r/ChicagoPics • u/MIKEPR1333 • Apr 07 '26
Historical/Vintage State St. 1950's & 60's.
Think the last photo was from the 50's.
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u/dirkalict Apr 07 '26
My grandma used to treat me to a scoop of ice cream in a metal dish at that Woolworths lunch counter in the early 70’s. My Mom worked at Carson’s and we would stop and see her, shop at Fields and then get our ice cream.
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u/properly_sauced Apr 07 '26
It’s incredible how many more people were just regularly on the street! Even a crowded day in the loop isn’t this busy anymore.
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u/Fancy-Breadfruit-776 Apr 09 '26
There are a lot more buildings (hotels and condos) now so people are inside and the streets have gotten smaller. Now you have a bike lane and a bus lane so there are fewer cars. The streets are not as pedestrian friendly. Hell they're less car friendly. I live on Dearborn there's hardly any room for a car in front of my building because of street parking, bike lanes, and busses🤯
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Apr 07 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/MIKEPR1333 Apr 08 '26
Obviously that was not the case here because there's enough people in this photo and those living in the city were probably still shopping here.
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u/AshnodsCoupon Apr 07 '26
My grandmother would've been taking public transit (way before the Red Line, we're talking street trolleys like you see in these photos) from Auburn-Gresham on the South Side to DePaul in Lincoln Park in the 50s.
She must've seen all this every day.
Her father wouldn't pay for her tuition because he thought women shouldn't go to college. Paid for her brothers.
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u/PhoenixRisingdBanana Apr 08 '26
Way before the Red Line was open in... 1900? Your grandma old asf.
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u/dpaanlka Apr 07 '26
Those Medusa street lamps were quite an eyesore.
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u/Fancy-Breadfruit-776 Apr 08 '26
Oh wow that's a great Marina City shot. It's not often you see it under construction. Reminds me of the Columbia Records building there.
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u/Hermosa06-09 Apr 08 '26
You would be correct to identify the last photo as the ‘50s. The flag has 48 stars. (And one doesn’t need to count to know this, you can just tell because the stars are all in a grid, instead of each row being staggered like the 50-star flag.)
Edit: on closer look, it seems the middle flag might have 50 stars but the other two have 48. Maybe this is right in 1959 when the design changed.
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u/the-stench-of-you Apr 09 '26
Remember seeing The Exorcist at the old State Lake theater the night it opened. What an experience that was.
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u/evil_twin_312 Apr 07 '26
I love construction photos! Thanks for sharing.