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In 1999, I was invited by Richard Cahan to participate in Chicago in the Year 2000, a project supported by the Comer Foundation. I used this opportunity to photograph my neighborhood.
Bridgeport, on the near South side, is a typical Chicago neighborhood with a long history that derives its name from the port off the Chicago River. It has a number of longtime residents and many of Chicago's politicians come from this area, not the least of these, the current Mayor and, of course, his father, the late Richard J. Daley. The old Chicago Stockyards are immediately south of here, Chinatown, immediately to the northeast, and downtown is 5 minutes to the north. This is solid White Sox territory, and my husband is a Cubs fan.
Bridgeport had a certain reputation for being hard and insular, but the underlying reality of those who live here is a far cry from what is generally exported. It is a working class neighborhood, and has its divisions. Prime property is east of Halsted with a smattering of well established families. The north end of Bridgeport has numerous Chinese families mixed in with Italian Men's Clubs, Mexican families, Irish families, Polish, Italian, Lithuanian, Jewish, |
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PuertoRican, African-Americans, and St. Jerome, the Croatian Catholic Church, still has a large following of Croatian families. The north end of Bridgeport has numerous Chinese families mixed in with Italian Men's Clubs, Mexican families, Irish families, Polish, Italian, Lithuanian, Jewish, PuertoRican, African-Americans, and St. Jerome, the Croatian Catholic Church, still has a large following of Croatian families. The city of Chicago may have its parades for 'national' holidays, but Bridgeport celebrates church related events and parades on the side streets. When was the last time many of us could see a parade pass by our living room window?
Like many older city neighborhoods, Bridgeport was a place that housed the butcher, the baker, and had a tavern on nearly every corner. Just like other neighborhoods, the economics of Mom and Pop shops facing the rise of big box stores turned corner stores into apartments. The neighborhood has a tired old look to it, but it's ripe for young energetic couples and developers.
One of the unwritten mottos of Bridgeport residents is, 'Born in Bridgeport, raised in Bridgeport, died in Bridgeport.' A new and different generation is moving in and property values have tripled in seven years. Bridgeport is changing. |
