Division Street
I have seen so many changes in the Chicago I once knew as we've wandered around the
city. You can often see the signs of change in the signage. While Sompolski's Alliance Bakery has occupied this retail space for generations, don't let the neon deceive you. Gone are the Sompolski's and their loaves of rye bread, simple butter cookies, Polish chrusciki, faworki, drożdżówka, kremówka, and my personal favorite, kolaczki. Today the store carries macaroons, croissants and other delectable delights catering to a more contemporary clientèle. While maintaining the old Alliance name, evidence of the new line of baked goods can be seen in the brilliant blue copy along the awning flap. The owners may have changed, but the bakery shop's interior still looks exactly the way it did when my Grandmother took me there on regular visits decades ago.
Although the Czar Bar lettering looks old, this sign of the times dates back to the bar's
incarnation as an alternative, punk rock venue in the 1980s and 90s.
This window lettering has survived over 60+ years, from the days of the original Polesia
Czar Club which provided music and dancing for its long, gone Polish patrons.
At first glance the Easy Cocktail Bar sign looks like it may have been hanging over
Division Street for decades. But, it's a new sign, for a new business, in an old building.
The same goes for innjoy. While the retro sign has all the hallmarks of an older signboard,
the wine & dine restaurant opened recently serving the needs of the newest group of neighborhood immigrants.
designslinger]
While signs of change appear everywhere, some things have remained the same. The
old Division Street bathhouse still says Russian and Turkish Baths incarved letters across the top of the 1906 building. I remember when my Father would go to Nate Levine's barber shop on Saturday mornings, sit around with all his cronies, then wander down the street to the bathhouse for a schvitz. I was happy, and
There's more on the old neighborhood in our previous post: Wicker Park, Chicago's Other
Gold Coast.
Posted by designslinger at 9/10/2009 2:30 AM 
Categories: Cities,History,Decorative Arts
Tags: Chicago streets Russian bathhouses Chicago neighborhoods
Categories: Cities,History,Decorative Arts
Tags: Chicago streets Russian bathhouses Chicago neighborhoods
Great post, I love the essay along with the photographs. Too many people think of Division Street as taken over by the new mega bars, but there's still a lot of history there, which you've covered.
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Thanks for the generous compliment! It was quite the stroll down Division, lots of memories and lots of changes.
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