Chicago's Clark Street is a north-south street in Chicago running near the shore of Lake Michigan from 7600 North, the city limits with Evanston, to 2200 South in the city street numbering system. At its northern end it is at 1800 West and from North Avenue down to Cermak Road it is 100 West, and so for its northernmost , Clark Street is occasionally slightly diagonal, but even as a diagonal it runs more north-south than northwest-southeast. Clark then turns due south for the remainder of its run.

Clark Street was built on the path of an Indian trail that ran all the way to Green Bay, Wisconsin. It is named for George Rogers Clark, a Revolutionary War hero who captured much of the Northwest Territory from the British and the elder brother of William Clark. In Evanston, north of the Chicago border, it is called Chicago Avenue.

Points of Interest

The commercial strip of Andersonville runs along Clark Street from the intersection with Ashland Avenue to Foster Avenue. At the intersection of Clark Street and Irving Park Road is the entrance to Graceland Cemetery. The Metro concert hall is located at 3730 N. Clark, 1-1/2 blocks north of Addison Street. The intersection of Clark and Addison is well-known in Chicago as the location of Wrigley Field. Another vibrant commercial strip on Clark Street stretches from Diversey Parkway on the north to Armitage Avenue on the south, and features exceptional shopping, plus a rich mix of restaurants and entertainment. It is within walking distance of renowned cultural and educational institutions such as the Lincoln Park Zoo, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, the Lincoln Park Conservatory, the Chicago History Museum, and DePaul University, and has abundant lakefront park and recreational activities. 2122 N. Clark was the site of the Saint Valentine's Day massacre, although the building no longer stands. Further to the south Clark Street borders Lincoln Park, and at North Avenue sits the Chicago History Museum. The street then passes through the Near North Side, where in the River North neighborhood it passes the Rock & Roll McDonalds. Then it continues over the Chicago River at the Clark Street Bridge and through the Loop where it passes the Thompson Center and its Monument with Standing Beast. Then it continues between City Hall and the Daley Center and on to its termination at Cermak Road.

Trivia

The scene in the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off in which the parking garage attendants go airborne in Camerons' father's red Ferrari was shot on South Clark Street, near Roosevelt Road.

Notes

1. Hayner, Don and Tom McNamee, Streetwise Chicago, "Clark Street", p. 23, Loyola University Press, 1988, ISBN 0-8294-0597-6