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Little Italy, west of Chicago’s central business district, was a dense ethnic neighborhood that HOLC officials concluded was risky for residential investment. The area saw little investment until the late 1950s, when state and federal initiatives…

Portrait of Richard Ely. Ely had formed strong ties between the academy and private sector, putting him in a strong position to advise when Congress created the HOLC and FHA. Ely had advised the National Association of Real Estate Boards (NAREB) in…

These three maps for the south side of Chicago illustrate the stark color line separating the Black Belt neighborhoods from white neighborhoods in the city. Even as the African American population grew in the Great Migration, the city remained…

About a quarter of the American workforce was unemployed at the lowest point of the Great Depression. When families were unable to afford food for themselves, charities often provided free meals. Al Capone, a leading organized crime figure, provided…