Congress Parkway Renamed In Honor Of Ida B. Wells

CHICAGO, IL — Chicago City Council passed an ordinance to rename Congress Parkway after renowned civil rights leader, educator and journalist Ida B. Wells. Ida B. Wells Drive runs from just east of S. Franklin Street to S. Columbus Drive.

Ald. Sophia King and Ald. Brendan Reilly co-sponsored the name change.

“She was a courageous leader of the women’s suffrage movement and a tireless advocate for justice," Reilly said in a letter to residents. "Ida B. Wells has an important place in Chicago’s history, and now has a prominent street in downtown Chicago to honor her memory.”

Born into slavery in Mississippi in 1862, Wells went on to write prolific reports about racism, lynching and mob murders in the Deep South. She pioneered investigative techniques that provided much of the foundation of modern journalism.

King and Reilly introduced an earlier ordinance to rename Balbo Drive after Wells. Balbo Drive is currently named after the Italian aviator in Mussolini's air force Italo Balbo, an aviator who led a squadron of planes on a transatlantic flight from Italy to Chicago for the 1933 Century of Progress World's Fair. Decades later, many began calling the street name an "embarrassment" to Chicago.

Top image via Google Maps Streetview