Please join Shorefront on Saturday, Aug. 13, when two more markers honoring local and historical sites important to the African American community will be unveiled as part of this ongoing program.

  • At 2 p.m., the marker at 325 Dempster St. will be unveiled at the home of Evanston’s first documented African American resident.
  • At 3 p.m., the marker at 1918 Asbury Ave. will be unveiled at the site of the Evanston Sanitarium.

African American Heritage Sites program

Passed by consent agenda, the Evanston City Council Resolution 54-R-20 on June 22, 2020, establishing the African American Heritage Sites program facilitated through Shorefront. The resolution previously passed the City of Evanston’s Planning and Development committee on the same date, the Evanston Preservation Commission on June 9, 2020, and at the regular Shorefront Board meeting on June 5, 2020.

Shorefront led in developing the Heritage Sites program, guided by and honoring previous work completed in the late 1990s by members of PITCH, who produced a comprehensive survey, primarily in Evanston’s fifth ward, along with a published report in support of a new “heritage district” concept recognizing a specific area guided by cultural history over architecture.