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A little about Old Town

From artsy to affluent, this historic neighborhood has been home to immigrant families, gays, hippies and young professionals alike over the years. An incredibly popular neighborhood destination, largely because of its close proximity to the lake and downtown, Old Town keeps up a lively pace day and night. Victorian-era buildings, brick alleyways and narrow, tree-lined streets are charming backdrops to a busy main strip that runs along Wells Street between North Avenue and Division Street. For entertainment, comedy takes center stage—with The Second City and Zanies Comedy Club providing the laughs—and the resident theater scene is stellar as well. Shopping is quite eclectic as you can pick up specialty spice blends, imported olive oils, chunks of fudge, rare wines and premium cigars all in one single spree down Wells.

The history of Old Town

The land known as Old Town originally served as a home and trade center to many Nations including Potawatomi, Miami and Illinois.[5] Following the Treaty of Chicago in 1833, most of the indigenous people were forcibly removed, and the land was then settled in the 1850s by German-Catholic immigrants. Clark Street is a leftover of the culture, it being an old road which followed the high point next to Lake Michigan. Old Town is home to many of Chicago's older, Victorian-era buildings. The neighborhood is also home to St. Michael's Church, originally a Bavarian-built church, and one of 7 to survive the path of the Great Chicago Fire.[6] Many of the streets and alleys, particularly in the Old Town Triangle section, predate the Great Chicago Fire and do not all adhere to a typical Chicago grid pattern.