For over 150 years, Pilsen has been a port of entry for thousands of immigrants.  Mexicans, Czechs, Poles, Lithuanians, Croatians, and Germans are some of the ethnic groups who passed through this "Ellis Island" on Chicago's Near Westside.  Early generations came searching for work and found plenty of jobs in the lumber mills, breweries, family-run shops and large factories that took root here.  Today most jobs exist outside of Pilsen, but the area still abounds with close-knit families, elaborate churches, mom-and-pop stores, and sturdy brick homes.  Nearly 200 photographs from libraries, personal scrapbooks, and museums illustrate a neighborhood that has been home to such notables as Anton Cermak, Amalia Mendoza, George Hallas, Cesar Chavez, Judy Barr Topinka, and Stuart Dybek.
Softcover, 6 x 9, 128 pgs.