Back of the Yards

One of the most storied neighborhoods in Chicago, Back of the Yards was established in the late 19th century to provide cheap housing for the waves of European immigrants working in the nearby Union Stock Yard, once the largest meat processing facility in the nation. It was the scene of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle (1906) and a hotbed of labor and community organizing in the first half of the 20th century.

The Back of the Yards Neighborhood Council, founded by Saul Alinsky and Joseph Meegan, is one of the oldest community organizations in the U.S. The Stock Yard closed in 1971 with only the Union Stock Yards Gate (pictured above) remaining as the lone symbol of a time when Chicago was “hog butcher to the world.”

Today, Back of the Yards is a strong, working-class neighborhood with a large Hispanic population. The neighborhood is home to the Ballet Folklorico, a children's dance troupe made up of neighborhood youth that performs around the Chicagoland area.

Throughout the city, Chicago Tribute Markers of Distinction celebrate notable Chicagoans by marking the places where they lived or worked. Two markers commemorate social reformer Mary McDowell (4655 McDowell Ave.) and community organizer Saul Alinsky (4430 S. Marshfield Ave.) in Back of the Yards.

Read, Learn, Discover at the Chicago Public Library. Search programming and event information at your neighborhood branch (Back of the Yards, Canaryville, Sherman Park).