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This is a revised, expanded, and re-recorded version of an episode that was originally released in 2020.

William "Big Bill" Thompson was a larger-than-life character who served as Chicago mayor for three terms and is viewed as one of the most corrupt politicians this great city has ever seen.

Robert Loerzel's piece on Eugene Williams in the August 2019 Chicago Magazine:
https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/August-2019/Searching-for-Eugene-Williams/

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Further reading (purchasing these items through these links help support our efforts at no additional cost to you):

City of Scoundrels: The 12 Days of Disaster That Gave Birth To Modern Chicago by Gary Krist
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Big Bill of Chicago by Lloyd Wendt and Herman Kogan
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Big Bill Thompson, Chicago, and The Politics of Image by Douglas Bukowski
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Al Capone's Beer Wars: A Complete History of Organized Crime in Chicago During Prohibition by John J. Binder
Hardcover - https://amzn.to/4aSKXB7

Chicago History Podcast (chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com):

Chicago History Podcast Art by John K. Schneider (angeleyesartjks AT gmail.com)

Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

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An area once called Dunkley’s Grove was considered for a new stadium for the Chicago White Sox, not in old-timey days – in 1986! Was Edison Park named for Thomas Edison? Dunton, Sagone, Hartford… and where was Cleaverville?

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Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

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Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chicagohistory

Send me an email with whatever is on your mind: chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com
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Up your cocktail or Sodastream game with Portland craft syrups!
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Affiliate Links (anything you buy through these links - not just this stuff - helps benefit the show at no additional cost to you):

BOOKS:

Guns and Roses: The Untold Story of Dean O'Banion, Chicago's Big Shot Before Al Capone by Troy Taylor
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Al Capone's Beer Wars: A Complete History of Organized Crime in Chicago during Prohibition by John J. Binder
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https://amzn.to/3CqCEj1 (Paperback)
https://amzn.to/3YKB0QB (Kindle)

Want to read hundreds of books for FREE every month? Try Kindle Unlimited here: https://amzn.to/4dInhRb

Chicago's Unsolved Crimes and Mysteries by Bryan Alaspa
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Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

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Their killings stand out as one of Chicago's most infamous unsolved crimes. Today we’re discussing the Grimes Sisters Murders.

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https://amzn.to/3YGeo5f (Free with Kindle Unlimited)

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Chicago's Unsolved Crimes and Mysteries by Bryan Alaspa
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Chicago Area Wall Map (30"x29" Laminated)
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CHP Merch (Buy a T-Shirt, Help the Podcast):
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Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

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Have you ever been to Grossdale? Praha? Maybe Swedetown? How about Gregg's Milk Station? I’m sure you’ve been to Hardscrabble, right? Today we’re discussing Chicago’s Forgotten Towns, Neighborhoods, and Names.

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Send me an email with whatever is on your mind: chicagohistorypod AT gmail.com
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Up your cocktail or Sodastream game with Portland craft syrups!
https://portlandsyrups.com/collections/all?sca_ref=1270971.MO4APpJH1k

Affiliate Links (anything you buy through these links - not just this stuff - helps benefit the show at no additional cost to you):

BOOKS:
Place Names of Illinois by Edward Callary
https://amzn.to/3U89rPX
Chicago Area Wall Map (30"x29" Laminated)
https://amzn.to/4h5g4w4

CHP Merch (Buy a T-Shirt, Help the Podcast):
https://www.teepublic.com/user/chicago-history-podcast

Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

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On this Great Chicago Fire-themed episode we discuss one home not destroyed by the fire – the Ogden mansion – and learn little more about the person who once owned it, what happened to that area immediately after the fire, and what is on that site now.

Show some love for the podcast for the cost of a cup of coffee and help offset production costs:
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Up your cocktail game for the holidays with Portland craft syrups!
https://portlandsyrups.com/collections/all?sca_ref=1270971.MO4APpJH1k

Need music for YOUR projects? Audiio has got you covered. Try a free trial here:
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GREAT CHICAGO FIRE:

The Great Chicago Fire: Rising From The Ashes by Kate Hannigan
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Chicago's Great Fire: The Destruction and Resurrection of an Iconic American City by Carl Smith
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The Great Chicago Fire: In Eyewitness Accounts and 70 Contemporary Photographs and Illustrations by David Lowe
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Chicago Movie Tours
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WTTW's Eddie Griffin is back to discuss one of Chicago's darkest sports stories - the Black Sox Scandal of 1919.

The new season of Chicago Stories begins September 20th.

https://interactive.wttw.com/chicago-stories

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
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Up your cocktail or Sodastream game with Portland craft syrups!
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Affiliate Links (anything you buy through these links - not just this stuff - helps benefit the show at no additional cost to you):

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Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series by Eliot Asinof
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Chicago Tribune Book of the Chicago White Sox: A Decade by Decade History
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Ultimate White Sox Trivia Book, The by Ray Walker
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Eight Men Out (Blu-ray)
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Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

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Anthony Bourdain tasted the wormwood-infused liquor Malört for his TV show “The Layover” and said, “its brash nature" created “a possibility that I could get all stabby and belligerent.” Today we're talking about Malört, the truly Chicago booze.

Show your love of this podcast for the cost of a coffee:
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Up your cocktail or Sodastream game with Portland craft syrups!
https://portlandsyrups.com/collections/all?sca_ref=1270971.MO4APpJH1k

Affiliate Links (anything you buy through these links - not just this stuff - helps benefit the show at no additional cost to you):

BOOKS:
Malört: The Redemption of a Revered & Reviled Spirit by John Noel
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Chicago Handshake Drinking Card Game (Transit Tees)
https://amzn.to/3My8GeO

Academy Award® Nominee for Best Original Screenplay, SEPTEMBER 5 is now on Digital.

Based on true events at the 1972 Olympics and the hostage crisis that changed media coverage forever.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch. BUY OR RENT SEPTEMBER 5 on Fandango at Home NOW! Rated PG. From Paramount Pictures.

Support the show