Open House Chicago

Andy and I took advantage of a beautiful fall day to head into the city for Open House Chicago. Best part? The sites we visited didn't have any lines.

Our first stop was Jane Addams Hull House. There wasn't much information given. It was pretty much a self-guided tour with written signs everywhere.

Addams' picture.

Stop No. 2 - Church of the Holy Family. Wow!

Founded in 1857, dedicated 1860 It was one of five public buildings to survive the 1871 Great Fire. I would have had to go across the street to get a good picture of the outside.

A side altar. Not sure what all the different altars are for. Those windows though!

It's huge. At one time this Catholic church had over 25,000 members.

Baptism area. This was easily my favorite stop. So much to see. I'll have to read the church history.

Stop No. 3 was next door to the church, St. Ignatius College Prep high school. Andy didn't want to take the tour so we didn't see all the cool rooms with lots of carved wood. The school was founded in 1869. It also survived the Great Fire and opened its doors the day after to those who were left homeless.

Stop No. 4 - St. Basil Greek Orthodox Church.

The church was built as a synagogue in 1910, dedicated as St. Basil in 1927. It's been rebuilt after a couple of devastating fires.

Stop No. 5 - District Brew Yards. Cool mural on the building.

They have a contest every spring where mural artists from across the country compete to repaint the outdoor patio walls. They've also had murals painted on nearby abandoned buildings.

Bar area.

We had lunch, wings and fried pickles (for Andy). To get beer, you use this plastic card that's connected to your credit card and pay by the ounce. Four breweries share the space.

Neat sign above the coolers where you can get canned beer to go.

Always fun to drive on the streets under the el tracks.

Stop No. 6 - Glunz Tavern and Wine Shop in Old Town. Still family owned. The founder came from Westphalia, Germany, (pretty sure some of my relatives did too) and opened the shop in 1888. Oldest liquor store in Chicago, they said.

Stop No. 7 - Stan Mansion. Built in 1921 to house the Knights of Templar, a fraternal order associated with the Masons. Today, it’s a party and wedding venue.

The rooms seemed very dated to me but the pictures of weddings held there were very nice.

Andy said it was his favorite stop. Maybe because it was our last stop? Here he is leaning against the original wooden bar. The building is part of an old mansion row so we drove around and looked at some gorgeous old houses on our way home.