One of My favorite if now somewhat vague childhood memories from growing up on the southwest side of Chicago Illinois during the 1960's and 70's era, was the annual July Back of the yards neighborhood Free Fair Carnival at West 47th Street and South Damen Avenue.

I visited this place a handful of times with My family, when I was a little boy during the mid to late 1960's.

The annual Free Fair Carnival, was held every July on a large tact of vacant land that also featured a local baseball field, at the northwest corner of South Damen Avenue and West 47th Street.

This photograph, is from the Chicago Tribune Newspaper,   http://www.chicagotribune.com/ and shows several local Catholic neighborhood church parish nuns, enjoying a ride on a portable roller coaster ride at the July 1962 back of the yards Free Fair Carnival.

I believe that this festival was discontinued after 1970, and was later revived at this location around 1982 for a couple of years. The areas ethnic population had already shifted from a European / Polish and Irish population, to a large Latino population by the late 1970's and early 1980's.

The original Free Fair festival grounds were eventually sold for commercial redevelopment, and became a large outdoor strip mall by the mid 1980's. The Back of the yards neighborhood festival is still held today at a different location nearby, and is now known as the Chicago's Back of the yards Fiesta Celebration.

Thanks.
Eddie K.