Migration To Chicago In The 19th Century

In the early 19th century, thousands of African Americans began moving to Chicago from the southern states as the Great Migration began. In the 1920s, restrictive covenants, along with zoning restrictions that were established by white businessmen, prohibited African Americans living among White Americans. In result, Black businessmen and businesswomen, professionals, and middle class families started to settle into Bronzeville as Chicago’s wealthy white residents moved to the North Shore. Due to limited housing options, they started to settle into houses that were owned by white investors.