How did a native Chicago plant disappear forever?
Thismia americana enjoys near-cult-status among Chicago botanists, ecologists and plant enthusiasts. The tiny, bell-shaped flower hasn't bee...
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Curious City
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20 of 664 episodesWhy is the island in Washington Park behind a locked gate?
Bynum Island was once a gem in Chicago’s Washington Park, but now it’s abandoned, overgrown and inaccessible to the public. Curious City loo...
School lunch used to ace the test
Former Chicago Public Schools students say school lunch used to be delicious decades ago. That comes as a surprise to current CPS students,...
Shipwrecks, mussels and sponges: Chicago is a scuba diving destination
One of the world’s largest scuba organizations was founded in the Chicago suburbs by Portage Park pool swim instructor Ralph Erickson. Decad...
Chicago has many block club signs. What are block clubs and what do they do?
Block club signs are all over the city, usually welcoming you to the neighborhood or telling you what you should or should not do while you’...
“Like getting paid to party”: The life of cover bands on the Chicago festival circuit
Once summer hits, local cover bands are busy working Chicago’s many street festivals. What’s life like for cover band musicians? Curious Cit...
Is that a lobster in the Chicago River?
It’s an invasive species that doesn’t seem harmful at first glance. But if they go unchecked, these little things can disrupt local ecologie...
‘Give while you live’: Who is Museum of Science and Industry founder Julius Rosenwald?
The Museum of Science and Industry was renamed in 2024 in recognition of megadonor Ken Griffin. The museum’s original founder, Julius Rosenw...
A good lake, not a Great Lake
For a brief moment in the 1990s, Lake Champlain was known as the sixth Great Lake. The lake wedged between Vermont and New York doesn’t quit...
Why does Chicago have so little love for the ‘Watchdog’ of the lakefront?
The name Aaron Montgomery Ward might sound familiar, either from the chain of now-defunct department stores that once bore his name or as th...
Is This Your Card? A Brief History Of Chicago-style Magic
Chicago-style magic is close up, funny and usually performed at a bar or restaurant. We learn about its history and talk to several magician...
Where did the term 'Chicagoland' come from?
There’s no New York-land or Boston-land, so why does the Chicago metropolitan area have its own unique name? It turns out this has been a qu...
How did Hollywood Beach become Chicago’s ‘gay beach’?
The stretch of beach that starts where DuSable Lake Shore Drive ends wasn’t always as vibrant or as ‘gay’ as it is today. Its transition was...
Why does Chicago use Comic Sans on some elevator inspection certificates?
Comic Sans often signals levity or sarcasm. The font is occasionally used for a key phrase in some official city elevator inspection certifi...
Does Chicago have a Filipino neighborhood?
A concentrated Filipino community area is not as easy to spot as neighborhoods like Chinatown or Little Village. In this episode, we’ll look...
Why are there helicopters flying over my neighborhood every night?
Curious City listeners wondered if helicopters they heard buzzing around their Chicago neighborhoods at night were part of the federal gover...
Why does Chicago have a monument named for fascist leader Italo Balbo?
There’s an ancient Roman column in Chicago hidden in plain sight near Soldier Field. It was a gift given by Italian Fascist dictator Benito...
Standing on history: Who built Chicago’s WPA sidewalks?
Have you ever noticed a branded stamp in the sidewalk? Keen-eyed Chicagoans have found some that date back to Depression-era infrastructure...
‘This is how I speak’: The influence of the Black Chicago accent
A person’s accent can influence the way they are perceived. When it comes to broadcast journalism, the way a person talks is front and cente...
How has the Black Chicago accent retained its Southern roots?
How have Black Chicagoans kept so many features of the Southern dialect? To answer starts with the Great Migration.