Playlist History
History
Revisiting the Great Chicago Fire 149 Years Later
Meredith FrancisThe Great Chicago Fire: A Chicago Stories Special reveals new details with recreations and animation that bring the fire to life. Executive producer Dan Protess and producer and writer Peter Marks talked about their approach to telling the old story in a new way.
The Chicago Magazine That Has Helped Define Poetry for the Past Century
Daniel HautzingerPoetry magazine has published most major poets of the last century and given many of them early breaks, from T.S. Eliot to Gwendolyn Brooks, Ocean Vuong, and Danez Smith. "Chicago," excerpts from Claudia Rankine's Citizen, and "anyone lived in a pretty how town" were first published in its pages.
"One of the Greatest Events in the History of Medicine": The Defeat of Polio
Daniel HautzingerDuPage county, outside Chicago, took part in Jonas Salk's polio vaccine trials in 1954, a successful nationwide experiment that led to the virtual end of a terrifying disease and was called "one of the greatest events in the history of medicine."
How Chicago’s Pride Parade Grew from a Small March to a Big Event
Meredith FrancisChicago's Pride Parade didn't start as a parade at all. It was originally a small march to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. But a protest against anti-gay activist Anita Bryant in 1977 helped the parade become what it is today.
The Chicagoan Who Founded the Earliest Gay Rights Group in America
Meredith FrancisThe Society for Human Rights, founded by Chicago postal worker Henry Gerber, didn’t last long, but its legacy inspired various groups in the decades to come. Gerber's Old Town home where he was arrested in 1925 was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2015.
The Atomic Age's Beginnings on a Squash Court in Chicago
Daniel Hautzinger75 years ago on December 2, scientists at the University of Chicago inaugurated the nuclear era by engineering the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction. Learn about the origins of nuclear power and the upsides and downsides of its future.
Modern Midwifery: A Conversation with a Midwife-in-Training
Daniel HautzingerMany people probably assume midwives are a thing of the past. A midwife-in-training at the Yale School of Nursing shows otherwise, explaining the various roles midwives play today and surveying the recent history of midwifery.
World War I in Works of Art
Daniel HautzingerApril 6 marked the 100th anniversary of the United States' entry into World War I. The dance film Young Men dramatizes the effect of that war on the soldiers who fought in it. Explore other works of art that have grappled with the Great War.
The Brontë Family and the Actors Who Portray Them
Daniel HautzingerTo Walk Invisible: The Brontë Sisters, which aired Sunday, explores the lives of the authors of Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and Agnes Grey. Do the actors in the film look like the people that they play?
The Fascinating Characters of Irish Chicago
Daniel HautzingerExplore some historic figures of Irish Chicago on this St. Patrick's Day. Beyond green beer and parades, there's a lot more to learn about.
The Groundbreaking Women of Hull House
Daniel HautzingerCelebrate the pioneering achievements, landmark reforms, and impressive careers of some of the women who resided at Jane Addams' social-minded Hull House in the early twentieth century.
Ken Burns: America's Storyteller
Daniel HautzingerIn Ken Burns: America's Storyteller, Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Wynton Marsalis, and more celebrate the career of legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns. Watch clips highlighting Burns and his career.
Africa's Global Objects: Cécile Fromont at the Art Institute
Daniel HautzingerCécile Fromont is a professor of Art History at the University of Chicago specializing in Central Africa and Brazil who appears in the new, three-part documentary Africa's Great Civilizations.
"Her Life is History": The Universality of Maya Angelou
Daniel HautzingerMaya Angelou was beyond prolific, and her life touched on many of the most significant people and events of the twentieth century. The creators of a film about the great woman discuss the difficulty of capturing her multi-faceted life on film, why they admire her, and what she was like.
Enlarging the Historical Framework: Pamela D. Toler's Look at the Amazing Women of the Civil War
Daniel HautzingerThe author of Heroines of Mercy Street discusses the determination and accomplishments of female Civil War nurses, the importance of writing about women in history, and her broad historical interests.
