Lincoln Park, 1601 N. Clark St.

While living with the Hale family, Swamiji went for strolls to Lincoln Park very often.

It was here that He did babysitting for a 6 year old child.

This child was "Agnes Ewing".

She later became a student of Swami Akhilananda at the Boston center.

In addition to being a park at the lakefront, Lincoln Park had many other attractions at that time. This 250 acre park was bounded by Lake Michigan on the east; Clark Street on the west; North Avenue on the south, and Diversey Street on the north.

The park included a Conservatory, a Zoo which had a Bengal tiger, the Chicago Academy of Sciences and the Lincoln Statue.

Lake Michigan

Swami Vishwananda was the head of the Vivekananda Vedanta Society of Chicago  from 1938 through 1965.

In 1939, he received a letter from Sarat Chandra Chakravorty, a disciple of Swamiji.

The letter revealed this incident associated with Swamiji in Lincoln Park.

"  . . . . Swamiji once told me that one moonlit night when He was on the shore of Lake Michigan, his mind began to merge in Brahman.

Suddenly He saw Shri Ramakrishna & remembered the work for which He had come to this world.

Then His mind came down & again turned toward the fulfillment of His mission".

Marshall Field Store (Now Macy's) on Michigan Ave

The Store surrounded by State, Washington, Wabash and Randolph has Swamiji’s footprints all over it.

If He was looking for a phonograph to send to the Maharaja of Khetri in India , or any other special item, He must have shopped at this store.

The extension at the corner of Wabash Avenue & Washington
Street built in 1892 to accomodate the World’s Fair crowd, is the only part of the store still existing from that era.

The Store was renamed Macy’s after it was bought over by them in 2005.

Hotel Richelieu,  318 S.Michigan Avenue, Chicago

On October 27 1893 Swamiji lectured at the Ladies Fortnightly Club on the subject of Buddhism.

Shy of publicity the club did not encourage newspapermen to attend such lectures, neither did it record its detailed proceedings.

The content of Swamiji’s lecture therefore remains unknown. This was a very pretigious  & exclusive club , drawing its membership from the upper crust of Chicago . The club’s goal was to enhance intellectual & social culture.

The club’s address was 10 Van Buren Street, but their meetings including the one on October 27, were held in Hotel Richelieu at 186 S. Michigan.

The Hotel was built in 1885 , but its front facade was extensively renovated & some additions were made in 1911.

After a subsequent alteration in 1982 it now stands at 318 S. Michigan Ave.