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Curious City Curious City WBEZ Chicago The Universe Within Podcast The Universe Within Podcast Jason Grechanik Bass Cast Radio Bass Cast Radio Brian Carter Solidarity Works Solidarity Works United Steelworkers Advanced Spanish Advanced Spanish News in Slow Spanish TED-Ed TED-Ed TED-Ed Addiction Unlimited Podcast Addiction Unlimited Podcast Angela Pugh JIJI English News-時事通信英語ニュース- JIJI English News-時事通信英語ニュース- 時事通信社 Wicked Radio with Bill Adams Wicked Radio with Bill Adams Bill Adams Krigskunst Podcast Krigskunst Podcast Krigskunst Podcast RECO12 RECO12 Justin B Mission To The Moon Mission To The Moon Mission To The Moon Media TRXL TRXL Evan Troxel Zero Knowledge Zero Knowledge Zero Knowledge Podcast TubeTalk: Your YouTube How-To Guide TubeTalk: Your YouTube How-To Guide vidIQ 鞠强教授:管理心理学 鞠强教授:管理心理学 管理心理学教授鞠强 The Caldwell Commentaries Podcast The Caldwell Commentaries Podcast Caldwell Commentaries Hey Ella English Hey Ella English Ella Overly Sarcastic Podcast Overly Sarcastic Podcast Overly Sarcastic Productions Ribble FM Ribble FM Ribble FM Mission To The Moon Mission To The Moon Mission To The Moon Media KJV Cafe KJV Cafe KJV Cafe Advisers Ask Advisers Ask WTAMU Advising Services Dental Marketing Goat Dental Marketing Goat Gary Bird Desire As Medicine Podcast Desire As Medicine Podcast Brenda and Catherine Beyond Affairs Beyond Affairs Anne & Brian Bercht 60 Seconds of Hope with Horace McMillon 60 Seconds of Hope with Horace McMillon Horace McMillon Speak Honest Podcast: Real Talk on Relationships, Attachment Styles & the Work of Healing Childhood Trauma Speak Honest Podcast: Real Talk on Relationships, Attachment Styles & the Work of Healing Childhood Trauma Jennifer Noble, PCC | Relationship Coach, TEDx Speaker, & Best Selling Author 21st Century Entrepreneurship 21st Century Entrepreneurship Martin Piskoric Good Morning, Money! Good Morning, Money! Rosha Entezari Financial Minds: Meet the Experts Financial Minds: Meet the Experts Vizo Financial Nichful Thinking Nichful Thinking Nichelle “Ohshells” Living Your Legacy Living Your Legacy Rudy Mawer Unwritten Law Unwritten Law Mark Chenoweth & John Vecchione Practical Wisdom with Dr. Rick Hanson Practical Wisdom with Dr. Rick Hanson Rick Hanson Nextdoor Swing Nextdoor Swing Cora and Max Studying Kabbalah #kab_eng Studying Kabbalah #kab_eng Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education and Research Institute, Бней Барух – Ассоциация "Каббала Ла-Ам"
Curious City

Education

Curious City

WBEZ Chicago

Why does Chicago have so little love for the ‘Watchdog’ of the lakefront?

July 01, 2026 5:00am 25 min

The name Aaron Montgomery Ward might sound familiar, either from the chain of now-defunct department stores that once bore his name or as the catalog guy who revolutionized mail-order shopping over 150 years ago. His les...

Is This Your Card? A Brief History Of Chicago-style Magic

June 24, 2026 5:00am 22 min

Chicago-style magic is close up, funny and usually performed at a bar or restaurant. We learn about its history and talk to several magicians who are part of the tradition. This episode was originally published in 2024.

Where did the term 'Chicagoland' come from?

June 17, 2026 5:00am 15 min

There’s no New York-land or Boston-land, so why does the Chicago metropolitan area have its own unique name? It turns out this has been a question on the minds of many Curious City listeners. To learn more, we looked ...

How did Hollywood Beach become Chicago’s ‘gay beach’?

June 10, 2026 5:00am 19 min

The stretch of beach that starts where DuSable Lake Shore Drive ends wasn’t always as vibrant or as ‘gay’ as it is today. Its transition was spearheaded by Jerry Marcoccia, who was searching for a sense of belonging in t...

Why does Chicago use Comic Sans on some elevator inspection certificates?

June 03, 2026 5:00am 15 min

Comic Sans often signals levity or sarcasm. The font is occasionally used for a key phrase in some official city elevator inspection certificates. That’s caused concern for some Chicagoans, including at least two Curious...

Does Chicago have a Filipino neighborhood?

May 27, 2026 5:00am 22 min

A concentrated Filipino community area is not as easy to spot as neighborhoods like Chinatown or Little Village. In this episode, we’ll look at the long history Filipinos have had in Chicago stretching back to the early ...

Why are there helicopters flying over my neighborhood every night?

May 20, 2026 5:00am 19 min

Curious City listeners wondered if helicopters they heard buzzing around their Chicago neighborhoods at night were part of the federal government’s immigration enforcement. There is some truth to that, but it turns out o...

Why does Chicago have a monument named for fascist leader Italo Balbo?

May 13, 2026 5:00am 30 min

There’s an ancient Roman column in Chicago hidden in plain sight near Soldier Field. It was a gift given by Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini during the 1933-1934 Chicago World’s Fair, commemorating a daring tran...

Standing on history: Who built Chicago’s WPA sidewalks?

May 06, 2026 5:00am 17 min

Have you ever noticed a branded stamp in the sidewalk? Keen-eyed Chicagoans have found some that date back to Depression-era infrastructure projects by the Works Progress Administration. Who were the workers behind the W...

‘This is how I speak’: The influence of the Black Chicago accent

April 23, 2026 5:00am 18 min

A person’s accent can influence the way they are perceived. When it comes to broadcast journalism, the way a person talks is front and center and can open the door to both praise and unsolicited criticism.In our last epi...

How has the Black Chicago accent retained its Southern roots?

April 22, 2026 5:00am 6 min

How have Black Chicagoans kept so many features of the Southern dialect? To answer starts with the Great Migration.

The story of the Lady Elgin, the deadliest shipwreck in Great Lakes history

April 09, 2026 5:00am 15 min

The Lady Elgin left Chicago for Milwaukee on a stormy September night in 1860 with around 400 passengers aboard. Another vessel was also out in the storm — a small lumber schooner called The Augusta — which crashed into ...

What are Chicago area lighthouses used for?

April 08, 2026 5:00am 6 min

Lighthouses were manned by keepers until automation took over. Now, preservationists are working to restore Chicago’s most iconic one.

How early Black Chicagoans used photography to redefine their image

March 26, 2026 5:00am 15 min

At the turn of the 20th century, Black photographers were starting to make a name for themselves. Photographers like William E. Woodard, James Van Der Zee and Miles Webb were opening and running their own studios. In...

What was Chicago's first art gallery?

March 25, 2026 5:00am 6 min

What was Chicago's first art gallery? Curious City investigates. Nowadays, it’s easy to see and experience art all over Chicago. But where did it all begin, and who was allowed to show their art?

Chicago came under martial law after the Great Fire. Did it help?

March 18, 2026 5:00am 24 min

The mayor of Chicago declared martial law after the Great Fire in 1871. The military occupation ended days later, after the death of a civilian. We look back at that history and get the help of legal experts to answer th...

The ‘windmill capital of the world’ used to be down the road from Chicago

March 12, 2026 5:00am 11 min

Suburban Batavia, just 30 miles west of Chicago, used to be known as the windmill capital of the world. But eventually, technological advances took the wind out of the industry’s sails. In our last episode, we looked ...

Why aren’t there wind turbines in Lake Michigan?

March 11, 2026 5:00am 4 min

Strong and consistent winds that sweep across Lake Michigan could provide significant electricity generation. But there are no wind turbines in the lake or any of the Great Lakes. This Curious City story is made possible...

No cars, no road salt: How one Midwestern community avoids salt all winter

February 26, 2026 5:00am 9 min

Chicago — like so many other frigid American cities — can’t seem to kick its dependence on road salt. In our last episode, we learned how winter weather on both ends of the thermometer can impact the local economy. So...

How does a mild winter affect Chicago’s economy?

February 25, 2026 5:00am 7 min

Each Chicago winter’s wintery-ness has big implications for your sanity and your wallet. That led one Curious City listener to ask us if mild winters have a noticeable effect on the local economy.

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