'Chicago History' Becomes a Hit on Social Media

CHICAGO, IL - When most people hear the phrase “Chicago History,” they think about classic topics like the Great Chicago Fire, the Union Stockyards, the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre or images from the 1968 Democratic Convention.

But as instant age of social media continues to develop, so does the meaning - or interpretation - of the phrase. Now, “Chicago History” could mean something going on right now, and it doesn’t have to include a “prominent” name or event.

That’s the premise behind “Chicago History,” the Facebook/Twitter account manned by founder Jason Schwartz of Deerfield and others. Find them @Chicago_History.

Find them on Facebook here.

“Anything cool can be a part of Chicago History. You and I sitting here at this table talking about it over coffee. That could be something significant,” Schwartz said at a cafe in north suburban Wilmette back in November.

The concept has taken off in a perfect mix of posts from the old days, the days you may not remember and a different look at the present.

Recent posts include a view from atop the Prudential Building in 1957, a question on whether people prefer the Sears Tower or Willis Tower and a rarely seen photograph of notorious gangster Al Capone with a scar across his face.

That’s all just from one day. This page embodies Chicago all day and every day. Anyone with a tie - not matter how loose - to Chicago should like/follow them.

“It has really taken off,” said Schwartz. “Some of our posts get huge numbers not only in Chicago, but all around the world. Everyone is into it.”

#ChicagoHistory has become a trend, ”a way of life,” Schwartz says.

They are followed by just about anyone who is connected to the Midwest’s biggest (and best) city.

All the major media outlets, sports teams, athletes, celebrities, local personalities and profiles of interest follow them too. ABC 7 Chicago, the Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Bears just to name a few. Overall, the Twitter page has more than 27,000 followers.

The incredible list of exclusive followers doesn’t come as too much of a surprise to Schwartz, however.

“I look at it as, instead of the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, - we are the Six Degrees of Chicago,” he said. “Take (Sons of Anarchy creator) Kurt Sutter. Not from Chicago, right? But he married Katey Segal, who starred on Married with Children, which was set in...Chicago...We can take anything and anyone and in six connections pick out a tie to Chicago or Illinois. That helps reel in followers and garner interest.”

Schwartz credits his late father and his own accomplishment losing weight as inspirations for the page’s rapid growth. While working on the page, Schwartz has lost more than 200 pounds. His father died in 2014 at age 62.

After making its debut on Twitter in August 2014, “Chicago History” added a Facebook page last year due to popular demand.

“I still gravitate more toward Twitter, but you can’t argue with what people want,” said Schwartz, who noted the Facebook page is already up to 25,000 likes.

chicago_history has also been added to Instagram, again due to (very) popular demand.

“We have a nice handful of contributors,” Schwartz said.

The social media fad has expanded past the online world. Chi Town Fitted, a clothing company, has produced T-shirts that have already been rocked out by celebrities such as Thomas Jones, former running back for the Chicago Bears and others who proclaim “I am Chicago History.”

The page is also doing its part in reversing some of the negative stereotypes that have plagued the city in recent years.

“We are constantly looking to bring Chicago - and Illinois - together as one,” said Schwartz. “With all the insane violence we hear about, I’d like to bring kids off the street and look at something like this as a way to shine a better light on the city.”

While the page does incorporate current topics and trends, you’ll rarely see a post about today’s violence. Most everything posted is positive in some way. You’ll find some crime, but that aspect relates mostly to notorious cases with Chicagoland ties like the John Wayne Gacy murders or Al Capone’s mafia.

“I think I’m doing a big part in trying to sway the ‘ChiRaq’ stereotype the other way,” Schwartz said.

Movies with local ties, throwbacks to businesses from yesterday and sports posts tend to do the best.

When it comes to sports, Schwartz supports the Blackhawks, Bulls and Bears. (Of course, what great Chicagoan wouldn’t?)

But he is also a backer of the White Sox and Cubs.

That’s right. A Chicagoan who supports both the city’s rival teams on the baseball diamond.

Contrary to the belief of the majority of baseball fans in the city, Schwartz says it is possible to root for both.

“It’s OK to like both the Cubs and Sox. I like them both equally,” he said, admitting that if the two ended up meeting in the World Series this year he would root for the Cubs because the South Side team already has a championship banner this century.

Schwartz gets some of his “current Chicago history” topics from being out and about reporting on them. He’s a blogger for Chicago Now and just recently highlighted the famous Manny’s Deli in the Loop, the city’s Anti-Cruelty Society and the EATALY phenomenon.

“Jimmy Greenfield, who runs the sister page of the Tribune, saw what I was doing with Chicago History and thought we’d turn it into a blog. It’s been a lot of fun,” Schwartz said.

“A lot of fun” is what fans of the “Chicago History” pages have every day. With epic post after epic post, hour after hour, the page is known as “Chicken Soup for the Chicago soul.”

And don’t expect it to end anytime soon. Plans to expand topics and unearth ever greater treasures are always in the works.

“The sky’s the limit,” Schwartz said. “Anything and everything could be Chicago History, and you don’t have to live in Chicago to make it.”