Bootlegging

Back in the 1920s, when this building that we live in was shiny and new, it was north of the city and in the middle of nowhere. This made it a most excellent spot for Al Capone and company to smuggle liquor right off the lake into the tunnels below the building. And so they did. The passageways underneath the building are now creepy storage spaces where we keep life jackets, coolers, and luggage. I couldn't really get myself to stick around down there long enough to get a good photo today (It was a dark and stormy day...). But as I'm sure you know, Capone had to smuggle the booze rather than buy it at the store due to Prohibition. Of course Prohibition created a new and fabulous section of the Chicago underworld and though gambling and prostitution were right up there with Al's favorite enterprises, his biggest profit came from the sale of the sippy-sips. And most certainly these funds allowed Capone the tightest of grips on Chicago police forces and politics. Kinda amazing.

So amazing that Chicago has worked hard ever since then to erase all things tied to Capone. Most of the hot spots (hotels, restaurants, etc.) have been demolished -including the Al Capone Museum which was a big animatronics show in-the-round with each of the favorite gangsters featured in (jerky) motion. I can happily say that I partook in the show during a visit to Chicago in high school. I was so moved that I bought dice from the gift shop.