Curious City

WBEZ Chicago

4.6 (628)
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Ask questions, vote and discover answers about Chicago, the region and its people. From WBEZ.

HACE 5 H

‘Indigenous Chicago’ project shows the city has always been a Native place

November is National Native American Heritage Month, a time to celebrate and recognize the history, culture and contributions of Indigenous people in our country. If you look around Chicago, you see echoes of Native American history in names like Washtenaw, Skokie and Wabash. But Indigenous history is often presented from a settler or non-Native perspective. Today, we get into a project out of the Newberry Library called “Indigenous Chicago.” Through art, education and collaboration, its goal is to change the dominant narratives about Chicago’s history with the overarching message: Chicago is, and always has been, a Native place. It all began a few years ago with conversations within the Native community. “One of the things we heard over and over again was this issue of invisibility,” said Rose Miron, director of the D’Arcy McNickle Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies. “Native community members found that there were far too many people who didn’t understand the long history of Chicago as an Indigenous place, but also didn’t realize that there was a large contemporary community here today.” “Indigenous Chicago” is a collaboration between representatives of tribal nations and includes multimedia art, oral histories, public programs, educational curriculum and an exhibition. Curious City’s Erin Allen spoke with curators Miron and Analú María López, the Ayer Librarian and assistant curator of American Indian and Indigenous Studies.

20 min
HACE 1 DÍA

Without Native Americans, Would We Have Chicago As We Know It?

Chicago histories usually start in 1830, but Native Americans were already settled in the region long before that. Curious City fills you in on what some history books are missing.

13 min
14 NOV

Bodegas, ‘The Bear’ and why family business is the ‘backbone of the economy’

When you think of a family business, one of two images probably comes to mind: either the mom and pop shop around the corner or the dysfunctional family from “Succession.” But actually, “it could be anything,” says Jennifer M. Pendergast, family enterprise consultant and professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Last episode, we looked into the oldest family business in Chicago. And this got us thinking about family enterprise in general: Why do family members end up in business together? What happens when they do? Should they? Curious City’s Erin Allen sat down with Pendergast to talk about this, plus why she says family business is the “backbone of the economy.”

20 min
13 NOV

What’s The Oldest Family Business in Chicago?

Tracking down the oldest family business in the city is not as easy as it seems. The city’s business records only go back to 2002. Time for a fishing expedition.

8 min
7 NOV

‘So many connections:’ Chicago indicator species are trying to tell us something

A Curious City listener wanted to know about the decline of frogs in our area. We looked into what’s been happening with these species over the last couple decades in Chicago. It turns out, frogs are some of the animals we call “indicator species.” How well or poorly they’re doing in their habitat can tell us about the health of our own. And they’re not the only ones; there are numerous plants and animals that serve as nature’s alarm system, so to speak. Erin Allen talks with conservation researcher, Dr. Allison Sacerdote-Velat, about the indicator species that are most vital to us in the Chicago area and why we should be paying attention.

17 min
6 NOV

“It’s Not Easy Being Green”: The Decline Of Frogs In Chicago

Frogs have been on the decline in the Chicago area. The health of the frog population tells us a lot about the health of our environment.

7 min
31 OCT

“Spooky and salacious:” Do we need to rethink prison tourism?

It’s spooky season, a time when we often visit haunted houses and think about the paranormal. And if you live in the Chicago area, you’ve probably seen billboards and ads for the Old Joliet Haunted Prison. But at one point, it was an actual prison. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, questions about the paranormal can serve as an entry into the historical context of a place. Last episode, we visited the Old Joliet Prison to look into a lister’s question about whether it’s haunted. And that got us thinking about the ethics of “prison tourism.” Is it OK to take a place where people suffered and died and turn it into a site of entertainment? Today, we get into this question and more with Hope Corrigan, who reported on it for The Marshall Project.

19 min
30 OCT

Who Or What Haunts The Old Joliet Prison?

The Old Joliet Prison has been around since the 1800s. Some visitors swear they’ve experienced the paranormal there. But do ghost stories detract from the specter of a truly dark history?

7 min

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4.6

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628 calificaciones

Love the unique and interesting topics

19 oct

Charmane Michelle

I love the unique and interesting Chicago stories brought to light by this team at WBEZ!!! Thank you
Memory Lane in my Chicago

23 jul

trying2Brational

Such great episodes about so much Chicago history! I am taken back to my childhood memories all the way ahead to today with so many little known experiences. Nothing phony here. The guests are real Chicagoans, telling their memories of the city I love. Subscribe and binge away.
Was great. Now brief and shallow

7 sept

shikawgo

This podcast WAS great for digging into interesting Chicago related topics of all kinds. But…recently, it’s become incredibly short and shallowly researched little blips of info. 7 minutes long to delve into a topic?? They barely even scratch the surface anymore. Do they think that everyone has short attention spans now? Or some kind of budget cuts made and they just don’t have the time or people to put in decent work? Regardless of the reasons, it’s a shadow of its former self.
Such short episodes

21 ago

mynameishel

I miss the days when Curious Chicago had episodes that were longer than 5 minutes. There are so many great topics- why not go more in depth?