The Weekend Flashback: Chicago in 1896

By Chuck Sudo in News on Aug 7, 2011 5:30PM

WBEZ ran a story Friday on their website where they shared some early film footage shot by Thomas Edison of State and Madison in 1897.It's believed to be among the city's earliest motion pictures and, if you though the traffic today is hard to navigate, take a look at the congestion in the film.

But there's another film shot in 1896 by the Lumière brothers that captures a police parade outside what is believed to be Cook County Jail at 26th and California when it was a "Bridewell"-style prison that was later torn down and replaced when the current jail was completed in 1929.

This film by the Lumières is believed to be the first film ever shot in Chicago.