Chicago During the 1880's

"The city is a vortex of human activity. The type of

vortex is shown now and then by a smoker who turns

up his face and sends a little wreath of smoke up

toward the ceiling. Observe that wreath. It is shaped

like a doughnut. The particles of smoke go up in the

center, turn out radially, come back into coherence, unity,

individuality. It is a system in dynamic equilibrium.

And one may visualize the city in just these terms. It

is a vortex, into which there is a continual flow of people

and of food and other commodities, and out of which

there is a flow of people and of goods more or less

transformed.

-J. Paul Goode, The Geographic Background of Chicago

Introduction

During the 1880's people flocked to Chicago for the chance of employment and opportunity. But what separated Chicago from...