Illinois Medical District Walking Tour

REGISTRATION AVAILABLE BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 14TH

Chicago for Chicagoans is delighted to announce a brand-new walking tour for 2025: the Illinois Medical District! Led by a truly exceptional duo —Nathalie Wheaton, archivist at Rush University Medical Center, and Megan Keller Young, Special Collections Librarian at UIC — this adventure through Chicago's medical past will make the city's West Side hospital district more fascinating to you than you ever thought possible.

Beginning at the Louis Pasteur Statue (within park, NW corner of W. Harrison & S. Wood), the tour will cover local history, architecture, and landmarks from the 1870s to the present. As you learn about the myriad of ways patient care, research, science, education, nursing, dentistry, community health, and so much more evolved in Chicago to form the boundary-pushing, nationally recognized city medical centers we all know today — you'll also see WPA-era murals and statuary, discover how waves of immigrant groups were served in this area over time, and reflect upon the demolitions that razed many of the area's historic structures over its 150+ years of change. The afternoon will wrap up at the Hyatt Place Hotel that operates out of the Old Cook County Hospital Building, where tour-takers are strongly encouraged to check out one of the city's best-kept secrets: the free Cook County Hospital Museum!

​Chicago for Chicagoans happily exists as a "pay-what-you-can" tour service. A suggested tip of $10-20 per person is always appreciated, but reviewing us on Yelp, liking us on Facebook, spreading the word, and attending future tours tells us how much you love us too! We are a certified 501(c)(3) nonprofit that creates inclusive walking tours by & for Chicago residents, designed to represent the histories of all Chicagoans. Donate online fee-free at chicagoforchicagoans.org.

To view our tour route maps, click here! Please note: this is a new tour for 2025, and the route is in development. Routes are subject to change at any time.

Host or Publisher Chicago for Chicagoans