Little Italy is a neighborhood in Chicago that was settled by Italian immigrants in the late 19th century. It became a center of Italian culture and community in the city, with many Italian families and organizations located there. Today it remains a diverse but predominantly white area with a population around 23,000 people, including students from the nearby University of Illinois at Chicago and families with Italian heritage. Points of interest in Little Italy include the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame, Our Lady of Pompeii Catholic Church, Arrigo Park, and Francesca's restaurant.

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

2. Little Italy!

3. 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.

4. 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)

5. Demographics

6. Demographics (cont’d.)
★ 60607
★ Although predominantly white, Little Italy is
somewhat diverse in terms of ethnicity.
★ Population:
○ 22,964 in 2011
○ Students (UIC)
○ Italian families
○ “Young Professionals”
○ Almost an even distribution of males vs. females (51.7% & 41.3%, respectively)

7. 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

8. 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 Switching from the red line to the blue line was a new experience. We encountered a
street performer. One of the most memorable things about Little Italy was seeing all the foreign
names on the mailboxes and street names.

9. 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.
★ N/A. "Chicago, Illinois (IL) Zip Code Map - Locations, Demographics." - List
of Zip Codes. Onboard Informatics, n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
<http://www.city-data.com/zipmaps/Chicago-Illinois.html#60607>.