From the Commonplace Book:
Introduction
Despite its sparse population, Little Chicago Quadrangle has always been a dynamic space where different stories and memories interact and intertwine with each other. Shown from the following deep map projects, it is not only the root of the first-generation Scandinavian immigrants in the United States, but also home of many farming families, who witnessed the changing times since the 19th century. Upon this land, we witness the ebbs and flows in the life of the Swedish Immigrants in the States; we also cherish the memory told by the hidden voice in the Jesse James Bank Raid through the narrative of the Christdala Church; finally, we are able to walk through the lifetime history of Little Chicago residents as an epitome of a broader historical period across generations.
A Brief History of the Town
In the second half of the 19th century, many Scandinavian immigrants, particularly from Sweden, came to this area and became the earliest residents, who built their community and flourished upon this prairie. It was named “Berg” at that time, because of its similarity to the Berg Municipality (Bergs kommun), a municipality in Jämtland County in northern Sweden located in Svenstavik. Presumably, those earliest residents were from this municipality.
Interestingly, during the Prohibition, the gangsters from Chicago, who smuggled illegal products e.g. alcohol drinks, took a stop on their way along the railway line to St. Paul around this area. (The gangsters stopped not only in Little Chicago area, but also in other places, including Shakopee in Scott County, MN, whose name was also “Little Chicago” before.) In order to remember such history, the residents (presumably led by Mr. Sigurd Sjulstad, the owner of the only store in town) rename it as a “little” Chicago shortly after the Prohibition Era, and they have not changed it since then.
Maps
This is my first interactive map for Little Chicago Borders. The layers on the map contain information on local territories within the USGS 7.5 minute quadrangle.
