Taylor Street

de Kathy Catrambone, Ellen Shubart

Chicago's Near West Side was and is the city's most famous Italian enclave, earning it the title of "Little Italy." Italian immigrants came to Chicago as early as the 1850's, before the massive waves of immigration from 1874 to 1920. They settled in small pockets throughout the city' but ultimately the heaviest concentration was on or near Taylor Street, the main street of Chicago's Little Italy.