Chicago/Milwaukee and surroundings (Jul 2007, Nov 2023)
63 pics
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Nov 2023
This is N Thatcher in Elmwood Park, just north of North Ave. A dayburning Form 109 on a restaurant parking lot.
There are 2 of them, and they're in good condition.
Hard to tell if these were once city fixtures, and the alignment of the road changed, or if they were always privately owned. A great sight in 2023 though for them to be still there.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2012
Pics taken July 2007.
I use the term 'Chicagoland' somewhat loosely as there are pictures here from as far north as Milwaukee, but most of the pictures are from further south than that.
We'll start with a parking lot at W North and Hwy83 in Elmhurst, IL and some rather ungainly 1000W mercury fixtures.
Update Mar 2018: GSV shows that by 2012 these fixtures (and the "Good Times" building behind) had gone.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Oct 2017
West and Utley Rd in Elmhust, just a nice example of a self-colour M250 on a concrete pole.
West and Gladys in Elmhust, this is looking the other way at the intersection. This light is in someone's back yard and can be seen from the front- just. No idea what it is, and the photocell looks like a home made addition, but a great looking fixture nevertheless.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
Elmhurst is filled with these Cooper fixtures- the model is UTR 'Traditionnaire' and they're mercury!
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Oct 2018
The signature streetlighing sight in Chicagoland is the GE 'Crimefighter' luminaire. This row looking east on 63rd at Linder, Midway Airport is on the left.
For new residential street installations, the City of Chicago is using these rather low spun aluminium davit poles with a small crimefighter and a pedestrian light too.
The light levels are really high- and it definitely gives keyhole to keyhole lighting- more like top floor to top floor...
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Oct 2018
Lots of himast poles on the Stevenson Expressway, I-55, notice the city uses them on each side of the road with fixtures on one side, so weights have to be put on the other side to blance the load.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of Jul 2011
A Form 400 (one of quite a few) in Lincolnwood.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of Jul 2011
Pratt Ave in Lincolnwood, and a remote ballast version of the OV-25. Nice!
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of Jul 2011
Further down Pratt Ave in Lincolnwood, a couple of Form 400s and another OV-25 remote ballast.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2014
Lincoln Ave in Lincolnwood now, some odd looking unequal length arms and yet more Form 400s.
Update Mar 2018: Unequal length arms are still used, but the lighting is LED now..
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2014
A good closeup of one of the OV-25 remotes on Lincoln.
We're in Wilmette now, and this 1950s looking pole and lowering mechanism is at Wilmette Jr. High school.
Update Mar 2018: Not too long after this sequence of pics was taken, the school grounds were landscaped and repaved, current GSV shows no evidence these poles and fixtures have survived. The gumballs on Locust Road proper seem to be still there as of late 2017.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2007-8
There are two or three of them, and the others have top entry OV-20s still attached- a rare sight.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2007-8
They are extremely well preserved, nice to see as the easy option no doubt would have been to replace them.
The Westinghouse logo on the glass can be clearly seen.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2007-8
The best thing about these fixtures- they work! They're incandescent- night time pics later in this sequence.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
There's some incandescent around on the roadways too in Wilmette, most of them are gumballs, but we did spot this one NEMA head and open refractor.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
Plenty of these post tops too, all incandescent. Makes for a good looking night time scene.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
This is downtown Waukegan, and a couple of blocks are still lit with finned OV-50s with mercury lamps.
Update May 2018: GSV shows these were still there on N County St as of late 2017, despite other streetscaping works downtown.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
They still work fine, and echoes here of Westwood, CA with the multi- headed poles...
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of 2019
We're now further north, in Milwaukee, and this is Silverspring Drive- if you look at the full size pic you'll se this is a series system, with unusual oval shaped isolation transformers at the top of the poles.
It almost looks like a temporary installation, with the series line and transformers on wooden poles, and the fixtures on separate aluminium poles.
Some double arm poles in the median, and some poles at the side of the street, and the overhead series line zig zagging across the streeet.
Sometimes though, as in this case, the wire running between poles is a low (line) voltage one, a series isolation transformer on one pole feeding 2 or 3 fixtures.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of late 2016
This is Wauwatosa, and this is the parking lot for (Charles) Hart Park. The luminaires in question are Cooper URL, or 'coneheads'.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of late 2016
Odd looking things, but they work well enough. These ones are all HPS.
Update May 2018: GSV shows them still to be there as of late 2016.
Status unknownCheck attempted on "as of" date (usually via GSV in this case), but status of light could not be determined at that time, usually as fixture could not be found again
as of Jun 2019
These dayburning floods were found in a parking lot off S 84th in West Allis.
Status unknownCheck attempted on "as of" date (usually via GSV in this case), but status of light could not be determined at that time, usually as fixture could not be found again
as of Jun 2019
At the other end of the same lot were these rather European looking things which bear more than a passing resemblance to a Thorn Alpha Three.
Status unknownCheck attempted on "as of" date (usually via GSV in this case), but status of light could not be determined at that time, usually as fixture could not be found again
as of Jun 2019- possibly wrong location listed
This is a common sight in Milwaukee, NEMA head gumballs suspended over the roadway. They are all HPS these days though. I think these were in West Allis around S 74th and W Greenfield.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Nov 2023
This is West Allis, there are quite a few blocks of these 35W LPS GE cobraheads in West Allis in the area round W Greenfield and I-894 (I-41).
As far as I know, these were an official GE model although I've never seen them anywhere else. They are series wired, and at the time of writing (2024) they will be retired soon as LPS lamps have not
been made for a few years and the city's replacement stock is running out.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
Back in Illinois now, and the city of Oak Park is full of these post tops which have been converted by having their base down incandescent lamp removed, the glazing taken out, and a standard drop lens and lamp assembly fixed to the top of the old lamp housing.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
They run coated mercury lamps, and whilst it's nice to see so much mercury, they are a bit glary.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2007-8
Back at the Jr High school in Wilmette, and as you can see those top mount OV-20s are incandescent.
...and a close up of the lens. The color is about right- this is a multiple incandescent lamp.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Sep 2018
The rest of Locust Rd, which the school is on, is also lit with incandescent.
It makes for a great scene...just seeing a whole road lit like this is increasingly rare, not just here but anywhere in the US. They are NEMA head gumballs, and the lighting is good, if a little inefficiant!
This pic is looking north in the opposite direction to the previous pic towards Lake Ave which has some mercury there...but for the traffic signals, this pic could have been taken 50 years ago...
Status unknownCheck attempted on "as of" date (usually via GSV in this case), but status of light could not be determined at that time, usually as fixture could not be found again
as of Jun 2019 but probably still there
Still in Wilmette, this is Wilmette Ave and the colour of the camera is correct, these are clear mercury lamps apart from the one directly to the left, that's coated.
No car this time!
...and an arty ground level shot.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2012
We're now at the site of a former 7 Dwarves restraunt in Lombard, IL, and this is a closeup of a 400W NEPO Mfg Co luminaire.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2012
A collector has one of these, and "NEPO MFG CO CHICAGO" is stamped on the top of the casting.
There's a couple of twin arm poles left with then on...
...a very rare sight as NEPO seem to be local to Chicago, although some have been spotted as far afield as Florida.
This is a L-M Spherolite Jr., and it's in someone's back yard in Addison, IL- Harvard & E Fullerton.
Heading into downtown Chicago on North Ave (Hwy 64), this post top ballast was in Elmwood Park.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Jun 2018
Also on North Ave in Elmwood Park, 2 or 3 more of the NEPO Mfg Co luminaire, the others in Lombard.
Continuing East on North Ave, I was keen to get some good shots of Chicago's Crimefighters.
There's still quite a bit of (multiple) overhead wiring around, too.
Yellowed lenses are a common sight.
An arty shot: Crimefighter and building on Ohio St in downtown Chicago.
Looking west on Ohio St at dusk.
Update May 2018: Looks like these downtown Crimefighters lasted until 2014 at least, then were replaced with drop lens cobraheads, possibly CMH as the city was using Philips Streetwise lamps in several places.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2014
I always like to find these- this is a Revere Ultra-Lite 5440 on the parking lot of a former Stevens Steakhouse on W Lake St in Elmhurst.
RemovedChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), removal happened as late as that date or before
as of 2014
The Ultra-Lite series included versions with bigger canopies than this, and angled optics.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Nov 2018
This is Mannheim Rd in Franklin Park, and whilst the T&B 327 1kW HPS luminaires might be nothing too special, the engineered lumber power poles make for a good picture.
SurvivingChecked on "as of" date (either in person or via latest GSV available), so can be assumed to be surviving at least as far as that date
as of Nov 2018
A whole set of these blew down in a storm whilst we were there, they had just been re- erected when this pic was taken.