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In celebration of Black History Month: The Ridge area includes one of Chicagoland’s most historic African American cemeteries, Lincoln Cemetery at 12300 S. Kedzie Avenue.

By the early 1900s, the growing population and the encroachment of segregationist ‘Jim Crow’ laws from the South had made it increasingly difficult for blacks to find burial plots in white cemeteries. So as many ethnic groups were doing, African Americans established their own cemeteries. In 1911, a group of black undertakers approached the owners of Oak Hill Cemetery on Kedzie Avenue, established in 1902 for Swedish families, to ask if some of their unused land could be opened to African Americans. The request was agreed to and Lincoln Cemetery was founded.

This is the final resting place for notable musicians and other personalities associated with blues music, including Big Bill Broonzy, Mathis James ‘Jimmy’ Reed, Jack L. Cooper, Lillian ‘Lil’ Hardin Armstrong, and several others.

A number of men connected to the Negro Baseball Leagues are buried there.

Bessie Coleman (1892-1926), the first woman of African-American descent and the first woman of Native American descent to earn a pilot’s license, is buried there. She was a successful air show pilot but died in a crash while testing a new plane.

Robert Sengstacke Abbott (1870 – 1940), lawyer and newspaper publisher, is buried there. He founded The Chicago Defender in 1905 and started the Bud Billiken Parade and Picnic in 1929.

The most famous person buried in Lincoln Cemetery is the poet Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 – 2000). She won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1950 and was appointed Poet Laureate of Illinois in 1968 and Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1985. Her tombstone is a marble book.

Pictures: Gwendolyn Brooks, and the grave of Ms. Brooks; Big Bill Broonzy, Bessie Coleman, Robert S. Abbott.

One of the duties of a legitimate history organization like the Ridge Historical Society is to investigate and either verify or "debunk" local myths and legends to maintain historical accuracy. It's not always easy to get to the truth, and it can be dismaying and downright upsetting to the public to find out something they have believed for years is just not accurate.

Case in point for Morgan Park: The widespread belief that the Hopkinson-Platt House on 108th and Drew was a stop on the Underground Railroad. As we finish up Black History Month, let's take a look at this local urban myth, which someone referred to on an RHS post last week.

The Underground Railroad was a network of safe stops where escaping slaves could find refuge and help as they made their way north to freedom. The locations were passed along by word of mouth and secret symbols.

The Blue Island Land and Building Co. began platting and selling the land bordered by today's Western Ave., Ashland Ave., 107th St., and 119th St., in 1869, after the U.S. Civil War ended. William Hopkinson purchased that land at 108th and Drew and built that house in 1871, too late for the Underground Railroad.

The Platts owned the house in later years. What appears to have happened is that a man investigating an ancestor's escape to freedom using the Underground Railroad told Mrs. Platt that the ancestor's journal described a house with windows like the ones on the Hopkinson-Platt House. From this, Ms. Platt drew the conclusion this was the house. But the dates just do not confirm this.

There are oral histories that confirm that escaping slaves passed through Beverly/Morgan Park and hid in barns. And there are several verified Underground Railroad stops on the South Side. But, unfortunately, the Platt House was not one of them.

So what about the "hidden room?" Well, it could have been a storage area, or changes could have been made to the house at any time along the way. It could have been used in any number of ways. Prohibition?

Does this lessen the historical significance of the house? Not at all. It is one of the earliest structures in Morgan Park, and has a fascinating history. Its nearly three acres of never-developed land make it a prime spot to study for potential significance to the Native Americans who lived in the area.

Two pictures here show, first, the house in its early years, then owned by Christian Zeiss, when the front entrance faced Prospect Ave. As land around the house was sold off, the house was remodeled to create the entrance on the Drew Ave. side, which is shown in the second photo, the way the house looks now.

– Carol Flynn, RHS Communications @ridgehistoricalsociety

Jazz is a uniquely American art form. Originating in the African-American community of New Orleans in the early 1900s, jazz has its roots in ragtime and the blues. As jazz spread it was influenced by other cultures, leading to the many subgenres of today. But key to all types of jazz is improvisation.

Tonight was a simply brilliant jazz performance at the Givins Castle (103rd St. and Longwood Drive, Chicago) by the Larry Gray Trio, pictured here. That's Larry on the right, drummer Charles "Rick" Heath, and guitarist John Moulder.

This is a plug for the music series going on in the Beverly/Morgan Park community this year. The series creator is John Devens, previously the proprietor of the World Folk Music Co. on 103rd St. Since Fall 2018, he has arranged memorable concerts at the Castle and the Heritage Gallery (1907 W. 103rd St.).

Three more events will take place this Spring. On March 30, Michael Peter Smith will perform at the Heritage Gallery.

On April 27, the septet Come Sunday will appear at the Castle.

Contemporary folk singer-songwriter Anne Hill will appear at the Heritage Gallery on May 18.

There is an added historical preservation bonus to this series. The suggested donation for a ticket is $20. The proceeds from the events at the Castle are donated to the Castle building restoration fund. The 1886-87 historic structure (second picture) is feeling its age and needs repair work on the turrets.

The concerts were underwritten by the late Dean Miller, in memory of his late wife Martha Herriott Swift.

For more information on the concerts call (773) 466-9339 or visit https://www.heritagecastleconcerts.org.

March is Women's History Month. This year the Ridge Historical Society salutes Gertrude Blackwelder, a remarkable woman who lived during the Progressive Era and worked tirelessly for women's suffrage and education reform. Mrs. Blackwelder made history by being the first woman to cast a vote in Cook County when women won expanded voting rights in 1913.

Gertrude and her husband, I.S. Blackwelder, were early settlers in Morgan Park, where I.S. served as president of the Village Board. Gertrude co-founded the Morgan Park Woman's Club in 1889, the oldest such club still in existence in Chicago. The Blackwelders were instrumental in establishing the Morgan Park High School, which opened in 1916. Their house is one of the most famous historical residences in the neighborhood – the Ingersoll-Blackwelder-Simmerling House on Prospect.

We've just entered a major feature on Mrs. Blackwelder on the RHS website so go here for more information: www.ridgehistorical.org.

Pictures: Mrs. Blackwelder voting, from the Chicago Tribune in 1913.

The Ingersoll-Blackwelder House as it appeared when the Blackwelders lived there – RHS archives.

Leading off from the post on Gertrude Blackwelder.

This is the Ingersoll-Blackwelder-Simmerling House as it looks today. And I really mean TODAY – March 7, 2019. I took this picture this morning. While the landscape looks barren, it's good to get these pictures before all the new plant growth comes in in the Spring and blocks the view of the house.

Houses are named for the person for whom the house was originally built. Then you can add additional hyphenated names if famous people lived there. The house was built in 1874 for grain broker John Ingersoll. The Blackwelders added the Queen Anne front in 1877.

There were other owners, but the house was allowed to fall into real disrepair. Then along came artist Jack Simmerling. Jack was a wonderful man, very concerned about preservation of Chicago's historic homes. He bought the dilapidated house and lovingly restored it, and his family lived there for many years. He told the story that at the time of purchase, the roof had caved in, and the main internal staircase was so covered with ice and snow you could literally sled down the stairs from the second floor bedrooms. When Jack died in 2013, the family sold the house.

Jack owned the Heritage Gallery on 103rd St., which is now run by his daughter Vicki. He was a founder of the Ridge Historical Society. This picture of Jack is from the Glessner House Museum website, which now houses his collection of artifacts from many of the Prairie Avenue mansions, demolished long ago.

– Carol Flynn, Ridge Historical Society Communications @ridgehistoricalsociety

The Ridge Historical Society is sponsoring an upcoming program at the Givins Castle that is sure to be excellent. On Sunday, April 7, at 2:00 p.m., presenter Don Hayner will discuss his book, "Binga, The Rise and Fall of Chicago’s First Black Banker," scheduled for release in November 2019.

Jesse Binga (1865 – 1950) was a prominent real estate businessman who founded the first privately owned African-American bank in Chicago in 1908 to serve black clients denied service at white-owned banks. Binga built a home in a white area and his house and offices were bombed numerous times. Animosity between whites and blacks led to a major Chicago race riot in 1919.

Binga's bank closed when the Great Depression hit. He refused to seize the property of the black churches and societies that could not meet their mortgage payments. He was accused and convicted of embezzlement and served time in prison. He received a full pardon in 1941. He died in poverty and is buried in Oak Woods Cemetery.

Author Don Hayner, a lifelong Chicagoan living in Beverly, retired as editor-in-chief of the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper in 2012. During his tenure, the paper won multiple national and local awards for investigative reporting and breaking news, including the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting in 2011. He has co-authored three books including "Streetwise Chicago, A History of Chicago Street Names."

“'Binga, The Rise and Fall of Chicago’s First Black Banker,' tells the story of the beginning of a sad saga that Chicagoans have lived through for more than a century. It's the story of racial change in the neighborhoods of a city, which is one of the most segregated in America, but at its core, it's a story of how Jesse Binga represented hope to a community shut out and isolated by racial animosity,” said Hayner in a description of this program.

The cost of the program is $10 per person and all proceeds will go to the Castle Restoration Fund. The Beverly Unitarian Church, owner of the Castle, has started an initiative to raise money for repairs to the Castle turrets. Donations to this fund will be used for preservation of the Castle, not for church operations. The BUC has already raised more than $400,000 in donations and pledges from its own members. A total of at least $800,000 is needed for the beginning work. RHS supports the preservation of this most iconic of all local landmarks.

As space is limited, reservations are suggested, and may be made by calling RHS at 773/881-1675 or emailing ridgehistory@hotmail.com. Tours of the Castle will be available following the program. Light refreshments will be served. The address of the Castle is 10244 S. Longwood Drive, Chicago.

Photo1: Jesse Binga, the first African-American banker in Chicago.

Photo 2: Don Hayner, presenter, author of upcoming book on Jesse Binga and retired editor-in-chief of the Chicago Sun-Times.

In addition to Women's History Month and Irish American Heritage Month, March is also National Nutrition Month. This is a very busy month!

When you think of good nutrition, fresh healthy fruits and vegetables come to mind. It might be surprising that not that long ago, the Ridge area was full of farms growing and selling produce locally.

For 55 years, the Van Laten farm stand was a fixture at 101st and Western Avenue.

The Van Latens came from the Netherlands in the late 1800s. They settled in Chicago and started a poultry farm. They eventually rented many acres of land in the area, including around 115th and Western, the area now built up as Merrionette Park, and the strip mall at 115th and Kedzie. That was farmland up until the 1950s.

The Van Latens were part of the "last working farm in Chicago" that was on the grounds now housing the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences.

Other farmers on the land included the Martens, Aggens and Langlands. This is a very interesting story – the founding and building of that high school in the 1970s-1980s – and we will cover it another day.

Author Therese Ragen remembered walking up to Van Laten's stand, where they would pick out "fresh tomatoes and lettuce and corn on the cob, and carrots and peaches and plums. Mrs. Van Laten would take her pencil out from behind her ear, adding up the prices in a column on a paper bag." They would pay for the goods and leave their address and the Van Latens would later deliver the produce to their home.

This picture from the Ridge Historical Society archives is of the Van Laten farm stand on Western Ave.

There was another event in March – World Wildlife Day was Sunday, March 3. The Blue Island Ridge has a long and very interesting history when it comes to wildlife. There were animals here in abundance before "development" – wolves were all around; deer were plentiful; birds, waterfowl, small animals, fish in the Calumet River and creeks, native reptiles – it was a paradise.

Thomas Morgan, for whom Morgan Park is named, even bought game animals and hunting greyhounds with him from England, on his own ship The Emmanuel. He populated the woods around his estate Upwood with his imported deer and pheasants, and had hunting parties to chase down the wolves. His estate was on the top of the Ridge around 91st Street and Longwood Drive.

Today, we co-exist in Beverly/Morgan Park with wildlife – raccoon, opossum, fox, coyotes, birds of prey are all spotted. There are deer in the cemeteries to the west of us.

This will be the first of several postings about the "wild Ridge" and the Ridge Historical Society hopes others will share stories and pictures.

Here are two pictures of recent sightings. The first is of deer in Mt. Hope Cemetery last summer, photo by C. Flynn, RHS. The second is of a hawk in the yard of artist Judie Anderson just this year.

Message from the Ridge Historical Society: A big reminder – this Sunday, April 7, is the program "Binga, The Rise and Fall of Chicago’s First Black Banker." The program will be at the Givins Castle, 10244 S. Longwood Drive, starting at 2:00 p.m. The presenter is Don Hayner, a lifelong Chicagoan living in Beverly, who retired as editor-in-chief of the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper in 2012. His book about Binga (same title as presentation) is due to be released in November.

Jesse Binga came to Chicago from Detroit just before the 1893 World's Fair. He was a savvy businessman, starting a real estate business to serve the growing African American community in the city. As black people were denied mortgages and other services at white-owned banks, Binga started the first African-American bank in the city.

African Americans, historically largely confined to the "Black Belt" on the near South Side, began expanding into new areas. This caused alarming tensions with the white community and led to violent race riots in 1919. Binga himself moved into a white neighborhood and his properties were bombed numerous times.

Today Chicago is one of the most segregated cities in the country, with many areas of the South Side "hyper-segregated" – some neighborhoods as much as 99% black.

According to Hayner, while Jesse Binga was a towering symbol of success in Chicago’s “Black Belt” in the early 20th Century, he was also one of the most hated men in the city.

“Binga, The Rise and Fall of Chicago’s First Black Banker, tells the story of the beginning of a sad saga that Chicagoans have lived through for more than a century. It's the story of racial change in the neighborhoods of a city, which is one of the most segregated in America, but at its core, it's a story of how Jesse Binga represented hope to a community shut out and isolated by racial animosity,” said Hayner in a description of this program.

Don Hayner started out practicing law but switched his career to journalism. Working his way up from reporter, he retired as editor-in-chief of the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper in 2012. During his tenure, the paper won multiple national and local awards for investigative reporting and breaking news, including the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting in 2011. Hayner has co-authored three books including Streetwise Chicago, A History of Chicago Street Names.

Hayner completed a fellowship at the University of Maryland’s Knight Center for Specialized Journalism on race, class and ethnicity. As a reporter at the Sun-Times he co-authored, with Columnist Mary Mitchell, an award-winning series, “The Great Divide: Racial Attitudes in Chicago.” As part of that project, Hayner helped design the largest poll on race relations ever done in the Chicago region.

The cost of the program is $10 per person and all proceeds will go to the Castle Restoration Fund. The Beverly Unitarian Church, owner of the Castle, has started an initiative to raise money for repairs to the Castle turrets. Donations to this fund will be used for preservation of the Castle, not for church operations.

As space is limited, reservations are suggested, and may be made by calling RHS at 773/881-1675 or emailing ridgehistory@hotmail.com. Tours of the Castle will be available following the program. Light refreshments will be served.

Pic 1: Jesse Binga

Pic 2: Don Hayner

This is how it happens. History was made today in Chicago and on the Ridge. The first African American gay woman was elected as Mayor.