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Edgewater is a north Chicago, Illinois, community bordering the neighborhoods of Rogers Park and Uptown. It is seven miles north of The Loop, downtown. The community was first developed around the 1890s as a summer home for Chicago's elite. With the exception of pockets acknowledged as
historic districts, Edgewater boasts a skyline of apartment buildings, condominium complexes, and mid-rise homes. Edgewater is highlighted by two main corridors: North Winthrop Avenue and North Kenmore Avenue to Loyola University Chicago. Winthrop and Kenmore are rehabilitated areas with homes touched up to harken back to Edgewater's glory days of the past.
History
Early settlers
Developers began cutting down the dense woods in the area in the late 1880s to make way for future development. In 1885, Edgewater was given its name by its builder, John Lewis Cochran. He built the first residential subdivision in the area. After a few years, Edgewater was celebrated as a wonder as it became "the only electric lighted suburb adjacent to Chicago". Edgewater also gained fame as the celery-growing capital of America's Midwest.
The turn of the century
In the early 1900s, Edgewater was regarded as one of Chicago's most prestigious communities. A prominent symbol of Edgewater's affluence was the Edgewater Beach Hotel, which opened in 1916 at 5349 North Sheridan. The famed pink hotel was demolished in 1968, though the remaining pink Edgewater Beach Apartments building is still a landmark at the north tip of Lake Shore Drive. The Edgewater building boom peaked in 1926 and property values reached their height in 1928. The burgeoning affluent population grew so much that developers expanded Edgewater and renamed the new neighborhood community Uptown.
Revival
Uptown's population declined in the 1950s as Chicago's western and southern suburbs were developed and opened, absorbing Chicago's middle and upper classes. With the flight of residents came disrepair and high crime rates for what once was one of the most affluent districts of Chicago.
In the 1980s, the Chicago City Council and local business owners orchestrated a revival for the Edgewater community. Edgewater seceded from the Uptown community and once again called itself its own community. New businesses were brought into the community, old buildings were refurbished and homes touched up to harken back to Edgewater's glory days of the past.
Gay and lesbian community
An unexpected influx of gay and lesbian residents moved in and land values skyrocketed. The community now boasts one of the largest homosexual populations in the United States. It shares that distinction with neighboring communities of Andersonville, Lakeview, and Rogers Park. Edgewater is home to the Gerber/Hart Library, the largest gay and lesbian library and archives in the midwestern United States.
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