W.F. Hall Printing Co. - Specimen Stock Certificate

Specimen Stock printed by American Bank Note Company. In 1922, W. F. Hall Printing Company erected a plant on 17 acres (69,000 m²) adjacent to the Northwestern railroad line, which further spurred manufacturing development. Swedish, German, and Irish workers were among the earliest to move near these factories. By 1920, these jobs drew Poles and Italians as well, and the population of the area more than quadrupled in the next decade. By 1930 the population escalated to 60,221, one-third foreign-born. In the 1930s, the community area became known as Belmont Cragin. Other companies came to the area too including Zenith (TV and electronics), and Ecco (cooking ware). Builders inundated the area to fill the housing needs of area workers. Bungalows, Cape Cods, and two-flats offered a range of housing type choices. Especially popular was the subdivided residential neighborhood on the eastern border named Belmont Park.

By 1995, Hall Printing and other plants had closed their doors. The area experienced a drop in manufacturing employment and a decline in retail activity during the 1980s. Concerns over unemployment and an increasing poverty level have led residents to organize a home reinvestment campaign and to study ways of reviving the commercial climate in the area. Read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belmont_Cragin,_Chicago