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The rides that once made up the heart and soul of Old Chicago had long since been taken down and shipped to other parks and fairs.  All that was left was a massive empty room at the center of the complex.  Throughout the idle years Old Chicago's roof leaked causing the fairgrounds to flood as it was below grade.



Finally in February of 1986 the wrecking ball began to swing....



....removing Old Chicago from everywhere but our memories.



With each swing the wrecking ball took a little more of Old Chicago away from us.



Inside of Old Chicago everything that could be stripped out of the building was. 

Hopefully, the hundreds of light posts that the builders of Old Chicago had custom built at a large expense for the mall ended up somewhere other than the scrap heap.



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Copyright 1999 - 2026

Paul B. Drabek