Points of InterestPoints of Interest
The Victory Monument
was built to honor the Eighth Regiment of the Illinois National Guard, an African-American unit that served in France during World War I. It is located in the Black Metropolis-Bronzeville District at the intersection of 35th and King Drive midway. It was designated a Chicago Landmark on September 9, 1998. The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 30, 1986. A Memorial Day ceremony is held at the monument annually.
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Douglas Tomb State Historic Site
Burial site of Stephen Arnold Douglas [1813-1861] at 36th Street near Lake Shore Drive. He was nicknamed "The Little Giant" for his short stature, large head, and broad shoulders. He was the Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860. He lost to the Republican Party's candidate, Abraham Lincoln, whom he had defeated in 1858 in a Senate contest following a famed series of debates.
Douglas supported the Dred Scott Supreme Court decision of 1857, and denied that it was part of a Southern plot to introduce slavery in the Northern states; but also argued it could not be effective when the people of a territory declined to pass laws supporting it. When President James Buchanan and his Southern allies attempted to pass a Federal slave code, to support slavery even against the wishes of the people of Kansas, he battled and defeated this movement as undemocratic. This caused the split in the Democratic Party in 1860, as Douglas won the nomination but a breakaway southern faction nominated their own candidate, Vice President John C. Breckinridge. Douglas deeply believed in democracy, arguing the will of the people should always be decisive. He rallied his supporters to the Union with all his energies. Stricken with typhoid, he died on June 3,1861 in Chicago, two months after the Fort Sumter incident that started the Civil War.
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Chicago Military Academy at Bronzeville
at 3519 S. Giles Avenue serves as an anchor of the Bronzeville revitalization effort. The Chicago Public Schools (CPS), in conjunction with the Mayor’s Office, Chicago Park District, Illinois National Guard, and Department of Defense, established a plan to renovate the Eighth Regiment Armory building located at 3519 South Giles. The armory, located within the heart of the Chicago’s historic Bronzeville area, is a historical landmark. The Armory was constructed in 1915 to provide refuge for the all black 9th Infantry Battalion, which fought in the Pancho Villa Campaign at the Mexican border. It was later reorganized as the 8th Infantry and was comprised of “all black” officers and soldiers from the State of Illinois.
The Academy is the site of National African-American Military Museum, which will display artifacts and memorabilia of the black commanded “Fighting Eighth” Illinois National Guard Regiment and other honorable veterans.
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Bronzeville Gateway Obelisks - State Street at 35th St.
What are the commonalities between the sounds of Louis Armstrong, the athleticism of the Harlem Globetrotters and the poetic ingenuity of Gwendolyn Brooks? They all have entrenched roots in Bronzeville, Chicago… and these are only a few of the many famed that have ties to Bronzeville.
To commemorate these accomplishments for the “Black Metropolis,” The Bronzeville Merchants Association (BMA)/Obelisk Project Committee is taking monumental strides to embrace its rich history and celebrate its expanding future. To permanently immortalize this historical impact, ten obelisks have been cast, each inscribed with historical facts and information regarding Bronzeville’s impact on Entertainment & Sports, Education, Politics, Medical & Business, Social and Civic & Religion. The 4,000 pound 6’ by 3’ monuments are to be installed throughout Bronzeville.
The first two Gateways to Bronzeville are installed on the North East and South East corners of 35th and State Street. The second Gateway will be located at the midway of 35th and King Drive, along with the others distributed throughout Bronzeville at later dates.
