Transportation

The CTA's Red Line provides 24/7 service to Grand Crossing at the 69th Street and 79th Street stations. Additionally, the Metra Electric line provides commuter rail service at the 75th Street station at the intersection of East 75th Street and South Chicago Avenue; the railroad crossing that gave the neighborhood its name.

Politics

The Greater Grand Crossing community area has supported the Democratic Party in the past two presidential elections. In the 2016 presidential election, the Greater Grand Crossing cast 12,647 votes for Hillary Clinton and cast 233 votes for Donald Trump (96.68% to 1.78%). Despite Clinton's 94.60% margin of victory, it was only her 16th best finish in the City of Chicago. In the 2012 presidential election, Greater Grand Crossing cast 15,408 votes for Barack Obama and cast 89 votes for Mitt Romney (99.23% to 0.57%). Despite Obama's 98.66% margin of victory, it was only his 11th best finish in the City of Chicago.

Notable people

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  • Dayvon Daquan "King Von" Bennett (1994–2020), rapper and songwriter. He was a resident of Parkway Gardens.
  • Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000), poet, author, and teacher who won the 1950 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for Annie Allen. She resided at 7428 South Evans Avenue from 1953 until 1994.
  • Al Capone (1899–1947), Capone purchased a residence at 7244 South Prairie Avenue in 1923, but shortly after moved to Cicero, Illinois.
  • Chief Keef, rapper and record producer, he was a resident of Parkway Gardens.
  • Gary Comer (1927–2006), businessman and philanthropist who founded Lands' End. He was a childhood resident of Grand Crossing.
  • Robert Cooley (born 1943), Mafia attorney turned government informant and author of When Corruption Was King. He was a childhood resident raised at 74th & Vernon.
  • Shani Davis (born 1982), first African American athlete to win a gold medal in an individual event at the Olympic Winter Games. He lived in Greater Grand Crossing until the age of 6 when his family moved to Rogers Park.
  • George Freeman. (1927—2025), jazz guitarist. He was born and raised in and returned between stints elsewhere to the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood in Chicago.
  • Wilton Daniel Gregory (born 1947), prelate of the Catholic Church and the first African-American cardinal. He was raised at 217 West 72nd Street.<!--title says Englewood, but article text says the address is 217 West 72nd Street which places it in the Grand Crossing community area as can be verified on the City of Chicago Zoning Map found here https://gisapps.chicago.gov/ZoningMapWeb/?liab=1&config=zoning. Self identified neighborhoods do not necessarily match up with community areas.-->
  • Jennifer Hudson (born 1981), singer and actress. She was a childhood resident of Greater Grand Crossing.
  • Albert "Sunnyland Slim" Luandrew (1906–1995), blues pianist credited with making Chicago a center of the genre after World War II. He resided for a time at 368 East 69th Street in the 1970s.
  • Michelle Obama (born 1964), 51st First Lady of the United States (2009–2017). She was a childhood resident of the Parkway Garden Homes. The family moved to South Shore when she was two years old.
  • Leroy Orange (born 1950), victim of police torture and one of four recipients of a pardon at the start of George Ryan's large-scale death penalty moratorium. He resided at 803 East 75th Street at the time of his conviction.
  • Craig Robinson (born 1962), college basketball coach, basketball executive, and broadcaster. The brother of Michelle Obama, he was a childhood resident of Parkway Garden Homes. The family moved to South Shore when he was four years old.

The community has since been redeveloped in slow progression and will be a historic landmark for future generations.

References

  • Profile: Greater Grand Crossing by Jeanette Almada Chicago Tribune (October 7, 1998)
  • Chicago Zip Code and Neighborhood Map City of Chicago