Little Village, often referred to as the "Mexico of the Midwest," is a dense community in the western and central areas of South Lawndale, with a major commercial district along 26th Street. The area was originally settled by Eastern European and Czech immigrants mainly from Bohemia in the late 19th century, after the Great Chicago Fire sent the population of Chicago rippling out from the city's center to the outlying countryside. Jobs created by industrial development in the early 20th century also attracted residents to the area. Little Village saw a marked increase in Polish immigrants in the mid-20th century.[4]
The Mexican population of the Near West Side moved southward into Pilsen and westward into South Lawndale after the expansion of the University of Illinois Chicago campus in the mid-1960s which razed numerous blocks of housing.[5] Scholar Juan C. Guerra notes that "the contiguous communities of Pilsen and Little Village merged and emerged as the newest and largest Mexican neighborhood in Chicago."[6]
Little Village celebrates Mexican Independence Day every September with a parade down 26th Street. It is the largest Hispanic parade in Chicago. The Parade attracts thousands of spectators each year who flock to the neighborhood to show support and pride for their heritage.[7]
Little Village is also a significant economic engine for Chicago, with its 26th Street constituting the second highest grossing shopping district in the city.[8] In 2015, the two mile street generated roughly $900 million in sales. By comparison Michigan Avenue, Chicago's highest grossing street, made approximately $1.8 billion that same year.[9]
Little Village residents enjoy access to green space and recreation through a number of community parks. Washtenaw Park has a baseball diamond and offers a variety of arts and crafts classes for adults as well as day camps for kids. Shedd Park is a smaller park in Little Village named for John G. Shedd (known to most Chicagoans as the founder of the Shedd Aquarium). Piotrowski Park is the neighborhood's largest public park and is the most popular outdoor retreat for Little Village residents.
Famous past residents of Little Village include former Mayor Anton Cermak, who lived in the 2300 block of S. Millard Avenue, across the street from Lazaro Cardenas Elementary. Pat Sajak was also a Little Village resident. He attended Gary Elementary School and Farragut High School.
In 2011, a music festival called Villapalooza was founded to promote non-violent spaces for arts, culture, and community engagement. This festival has been held yearly and has grown into one of Chicago's most popular and diverse grassroots music festivals drawing both local and international musicians. The festival is free and open to the public.[11]
On August 26, 2018, a fire began early that morning in Little Village. The fire killed ten children, including six children under the age of 12.[12] Investigators stated that the fire started in the back of the building in a ground-floor apartment, which was vacant.[12] The fire was the deadliest residential fire to have occurred in Chicago since 1958.[13] In the aftermath of the fire, multiple violations were found in the apartment where the fire occurred with apartment owner, Merced Gutierrez, appearing in court for the 40 violations found at the site of the fire.
On April 11, 2020, the city of Chicago permitted the implosion of an old smokestack at the Crawford Generating Station in Little Village by Hilco Redevelopment Partners to proceed. This action sent a large cloud of dust particles into the neighborhood sparking outrage and plans for a class action lawsuit.[14] As reported by Mauricio Peña, community activists in Little Village had called upon mayor Lori Lightfoot to stop the implosion before it was carried out, concerned with exposing residents to asbestos and lead, especially during the 2019-2020 coronavirus pandemic.[15]
Enlace Chicago operates within eight Chicago Public Schools in Little Village: Farragut, World Language, Infinity, Social Justice and Multicultural Arts High Schools and at Rosario Castellanos and Madero Middle Schools and Eli Whitney grammar school. "Enlace Chicago Community Schools."
^Cutler, Irving (2006). Chicago: Metropolis of the Mid-Continent, 4th Edition. Southern Illinois University Press. p. 180. ISBN978-0809327027.
^Paral, Rob (2006). "Latinos of the New Chicago". In Koval, John (ed.). The New Chicago: A Social and Cultural Analysis. Temple University Press. p. 108. ISBN1592137725.
^"Mexicans". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
^Guerra, Juan C. (1998). Close to Home: Oral and Literate Practices in a Transnational Mexicano Community. Teachers College Press. p. 34. ISBN9780807737729.
^Alvarez, René Luis. "A Community that Would Not Take 'No' for an Answer: Mexican Americans, the Chicago Public Schools, and the Founding of Benito Juarez High School," Journal of Illinois History (2014) 17:1 pp 78-98. CITED: p. 88.
^Dever, Tim, ed. (September 2007). "Sweet Home Cook County"(PDF). Cook County Clerk. p. 27. Archived from the original(PDF) on May 28, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
