Chicago's Street Guide to the Supernatural
by Richard T. Crowe with Carol Mercado
They're baaaaaaack. Haunted houses are cropping up around Chicagoland to the spooky delight of those who visit them and the financial delight of those who sponsor them.
But did you know there are many places in and around Chicago that are haunted all year long? If you didn't, then Richard Crowe's book, Chicago's Street Guide to the Supernatural, is a great find. If you did, then you've probably already read it and know that Crowe revels in sharing his knowledge of local ghosts, curses, and jinxes.
For the record, a ghost is a disembodied spirit, usually of vague and shadowy form, that haunts living persons. A curse is a formula created to cause misfortune to another, while a jinx is something or someone that brings bad luck. Think the Billy Goat jinx of the woebegone Cubs here.
Several well-known buildings in Chicago's central city area boast - or maybe not - manifestations of paranormal phenomenon. These include the John Hancock Building, the Chicago Water Tower, The Excalibur, the Civic Opera House, Harpo Studio, and Hooters Restaurant. Obviously, those from the supernatural side like diversity as much as those of us who are still flesh and bone.
The chapter on 660 North Wells Street, currently home to Hooters, is titled "Spirited Chicken Wings" and reveals the author's keen sense of humor about his subject. As far as the building itself is concerned, he cites the "sound of phantom footsteps, a mysterious voice calling your name, electroacoustic interferences with telephones and jukeboxes, and more." Crowe reports that the restaurant staff "encounters various ghostly activities, usually in the storage area of the basement, but sometimes in other parts of the building. Nothing seems threatening, but it is almost mischievous in nature."
What could cause these phenomenons?
Every haunted spot has a different story behind it. In the case of Hooters, the area around 660 North Wells Street was decimated by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and many people died. Perhaps they haunt the building. Additionally, five businesses that occupied the site prior to Hooters signing its lease all failed, so perhaps the building was jinxed. Today, while Hooters has been successful and the jinx seems to be broken, the ghostly activities are ongoing.
Author Crowe devotes a full chapter to each of the locations mentioned above and another 71 chapters to the rest of the city and suburbs. He tells each tale with interest and embellishes them all with his own photos of the locations in question. I'm sure every reader will be surprised to learn he or she has probably visited more than a handful of these places. And, if the number of ghosts who inhabit Chicago and its nearby suburbs is as real as Richard T. Crowe suggests, then there is another group out there for politicians to court.
This is clearly the work of someone who has done painstaking research on his topic. I only wish he had done as painstaking an editing job. As an author myself, I found the many grammatical errors - particularly regarding nouns, pronouns, and antecedents - offensive. When I buy a book, I want to know an editor has done a good job and that such errors are minimal. For this nit-picky point, I give Chicago's Street Guide to the Supernatural four stars.
I hope Mr. Crowe won't put a curse on my own work.
Chicago's Street Guide to the Supernatural
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For more from Anne Brandt, visit her website
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