the Urban Archivist

These photos were taken aboard Southwest Flight 202 from Seattle to Chicago on December 22, 2006.

Here we are over the Thornton Quarry, looking south. That’s I-80 in the foreground; notice the bridge carrying the Interstate across the deep hole in the ground.

Looking northeast over Lake Calumet. Right now, it is sort of an industrial lake, part of the somewhat derelict Port of Chicago, located next to a landfill and other industrially-ruined lands. Its shores have been artificially shaped into slips for shipping with a turning basin at the top of the lake. There are plans for clean-up and wetlands restoration.

Looking northeast, here’s the junction of junction of Interstates 94 and 57. Unlike suburbanites, Chicagoans like to use proper names instead of highway numbers. So let’s go about this from the top. The Dan Ryan (Expressway; I-94) comes in from the north and splits into the Bishop Ford Freeway (formerly known as the Calumet Expressway; I-94) and I-57, which doesn’t have a name because it is sort of the red-headed stepchild of Chicago expressways. It is also the major highway for students travelling between Chicago and the University of Illinois or Southern Illinois University –or for drugs being shipped to Chicago from the south.

We took several twists and turns over the city, resembling a big S shape, before landing at Midway from the northeast. Here is our final big turn before lining up on the runway.

Finally, we flew over this commercial strip along South Pulaski Avenue. I noticed that I could see my uncle/aunt/cousin’s house, so I took a picture.

South Komensky Avenue cropped from the photo above. I could even see the concrete patio in their backyard.

Damn this is a nice camera!