In 1925, Sidney N. Shure founded a company in Chicago that supplied radio parts. Eventually, the Shure Radio Company evolved into a company known for its high-quality microphones. In 1939, the company created a microphone known as the Unidyne, which eventually became its most iconic one. Not only did famous rock stars, such as Elvis…
Author: Bet Arkeh
5 Historically Noteworthy Homes in the Chicago Area
Even though museums, libraries, archives, etc. are currently closed throughout the majority of the world because of the Coronavirus, there are other ways to still visit historic places. Here are 5 historically noteworthy homes that are never open to the public anyway, but that you can drive and see from the outside if you are…
Coronavirus = Historical Moment
As I was thinking about which historical place to write about this week, I realized that I should pause and write about a historically significant moment that is happening right now instead: the Coronavirus. Since this historic event is also causing a lot of museums and libraries to shut down, it is appropriate for me…
Graceland Cemetery in Chicago
If you suddenly find yourself laid off from a job that you enjoyed, and are given more free time than you have had in a long time, what do you do? When this situation happened to me, I tried to look for inexpensive ways to keep myself busy and de-stress. As morbid as this may…
The British Museum
The British Museum in London is undoubtedly ranked as one the best museums in the world, containing approximately 8 million artifacts. It was founded in 1753 as the first free, national museum. Its enormous collection contains items from every continent in the world except for Antarctica. This is largely in part to the fact that…
Art Institute of Chicago
Along with the Science and Industry Museum and the Field Museum of Natural History, the Art Institute of Chicago is probably among Chicago’s top 3 museums. Additionally, it probably ranks among the best art museums in the United States. Fortunately, for Illinois residents, the Museum is participating in Illinois’ free museum days. That means that…
William Saroyan, Assyrians, and the Joys of Research
Prior to a few decades ago, researching beyond the public library to learn about a random topic of interest would have been too much of an effort to be worthwhile. Thankfully, technology continues to make it easier and easier to research almost anything. As an example, I will demonstrate how I was able to satisfy…
Field Museum of Natural History
During the month of February, one of Chicago’s best museums, the Field Museum of Natural History, is free to Illinois residents. It ranks among the best natural history museums in the United States, along with New York’s American Museum of Natural History and Washington D.C.’s Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. After the World’s Columbian Exposition,…
Sheldon Peck Homestead and the Underground Railroad
In United States history, a person became a member of the “Underground Railroad” if he or she assisted slaves from the Southern states to escape to free areas where slavery was illegal (often the Northern states or Canada). Nobody had to formally join an organization called the Underground Railroad to become a member. The phrase…
Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago
The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago is one of the only surviving buildings from the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, also known as the World’s Columbian Exposition, which was in Jackson Park, in the South Side of Chicago. Like most of the other buildings at the World’s Fair, it was built in the Beaux…
Bet Arkeh 