PORTAGE PARK — Tickets are now on sale for the Northwest Chicago Historical Society's walking tour of Six Corners that will travel back to the shopping district's heyday, when it was second only to the Loop as a destination for those looking to make cash registers chime.

The area near Cicero and Milwaukee avenues at Irving Park Road once attracted thousands of shoppers, offering whatever their hearts desired at dozens of shops and two of the city's largest department stores.

Guides will discuss the history and evolution of the Six Corners Shopping District, which is enjoying new life as the center of arts and culture on the Far Northwest Side.

Attendees will learn about the area’s early history as a crossroads for traders traveling by foot and canoe, as well as the beginning — and end — of the streetcar era and the rise of the automobile and its impact on the area, tour organizers said.

As Chicago grew rapidly through the 20th century, so did Six Corners. It is home to some of the best-preserved examples of modernist retail architecture, including Robert Heller’s nearly intact former Straus & Schram department store at 4041 N. Milwaukee Ave., which will be part of the tour.

That building is now home to the Filament Theatre Ensemble, the National Veterans Art Museum and the Chicago Ballet Center.

Tickets for the tour, set to take place from 4-7 p.m. May 15 rain or shine, are $30 and are available online. Attendees will get a Six Corners T-shirt, a set of four Six Corners postcards, a bottle of water and a light snack.

The tour, which will start and end in front of the Portage Theater, 4050 N. Milwaukee Ave., will include about 1½ miles of walking.

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