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Did you ever wonder why Downtown Chicago is also called The Loop? The Loop is the name for the elevated rail system that forms the downtown hub of the Chicago CTA “L” system. It services about 75,000 riders a day and was historically called The Union Loop. It is 1.79 miles long and loops around a rectangle comprised of Lake Street (north side), Wabash Avenue (east), Van Buren Street (south) and Wells Street (west). It was constructed by Charles Yerkes in 1897. It includes these stations: Clark/Lake, State/Lake, Washington/Wabash, Adams/Wabash, Harold Washington Library – State/Van Buren, Lasalle/Van Buren, Quincy, Washington/Wells and Clinton. Five train lines run through The Loop “L”: Orange, Green, Purple Express, Brown and Pink.

The Ogden Union Station is a train station in Ogden Utah near Historic 25th Street. It is also near the Ogden Intermodal Transit Center. It was formerly the junction of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads. The first station was built in 1869 and a new more functional station was built in 1889 in the Romanesque Revival Style, with a large clock tower in the center. It had 33 hotel rooms, a restaurant, barbershop and other stores. That building was destroyed by fire and the current structure was completed in 1924 in the Spanish Colonial Revival style

The building is no longer a railway hub (train activity stopped in 1997), but rather a cultural hub that houses museums and stores such as the Utah State Railroad Museum, the Eccles Rail Center, the Browning Firearms Museum, Utah Cowboy and Western Museum and the Browning-Kimball Classic Car Museum.

I recently traveled to Utah for work. I was fortunate to be able to take in some sights in Salt Lake City, Utah. I saw some beautiful artwork at Salt Lake City International Airport, beautiful historical homes, downtown malls and shopping district and of course the Mormon Temple (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) and Temple Square.

The Fulton-Randolph Market District (commonly known as Fulton Market) is a district on Chicago’s West Side. It was originally a meat-packing and food processing district. But today it is highly gentrified with tech industry headquarters, hotels, bars and restaurants. The main East and West streets are Randolph Street and Lake Street, and Halsted Street is the main North-South street. It is named after Robert Fulton, who was an American inventor. Just to the East is the Fulton River District.

It received City of Chicago Landmark District status in 2015. It’s 74 acres and is served by CTA Green and Pink “L” lines at Morgan Station.

It is currently home to to many corporate headquarters, such as McDonald’s, Google, Dyson, Herman Miller and Mondelez.

Water Street Mall is located at 11 – 13 South Water Street in downtown Aurora Illinois near Aurora City Hall. The North end is at Galena and there’s also an entryway at Downer Place. There’s an adjoining park called Mundy Park. It is a city park (and pedestrian mall) that hosts various downtown events and markets. The mall is newly renovated. Renovation was just completed in June, just in time for the Downtown Magic Festival. It will also be hosting the Alley Art Festival August 31, 2019, which is a grassroots art festival showcasing the talent of more than 60 artists!

Along with Aurora City Hall, businesses at Water Street Mall include the Riverfront Playhouse and The Venue.

It is a beautiful park that symbolizes the increasing beauty that is the City of Aurora!

The Chicago French Market is located at 131 North Clinton Street (between Washington and Randolph) right next to Ogilvie Transportation Center. This West Loop Market has over 30 local vendors that offer a variety of foods from different cultures. There’s Chinese, Korean, Belgian, French, Ethiopian, Kosher, Vietnamese and much more!

It was opened in 2009 by the Bensidoun Family. It has the look of a European Market but offers all locally made Chicago products. It has a nice eating area/cafe in the back with beautiful murals of Paris, such as the Eiffel Tower. I went last week and had delicious and spicy authentic Korean soup with pork dumplings and bought a Walnut Strudel to take home. It is conveniently located in the downtown area right next to Ogilvie Station and within walking distance of Union Station and most of downtown. It’s definitely worth the trip. I already know it’ll be one of my regular lunch spots!

Gately’s People’s Department Store was located at 112th Street and Michigan Avenue in the Roseland neighborhood. The store was open from 1917 until 1981. The store claimed it sold “Everything for the Home” as stated on the side of the building. In its early days, it was considered to be the largest store on Michigan Avenue.

During the holidays children could visit with Santa and the windows were decorated for Christmas. The shoe department had an X-Ray or flouroscope machine where you could see the bones in your feet. You could also get a haircut there. They also had a restaurant that served the Shoppers Special – a full meatloaf meal for $1 with a slice of blueberry cobbler or crunch cake. They even had a second fast food restaurant in the basement – the Green River Hot Dog Stand and kids could eat from the Donut Machine and ride on the Donut Train while their parents shopped!

The owner, Mr. Gately could be seen walking through the stores making his rounds to the different departments making sure customers were getting the products and assistance needed.

The building that formerly housed Gately’s People’s Department Store was destroyed by fire last Friday………………………….but these nice memories plus many others will forever remain in our thoughts!

*Note – Photos are from Wikipedia and Chicago Tribune

Naper Settlement is located in Naperville Illinois at 523 S. Webster Street. It’s an outdoor history village museum that has 30 historical buildings and structures documenting the history of the settlement of Naperville Illinois from the founding of the town in 1831 through the 20th century. Many of the buildings were moved there from their original locations and refurbished in a style fitting the period or replicated. It was established in 1969 on 12 acres of land given to the City of Naperville in 1936 by Caroline Martin Mitchell.

It is operated by the Naperville Heritage Society in partnership with the City of Naperville. With a commitment to the community and a focus on the future, the Naperville Heritage Society collects, documents, preserves and supports the history of Naperville Illinois to present day.

I hope you enjoy these photos of Downtown Naperville and the Historic District.

Last week my friend Suzette and I visited Chicago’s Chinatown neighborhood. We had a wonderful time walking around and taking in the culture of the neighborhood. We explored beautiful artwork, stores and buildings and had a delicious lunch of Teriyaki Chicken at the Richland Center Food Court. Chinatown is easily accessible from Downtown Chicago. You take the CTA Red Line train to the Cermak/Chinatown stop.