East Side Chicago 60617
East Side Chicago is about 13 miles south of the city’s downtown and is located on the city’s Far Southeast Side.
The Calumet River has been a staple for the economy of East Side and residents enjoy Calumet Park located near Lake Michigan as well as the Eggers Grove Forest preserve Park.
Due to its location along the river, East Side has a long history of residential development that began in the beginning of the 20th century. The East Side is synonymous with the popular Chicago-style bungalows from the early century through the 1930s. The area also saw considerable residential building after World War II through the 1950s as business growth reinvested along the Calumet River. In the southeast, you can find several newer homes built after the 1980s.
Current development includes a focus on the community park system
More about East Side Chicago
At the northeastern corner of the neighborhood, close to lake Michigan, stands a stone obelisk Illinois-Indiana State Line Boundary Marker to mark the northern end of the surveyed boundary line that separates Illinois and Indiana.
Most of the streets going north and south are named after the alphabet, with Avenue B closest to the Indiana state line and Avenue O closer to the Calumet River. The road which should have been called “Avenue A” is named State Line Road.
Local Chicagoans often refer to the entire Southeast Side area which includes East Side, South Shore, South Chicago, South Deering, Calumet Heights, and Hegewisch as “the East Side” in reference to Chicago’s more established North, South, and West Sides.
