s main train station, the Central Railroad Depot. The many church images in Chicago Illustrated remind us of the central importance to the city of the emerging parish struc- ture (page 261). Two of the best- known plates show the giant water intake, or crib, far out in the lake, and the still- extant Water Tower3 (on Michigan Ave- nue) by which lake water could be distributed in the city. In the commentary Sheahan went out of his way to emphasize the skill of the engineers in con- { 20 } { 21 } FOR REVIEW ONLY | © 2018 THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO Ida B. Wells (1862– 1931) was born a slave in Holly Springs, Mississippi. She was educated at the Freedman’s School and Rust College in her hometown and later at Fisk University, Nashville. Throughout her career, she combined investigative journalism with fearless personal activism. After the murder of 15 several close friends, Wells began a crusade against lynching. In response to threats on her life, she moved to Chicago in the early 1890s. Wells became part of Chicago’s story when she edited The Reason Why the The Reason Colored American Is Not in the World’s Columbian Exposition. She assembled essays, data, and photographs to document the African American protest Why the Colored against the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. This salvo in the war against American Is Not American racism was fired against the bulwarks of entrenched indifference, and it has never stopped affecting how we think and what we do.1 in the World’s When I reread the contributions to The Reason Why by Wells, Frederick Douglass, I. Garland Penn, and Frederick Lee Barnett, I see the struggles of Columbian my own life in politics and public service laid open on the page. The occasion Drawing parallels between race for this book was the huge public project that was the fair and that shaped Exposition: The issues of the late nineteenth century the neighborhoods I represented in the Chicago City Council for two decades. and today, this entry considers the Afro- American’s The Columbian Exposition is often remembered today for its modernity, with protest piece compiled by African Contribution its dazzling display of the power of electric lights and the wonders of science. American activist and journalist Ida But the fair took place a mere twenty- eight years after the end of slavery in B. Wells (seen here in a photograph of around 1892) regarding the the United States, and we continue to fail to recognize the consequences of to Columbian absence of African Americans in the slavery within our modern world. Literature exhibits of the World’s Columbian The Reason Why is best remembered as a collection of hard-hitting essays, Exposition and their subservient role but it does not rely on the power of eloquence alone. The section on lynching as workers in and around the fair. [ida B. We LLS, f rederiCK doUgLaSS, i . includes graphic photographs of victims. Today video images of young black garLand p enn, and f . L. Barne TT] ✶ ChiCago: m iSS ida B. We LLS, 1893 men murdered by the police serve the same function, telling the objective, terrible truth. Wells insightfully observed that for many whites the emancipation of Toni Preckwinkle slaves constituted “an act of unjust punishment to them.”2 She focused on lynching, the prison system, and legalized injustice. My agenda as