Where do most of the Chicago Irish live? (areas, towns)

[KevK]

Originally Posted by maluminse

Irish own Chicago. daley all the judge or many are irish. their everywhere. summer? whole place floods from irish kids working for summer.

The Irish own the GOVERNMENT in Chicago but the real money (private business) is owned by Italians and Jews.

[soothsayer1234]

Originally Posted by KevK

The old Irish live in Bridgeport and Canaryville. The new Irish (their Americanized kids and grandkids) live everywhere like all Americans. The old ethnic neighbourhoods of Chicago are dying as their older residents die and few new immigrants from Europe come and replace them. Their kids who were born and raised in the USA prefer the lakefront. Loop or suburbs. The old Mayor Daley lived in an Irish enclave (Bridgeport) but his kids do not. The new Mayor Daley lives in the South Loop. Berwyn and Cicero weere once Italian but few of them live there anymore.

Trying to think of ethnic areas in chicago, I forgot the largest one, the hispanic one, which is all over the city. And, not only do they qualify as ethnic, they are closer to the traditional conception of Ethnic, as they still speak the native tongue, many ONLY the native tongue. The "white ethnics" long since have stopped naming stores and such in native tongues, with few exceptions. One is a large Polish neighborhood in Jefferson Park, on the NW side, centered on Lawrence and Harlem, with Polish nomenclature all over the stores. This is what is left of the old Polish influx that once went from Milwaukee north for miles. There are serb and croat areas on the southeast side, Indian and pakinstani off Devon, and Korean around Albany Park. Again, there are huge ethnic areas in Chicago, mexican and puerto rican ones. The other ones, outside of the few exceptions I mentioned, are long gone, just like the greeks and Russian jews, that the first Daley chased out of the near west side when he built UICC. A few Italians still survive around Taylor street, however..and obviously a few Chinese in Chinatown

[soothsayer1234]

Originally Posted by KevK

The old Irish live in Bridgeport and Canaryville. The new Irish (their Americanized kids and grandkids) live everywhere like all Americans. The old ethnic neighbourhoods of Chicago are dying as their older residents die and few new immigrants from Europe come and replace them. Their kids who were born and raised in the USA prefer the lakefront. Loop or suburbs. The old Mayor Daley lived in an Irish enclave (Bridgeport) but his kids do not. The new Mayor Daley lives in the South Loop. Berwyn and Cicero weere once Italian but few of them live there anymore.

Trying to think of ethnic areas in chicago, I forgot the largest one, the hispanic one, which is all over the city. And, not only do they qualify as ethnic, they are closer to the traditional conception of Ethnic, as they still speak the native tongue, many ONLY the native tongue. The "white ethnics" long since have stopped naming stores and such in native tongues, with few exceptions. One is a large Polish neighborhood in Jefferson Park, on the NW side, centered on Lawrence and Harlem, with Polish nomenclature all over the stores. This is what is left of the old Polish influx that once went from Milwaukee north for miles. There are serb and croat areas on the southeast side, Indian and pakinstani off Devon, and Korean around Albany Park. Again, there are huge ethnic areas in Chicago, mexican and puerto rican ones. The other ones, outside of the few exceptions I mentioned, are long gone, just like the greeks and Russian jews, that
the first Daley chased out of the near west side when he built UICC.
A few Italians still survive around Taylor street, however..

[Drover]

Originally Posted by soothsayer1234

Trying to think of ethnic areas in chicago, I forgot the largest one, the hispanic one, which is all over the city. And, not only do they qualify as ethnic, they are closer to the traditional conception of Ethnic, as they still speak the native tongue, many ONLY the native tongue. The "white ethnics" long since have stopped naming stores and such in native tongues, with few exceptions. One is a large Polish neighborhood in Jefferson Park, on the NW side, centered on Lawrence and Harlem, with Polish nomenclature all over the stores. This is what is left of the old Polish influx that once went from Milwaukee north for miles. There are serb and croat areas on the southeast side, Indian and pakinstani off Devon, and Korean around Albany Park. Again, there are huge ethnic areas in Chicago, mexican and puerto rican ones. The other ones, outside of the few exceptions I mentioned, are long gone, just like the greeks and Russian jews, that the first Daley chased out of the near west side when he built UICC. A few Italians still survive around Taylor street, however..and obviously a few Chinese in Chinatown

I might suggest you're heading in the wrong direction on Milwaukee with regard to the Polish area. The center of Polish life on the NW side now centers around Milwaukee and Belmont, and then points west. And this isn't an "old" Polish neighborhood; these are relatively new arrivals.

[Avengerfire]

There are still some in Lake View,North Center, Norwood Park, and Jefferson Park among a few others; but in pockets. For the most part, there are no large areas in those areas that have a huge visable Irish culture, but the people are there. I could point you to a few pubs and stores in Chicago. Many of the other people that have posted here have given other key info. Also many of the Irish from the South Side now live in Orland Park and Tinley Park in addition to Oak Forest, Oak Lawn, etc...

[KevK]

Originally Posted by scottl333

Bridgeport, Canaryville, Mt. Greenwood and Beverly are the Irish strongholds today. If you want to experience the Irish nightlife go to the bar/dives in carnaryville but that may not be a good thing to do if you are not familiar with that area because they are a different breed down there. Very secretive. Go to the Irish pubs on Western around Beverly and Greenwood and you will see a lot of IRish people.

You should never enter a bar in those areas (Bridgeport) unless somebody there takes you. These folks are very suspicious of outsiders and they will let you know where you stand if they don't know you even if you are Irish. Some of the places like Schaller's Pump are so secretive they do not even have their phone listed!

[wine_inabox]

I'm Irish and Italian, and I grew up in Bridgeport. There are still a lot of Irish people towards the southern end, but it's not an Irish neighborhood. It's been a very mixed neighborhood from the beginning, and there isn't an obvious Irish character to it. Except for the Daley's, of course.

In this day and age, most of the "Irish" are, as a few people mentioned here, just generic white Americans now, and most of them live in the suburbs. Ethnic enclaves aren't around so much any more, especially for the Irish, who assimilated a lot quicker than most other groups. The closest you'll get are Mt. Greenwood and Beverly--they're pretty much full of Irish people, and they'll let you know it. That's where the parade is, and most of the import shops and such. And whoever said not to go to bars in Canaryville is right; that used to be Irish, and then Polish, and finally Mexican, with a lot of gangs and drugs. There are still some Irish there, and it's making an upswing, but it's not what you're looking for.

And, by the way, The Tossers are full of ****. They're not from the south side at all. They're from a suburb called Tinley Park, which is generic white people living in subdivisions. They are Irish, at least, but Tony's accent when he sings is fake. I know, he lived with my buddy's brother for a while & they occasionally drink at Teahen's bar in Tinley.

Sorry to ramble.

[Manigault]

I think that most of the Irish live at home.

[deegers]

Originally Posted by Manigault

I think that most of the Irish live at home.

Best comment I've heard all day. Thanks!

[windy city girl]

First of all, there are Irish everywhere in Chicago. My mom immigrated here from Ireland and I grew up on the Northside. That said, Bridgeport and Beverly are notoriously Irish, as well as Oaklawn (as my family says...that kind of "Irish"....the kind that keeps company only with Irish....). But we are everywhere none-the-less (grew up on a block where three families spoke some Gaelic).

As for Ireland, it is becoming very diverse. I was in Galway not that long ago and I mostly heard Polish on the streets, as well as saw black people. There was all kinds of shows on the tv about the immigration boom in Ireland. The economy there is fantastic and it is attracting many Eastern Europeans (from the old Soviet Union) and many Africans, as well as Brazilians!!! You will not find that diversity in the smaller towns though, just like here in America in the rural areas where everyone is white.

A great Irish bar on the Northside is the Atlantic Bar & Grill on Lincoln Ave. They have authentic Irish food. The Abbey Pub on Elston is authentic enough, and is owned by the family that puts on the Irish hour on AM Radio.