Located eight miles northwest of downtown Chicago, the Belmont-Cragin community in Chicago has a rich industrial history. The very first business was a saloon opened by entrepreneur George Merrill around 1835, and in the years that followed, many other businesses opened. These included the company, Cragin Brothers, which operated a tin plating sheet iron processing plant and rivet company; the Washburn and Moen Manufacturing Company that operated a wire product company; the Western Brick and Tile Company; the Pitts Agricultural Works Warehouse, and others. In 1992, W.F. Hall Printing Company built a plant on 17 acres next to the Northwestern railroad line. In the 1930s, in order to fill the needs of area workers, builders constructed a large number of bungalows, Cape Cods and two-flats.
Today, as is evident in other areas of the city, many manufacturing facilities and jobs have disappeared in the Belmont-Cragin neighborhood. At the same time, residents continue to take advantage of numerous shopping and recreational opportunities. They can visit the smaller shops, banks, doctors' offices and a Walgreen's drugstore that are located in the nearby Belmont Central neighborhood. Or they can shop at the newly renovated outdoor Brickyard Shopping Center at Diversey and Narragansett Avenues. In recent years, a Jewel-Osco supermarket, Office Max, Pier 1, Lowe's home improvement store, a Target and other stores have been added to the retail mix at the Brickyard.
Riis Park on West Fullerton Avenue, is a popular recreation spot. Named after reformer and photojournalist Jacob A. Riis, the park was opened in 1916, and helped fuel the opening of parks throughout the nation. Now under the jurisdiction of the Chicago Park District, Riis Park contains a variety of facilities including a swimming pool, picnic areas, walking trails, tennis courts and other attractions.
Housing is reasonably priced in the Belmont-Cragin community, ranging from $194, 000 to $669,000 for a single-family home in June, 2006. During that same time period, a three-bedroom, two-bath home on Nagle Avenue was listed for $457,000. The median price for a single-family home in 2006 was $358,900.
There are numerous nursery, elementary and middle schools in the vicinity of the Belmont-Cragin neighborhood. High schools include Notre Dame on Mango Avenue, St. Patrick High School on Belmont Avenue, Prosser Career Academy on North Long Avenue, Steinmetz High School on North Mobile Avenue, and Foreman High School on North Leclaire Avenue.
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Located eight miles northwest of downtown Chicago, the Belmont-Cragin community in Chicago has a rich industrial history. The very first business was a saloon opened by entrepreneur George Merrill around 1835, and in the years that followed, many other businesses opened. These included the company, Cragin Brothers, which operated a tin plating sheet iron processing plant and rivet company; the Washburn and Moen Manufacturing Company that operated a wire product company; the Western Brick and Tile Company; the Pitts Agricultural Works Warehouse, and others. In 1992, W.F. Hall Printing Company built a plant on 17 acres next to the Northwestern railroad line. In the 1930s, in order to fill the needs of area workers, builders constructed a large number of bungalows, Cape Cods and two-flats.
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