Community Chat

[Gooday]

We moved from the street my grandparents bought homes on back in the late 20's. My mom was born in the house and when she and my dad married, they bought the cottage across the alley and her 2 sisters lived in the 2 flat on the front of the property. This was in the city of Chicago. In the early 60's the well known race riots started and white flight ensued. My grandparents died 5 days apart from each other in 1962. My mom and her sisters/families all moved.

When DH was a police officer and my old neighborhood was part of his beat. Our house became a burned out empty lot. My grandparents house still stood with the original "C" initial on the awning and door. To this day, it is considered a very dangerous area of the city.

[naturalfan]

On 4/7/2015 Gooday said:

We moved from the street my grandparents bought homes on back in the late 20's. My mom was born in the house and when she and my dad married, they bought the cottage across the alley and her 2 sisters lived in the 2 flat on the front of the property. This was in the city of Chicago. In the early 60's the well known race riots started and white flight ensued. My grandparents died 5 days apart from each other in 1962. My mom and her sisters/families all moved.

When DH was a police officer and my old neighborhood was part of his beat. Our house became a burned out empty lot. My grandparents house still stood with the original "C" initial on the awning and door. To this day, it is considered a very dangerous area of the city.

Hi Gooday - I also grew up in Chicago and isn't it funny how different things can be just a few miles or even blocks down the road? The working class Chicago neighborhood I grew up in had gone through some bad times and is now a really thriving area (see my post #17). I grew up in the Lakeview neighborhood and that is really a sought after area now.

[Deb1010again]

Still there and still a very nice neighborhood. But I've heard they've got more bears coming into the neighborhood. It's upstate NY.

[Gooday]

On 4/7/2015 naturalfan said:

On 4/7/2015 Gooday said:

We moved from the street my grandparents bought homes on back in the late 20's. My mom was born in the house and when she and my dad married, they bought the cottage across the alley and her 2 sisters lived in the 2 flat on the front of the property. This was in the city of Chicago. In the early 60's the well known race riots started and white flight ensued. My grandparents died 5 days apart from each other in 1962. My mom and her sisters/families all moved.

When DH was a police officer and my old neighborhood was part of his beat. Our house became a burned out empty lot. My grandparents house still stood with the original "C" initial on the awning and door. To this day, it is considered a very dangerous area of the city.

Hi Gooday - I also grew up in Chicago and isn't it funny how different things can be just a few miles or even blocks down the road? The working class Chicago neighborhood I grew up in had gone through some bad times and is now a really thriving area (see my post #17). I grew up in the Lakeview neighborhood and that is really a sought after area now.

Holy heck!! Lakeview IS really desirable!

I grew up on the Southside. 7900 South and pretty far east - Sony Island. The area was called Grand Crossing. My grandparents were Sicilian immigrants. It was a very typical working class area.

Lakeview and north of the river is like another world to me.

Today is the mayoral election and it will be interesting to see who wins. We spend half the year in the southwest suburb and the winter is in Az. But..Chicago will ALWAYS be my home town.

[Gooday]

Sorry..."Stony Island", not Sony.

[Citrine1]

I grew up in a middle class neighborhood. It was safe and beautiful. Hard working families with well kept homes. I now live about 30 minutes away and every once in a while drive down just to reminisce. It's so trashy now. Not just my old house or my old street, but the entire neighborhood. It breaks my heart to see how it's changed. I just don't know what's wrong with people that they don't want to take care of things any more.

[naturalfan]

On 4/7/2015 Gooday said:

On 4/7/2015 naturalfan said:

On 4/7/2015 Gooday said:

We moved from the street my grandparents bought homes on back in the late 20's. My mom was born in the house and when she and my dad married, they bought the cottage across the alley and her 2 sisters lived in the 2 flat on the front of the property. This was in the city of Chicago. In the early 60's the well known race riots started and white flight ensued. My grandparents died 5 days apart from each other in 1962. My mom and her sisters/families all moved.

When DH was a police officer and my old neighborhood was part of his beat. Our house became a burned out empty lot. My grandparents house still stood with the original "C" initial on the awning and door. To this day, it is considered a very dangerous area of the city.

Hi Gooday - I also grew up in Chicago and isn't it funny how different things can be just a few miles or even blocks down the road? The working class Chicago neighborhood I grew up in had gone through some bad times and is now a really thriving area (see my post #17). I grew up in the Lakeview neighborhood and that is really a sought after area now.

Holy heck!! Lakeview IS really desirable!

I grew up on the Southside. 7900 South and pretty far east - Sony Island. The area was called Grand Crossing. My grandparents were Sicilian immigrants. It was a very typical working class area.

Lakeview and north of the river is like another world to me.

Today is the mayoral election and it will be interesting to see who wins. We spend half the year in the southwest suburb and the winter is in Az. But..Chicago will ALWAYS be my home town.

We lived in a two flat with my grandparents downstairs and we lived upstairs. I remember going looking at other homes because the neighborhood was really getting rough for a while and the family decided to move. But they held on and the neighborhood finally did a turn around.

[sfnative]

From the time I was born until I was 7, we lived in "The Castro" in San Francisco, near 22nd and Castro: lots of Victorian cottages and houses with lots of gingerbread on them and lots of hills.

Today the area is greatly improved, not that it was bad then, but the Gay communnity moved in and made many wonderful improvements. They are, generally speaking, gifted in the design and refurbishing arts.

[RedHeadedWench]

We went back to our neighborhood about three years ago, and while my husband's home was almost identical to when he lived there, mine was a disaster.

We had several large treed on the property, they were all gone, and the grass was non-existent. There were toys everywhere, and those large plastic climb on types were standing all over.

I cried.

We sat outside the house for about 10 mins while I looked and a person came out and asked what we were doing there...my husband wanted to make a joke and say we were from immigration (he didn't)..and I explained that this was my childhood home, and we drive off.

[pateacher]

My childhood home is still there, but I am so grateful that my parents are no longer around to see it.

My father was a fanatic about cleaning the siding and staining the cedar shingles. He, too, mowed, edged, and weeded. My mother always had beautiful flowers,especially on the patio. Our home was always clean.

Now the neighborhood is just plain ugly. The rose bushes haven't been trimmed in for ever, and no one has done any painting or staining. The garage doors have been replaced by plywood sheets and most of the fir shrubs my father planted are either overgrown or ripped out.

None of our old neighbors have remained. They were the last residents who took the time to make their property clean, neat, and attractive. Our old neighborhood was friendly, safe, and attractive. That's all gone now.