Angelus Building Riot
Perhaps one of the most heated encounters between Black and white Chicagoans during the Race Riot of 1919 occurred at 35th Street and Wabash, where the predominantly white Angelus apartment building stood. A rumor had spread earlier in the day that a shot had been fired from Angelus, wounding a young Black male. Soon a group of 1,500 African American residents amassed at the intersection of 35th and Wabash to express their anger about the shooting. Stationed across the street were a hundred police officers, who eventually would open fire on the group—allegedly due to a brick being thrown at one police officer. As shots rang out, four African Americans were murdered. Violence would continue to erupt throughout the South Side of Chicago, until the riot eventually subsided on August 8th. The violence and murder at Angelus would be remembered by many as the city worked to rebuild after the riot.
