Chicago’s Wentworth Avenue runs south from 16th Street all of the way to the far southern suburbs. It is one of several south side streets that do not continue to the Loop. Wentworth is mostly in line with Wells Street in the Loop, but Wells Street continues south, jogs a bit and runs parallel to Wentworth Avenue in the southern part of the city.
Wentworth is named for Long John Wentworth, a U.S. Congressman and Chicago Mayor. Wentworth Street is shown on Rufus Blanchard’s 1857 Map of Chicago, so the street was apparently named prior to Wentworth’s 1857 election as mayor.
Much of the Chicago portion of Wentworth Avenue was demolished and buried under the Dan Ryan Expressway in the 1950s. Scattered portions remain.
For some Chicagoans, “Wentworth Avenue” means the portion of the street in the community area of Armor Square between Cermak Road and 24th Place. This short stretch of Wentworth (街決永 on bilingual signs) forms the main street of Chicago’s Chinatown.
To find more information on Chinatown and this fascinating stretch of Wentworth Avenue, check out “Chinatown Chicago” and “Armor Square.”
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