Curious City

Chicago, Milwaukee or Detroit: Which city has the best encased meats?

In Chicago, it’s the Chicago dog. In Milwaukee, the bratwurst. In Detroit, the Coney dog.  Each is a little different, but their origin stories are connected.   In a lim

How Ella Jenkins’ Chicago childhood shaped her iconic children’s music

From school assemblies to “Mr. Rogers Neighborhood,” Ella Jenkins was a rhythm specialist and children’s music pioneer. Her childhood in Chicago was her launching pad. 

Did Chicago invent the rage room? A look inside “the Frustration Room”

The Frustration Room appeared in a Chicago motel in 1962 and offered visitors the opportunity to smash objects — like a lamp base, a lightbulb or an ashtray — in a space

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 been seen since the early 1900s,

Why 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 looks into why, and whether the i

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, who give lunchroom offerings m

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. Decades later and Chicago still has

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’re there. A Curious City liste

“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 City spoke with three bands that

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 ecologies.

‘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 Rosenwald, did not want to put his o

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 quite measure up to the five Great

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 the catalog guy who revolutioniz

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 magicians who are part of the traditio

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 question on the minds of many C

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 spearheaded by Jerry Marcocci

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 certificates. That’s caused concern f

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 at the long history Filipinos

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 government’s immigration enforcemen

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 Mussolini during the 1933-1934