Why Do Chicagoans Say “Jewels” Instead of “Jewel”?

Jewel

Have you ever shopped for groceries at Jewels? If you have, you’re pronouncing the store’s name wrong. It’s Jewel — short for Jewel Tea Company, the name of the original business that was founded here in 1899. So why do so many Chicagoans add an s? It’s a linguistic phenomenon with stores, especially grocery stores. Kroger, Aldi, … Read more

Did the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre Spur Calls for Gun Control?

A crowd outside the Clark Street garage, owned by George “Bugs” Moran, where the St. Valentine’s Day massacre took place.

On February 14, 1929, seven gangsters were machine-gunned to death in a Lincoln Park garage, an act that so shocked the nation (“Machine Guns Used to Mow Down Victims,” read a headline in the Scranton Republican), it earned a nickname — and a place in the country’s criminal lore. Weary of the bootlegging wars that were a … Read more