Mark Liechty often finds himself wondering what Chicago was like hundreds of years ago, before the city was officially incorporated in 1837, when thousands of Native Americans were living in villages throughout the region.

“One of the ways I try to relate to the place I’m living is to try to understand what it was like in the past,” he says.

But Mark says he’s noticed that this part of the city’s history is often ignored. And he’s curious about the role Native Americans had in shaping Chicago. So he asked Curious City:

What impact have the region's Native Americans had on Chicago?