Presentation on Little Italy in Chicago, Illinois

1. Little Italy {University Village}
Little Italy (University
Village)
| Alice | Arianna | Fariha | Kaylee | Simon |

2. Transportation
★ Walk to the Granville or Loyola RED LINE stop
heading towards 95th.
★ Get off at Jackson.
○ Transfer to Jackson BLUE LINE heading
towards Forest Park.
★ Get off at Racine.
○ Walk south on Loomis St. to Taylor St.

3. History
★ Italian immigration→ Chicago (1850’s)
○ 1900- 16,000 Italians
○ 1930- 80,000 Italians!!
★ Took manual labor jobs
○ (worked on railroads, construction, factories)
★ Little Italy had highest Italian concentration
○ Italian Socialist Federation (1908)
○ Italian mafia activity (1920’s)
○ Italian Warfare Council (1945)

4. Demographics

5. Demographics (cont’d.)
★ 60607
★ Although predominantly white, Little Italy is somewhat diverse in terms of ethnicity.
★ Population:
○ 22,964 in 2011 (http://www.city-data.com/zipmaps/Chicago-Illinois.html#60607)
○ Students (UIC)
○ Italian families
○ “Young Professionals”
○ Almost an even distribution of males vs. females (51.7% & 41.3%, respectively)

6. Points of Interest
★ National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame
○ Vince Lombardi
○ Joe DiMaggio
★ Our Lady of Pompeii Catholic Church
○ Est. 1911
○ Converted to a shrine
★ Arrigo Park
○ Statue of Christopher Colombus
★ Francesca’s on Taylor
○ Best ranked restaurant
○ Extensive menu with classics
★ The Hull House
○ Social and education programs
○ Jane Addams

7. Reflections
★ Alice The area of Chicago that Little Italy is in is so unique! Walking down the street you were
able to see pretty parks and beautiful, row-style houses. It had such a nice feel and was a side
that I had never seen of Chicago!
★ Arianna I really enjoyed travelling to Little Italy! I had no idea that it was so close to our campus,
and it was a really beautiful place to go and walk around on a nice day. I would like to go back to
try some restaurants and visit the shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii.
★ Fariha The most interesting part of this project was actually the trip to and from Little Italy. I felt
like taking the CTA and walking to Little Italy really helped to see a different side of Chicago. It is
a beautiful and peaceful area. I would definitely go back!
★ Kaylee Visiting Little Italy was really fun and adventurous. I loved the long train ride and vibes
the neighborhood gave off. I look forward to heading back there later on in the year to try some
local restaurants.
★ Simon

8. Citations
★ "Little Italy, a Chicago Neighborhood Visitor Guide from Chicago Traveler."
Little Italy, a Chicago Neighborhood Visitor Guide from Chicago Traveler.
N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.
★ "Little Italy." Urbanspoon. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.