Canaryville

Canaryville has struggled with social isolation throughout its history on Chicago's Southwest side: what little reputation it has city-wide is of hostility towards outsiders, especially those who fall outside its Irish Catholic populace. While no social ill, especially racism, can be attributed solely to structure rather than to the choices of the individuals who perpetrate it, more social connection with people from around Chicago, the Great Lakes region, and the country at large can be hugely beneficial in assuaging fear, hatred, and the perceived need for an in-group mentality in the face of marginalization. Canaryville is small, but by no means does that relegate it to a destiny as a poor residential area adjacent to the amenities that make Chicago a world-class city. On the contrary, Canaryville could be part of what makes Chicago great rather than what make it daily headline fodder if it were more connected to the rest of the city both physically and socially. More connection would be a boon for the small businesses already making their home in Canaryville and provide residents with access to some of the best things about their city.

Canaryville struggles to connect with the rest of Chicago: its limited reputation is of hostility towards outsiders. Images (clockwise from top left) are from The Chicago Tribune, The History Channel, and The New York Times.

I have designed three interventions with the goal of weaving Canaryville into the social fabric of Greater Chicago: an extension of the bus route marked in red, a block party along West 43rd Street marked in blue, and a new museum dedicated to the history of the Union Stock Yard, for potential sites for which are marked in green. Image is my own illustration overlaid on an excerpt of Google Maps.

First up in the process of connecting Canaryville to the rest of Chicago and vice versa is improving public transit access to the neighborhood. As of now, Canaryville is served most directly by the 8 bus, which runs north and south on Halsted Street, the 43 bus, which runs east and west on 43rd Street, and the 44 bus, which runs north to the Orange Line stop at Archer Avenue and Halsted Street, where it stops.

Canaryville is serviced by three main buses, the 43, 44, and 8, none of which go to the transit hub of Chicago. Image from the Chicago Transit Authority with the approximate boundaries of Canaryville outlined in purple.

For better or for worse, all train lines in the Chicago Transit Authority system convene in the Loop, making it Chicago's transit hub. Because Canaryville has no direct access to the Loop, riders must transfer two or three times to reach their destination. This makes venturing into or out of Canaryville on transit more expensive, more confusing, and more time-consuming. If the 44 bus ran directly through the Loop rather than stopping at Archer Avenue, it would cut one transfer off of most travel to and from Canaryville. I propose extending the 44 bus route through the loop, across the Chicago River, and all the way to the intersection of State Street and Division Avenue in River North. This change would give Canaryville residents access to downtown jobs, many of Chicago's museums and cultural centers, and the shores of Lake Michigan. Just as crucially, it would make it easier for other Chicagoans and visitors to come visit what Canaryville has to offer.

Canaryville and surrounding communities would benefit from the current 44 bus route, drawn here in red, were extended through the Loop (my proposed extension is drawn in blue). Image from Google Maps with added drawing by me.

One of Canaryville's most distinctive features is its strong Irish Catholic heritage, exemplified in Saint Day celebrations that include fairs and parades.

An outdoor decoration left over from a recent Saint Day celebration. Photograph is my own.

Catholicism has the power to be a unifying force in Chicago, playing a prevalent role in ethnic communities as disparate as Filipino, Puerto Rican, Polish, Mexican, and Irish. My second recommendation for connecting Canaryville to the rest of the city is to invite neighbors from across Chicagoland to these celebrations. Chicago's summer block parties are a highlight of the year, and they bring people together for food, laughter, and community bonding. A main stage could showcase Canaryville musicians while local artisans sell wares from covered booths along with local businesses and food vendors. Canaryville's public space along the main commercial drag would be activated by a community event that closes traffic and focuses on connecting with others.

This picture shows a sweet day to be had by all at this block party held by The Silver Room in Hyde Park in Summer of 2016. Image from the Hyde Park Herald.

The final part of my three-pronged approach to bringing Canaryville closer to the center of Chicago's public life is to establish a tribute to the neighborhood's history that draws people from all over to learn about its interesting past and experience its present charm.

The Union Stock Yard Gate, located at the western edge of Canaryville, is a National Historic Landmark and the only formal commemoration of the Union Stock Yard in the place where it existed. Image from the Chicago Postcard Museum.

Canaryville's history started in tandem with the history of the Union Stock Yard, the giant meatpacking company that was the cornerstone of Chicago's infamous meatpacking industry. This industry, popularized in Upton Sinclair's novel The Jungle, has remained central to Chicago's historical imagination. It is one of the parts of Chicago's history that tourists are most interested in learning, and thus far there has been no institution dedicated to the study of this history in the place where it transpired. To address this need, I would like to establish a museum in or adjacent to Canaryville that contains artifacts and resources to teach visitors about how meat was processed, the lives led by stockyard workers, and the lasting effect Chicago's meatpacking industry had on the city and the country at large. I have outlined four potential sites for a museum focused on the Union Stock Yards: two that are abandoned meatpacking plants in which animals were processed, and two rail yards in which the meat was shipped across the country. This small museum would create jobs for Canaryville's people, and bring geographically diverse connections right to their home neighborhood.

With these three projects, I hope to raise awareness within and outside of Canaryville that this small neighborhood is part of what makes Chicago great, rather than just a residential neighborhood adjacent to the cosmopolitan areas of a world-class city. The first step towards that goal is physical, emotional, and social connection with other neighborhoods and diverse people and parts of the city.