Today in Chicago History: City's first aquarium at Lincoln Park Zoo — and Shedd Aquarium, its second — opens

Chicago Tribune

2 days ago

Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on May 31, according to the Tribune's archives.
Is an important event missing from this date? Email us.
Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago)
Chicago White Sox pitchers have thrown 20 no-hitters since 1902 — including 3 perfect games. Relive them all here.1914: Joe Benz had the first of three Chicago White Sox no-hitters in which the opponent scored. White Sox pitchers have thrown more no-hitters than any other American League team.
1923: Chicago's first aquarium opened at Lincoln Park Zoo. The 150,000-square-foot building was designed to house 86 tanks and up to 400,000 gallons of water. 'We will experiment with every known kind of freshwater fish,' said Alfred E. Parker, director of the zoo.
When planning for the Shedd Aquarium began a few years later, the building was repurposed as a reptile house. Following a more than $4 million renovation, the building was converted into the 500-seat Park Place Cafe.
1930: The $3 million Shedd Aquarium, named in honor of its benefactor John G. Shedd, the former Marshall Field & Co. president unofficially opened with just one of its six galleries available to visitors. But what they saw — nurse sharks, sea turtles, a sting ray and tropical fish — 'was a bewildering display, both grotesque and beautiful specimens,' the Tribune reported.
The building, designed by architects Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, was completed Dec. 21, 1929, when reporters got a glimpse of its rotunda.
1936: A Transcontinental & Western Air plane carrying 15 people — 12 passengers and three crew members — hit a tree and a house at 6045 S. Kilbourn Ave. but managed to land in an empty lot near Chicago Municipal Airport (now Midway). All 15 survived.
'Why, the plane is almost an exact fit for that lot,' an observer told the Tribune. 'A lot of terrible things could have happened and didn't.'
2019: 14th Ward Ald. Edward Burke was indicted on 14 counts, including racketeering, federal program bribery, attempted extortion, conspiracy to commit extortion and using interstate commerce to facilitate an unlawful activity.
The Dishonor Roll: Meet the public officials who helped build Illinois' culture of corruptionBurke remained the 14th Ward alderman for more than half a century. He not only claimed the record as the longest-serving City Council member in the history of Chicago, but he also became one of the most powerful until he was convicted on 13 of 14 counts in a landmark federal corruption trial in December 2023.
2024: The Blommer Chocolate factory, famous for sending an unmistakable chocolate smell throughout the Fulton River District, closed. In 2020, the Blommer Outlet Store closed after almost 30 years to make room for updates and enhancements to the local chocolate factory. But improvements to the plant were delayed because of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a filing. Blommer is the largest cocoa processor and ingredient chocolate supplier in North America.
Subscribe to the free Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter, join our Chicagoland history Facebook group, stay current with Today in Chicago History and follow us on Instagram for more from Chicago's past.