Gaylords
Gaylords

Gaylords

Founded Founded c. 1958 by Anthony Anarina and Bobby Shipball in or near Southern West Town (The Patch, West Town) Little Village (South Lawndale)
Founding story

The founding year chosen is a reflection of the Almighty Gaylords which is the organization this page is mainly about.

Formerly known as

Junior Postals late 1940s-early 1950s (not a gang at the time); Gay Lords early 1950s-early 1960s; Gaylords early 1960s-21st century

Affiliations Gaylords, C-Notes, Gents — c. 1968 – c. 1971;
People Nation — 1980 – 2000 or later;
United Five Organization — c. 1973 – c. 1982;
Colors Black, Grey, Green, and Light blue
Color usage Black and Green - early 1950s-early 1960s; Any section started by Kilbourn Park Gaylords wore black and light blue, any section started by Palmer Gaylords wore black and grey
Primary ethnicities White
Symbols Skull, Top Hat, Cane, Dice, Whiskey Bottle, Ku Klux Klansman, Swastika, Celtic Cross, and Embroidered G
Symbol usage

Embroidered “G” early 1950s-early 1960s; Ku Klux Klansman, swastica – early 1970s – early 1980s; Celtic cross with flames, 712 – early 1960s to present

Status Active

The Gaylords are one the oldest street gangs in Chicago.  We will begin by tracing their roots that date all the way back to the mid-1930s. This does not mean the Gaylords can have credit for being around in the 1930s, it just means they have roots from back then.  I have had to look at many sources to piece together this history of the Gaylords and a lot of info can be found on the Gaylord’s website http://www.gaylords712.com which is one of the biggest sources I used.

I will start this story in the mid-1930s in the southern part of the West Town neighborhood on Chicago’s west side (West Town is technically a west side neighborhood but often considered part of the north side unofficially, look it up).  At this point in time the “Postal Athletic Club” was created that was heavily active in sports.  They were registered as an official SAC (social athletic club) club which makes them fully legit.  Let me clarify something, the Postal Athletic Club was never involved in any criminal activity, and this was not a gang or even close and they were in existence at least 25 years maybe even more.  They had a store front somewhere in southern West Town that was likely owned by a member.  In this store they had a separate room for all their trophies, a collection that grew as the years went by.  In the late 1940s the Postal Athletic Club established a younger offshoot known as the “Junior Postals.”  This was for the kids in the neighborhood to join to keep them out of trouble and give them something to do.  They especially loved basketball and softball (Short & Strodtbeck 1961).

To keep the timeline going properly let’s take a moment and shift focus away from the West Town area and take this to the Little Village area in the year 1950.  In that year the Outlaws Motorcycle Club opened a garage/club house at the intersection of 25th and Rockwell.  The Outlaws made the decision to leave their original club house in the suburb of McCook and move to the city since the Outlaws were growing and couldn’t fit in the suburb anymore.  When the Outlaws arrived, they were rowdy and rode on motorcycles that echoed through the neighborhood.  The Outlaws were greasers back in these days and some of them were as old as in their 30s in age.  Within no time the Outlaws were not liked in this community by many people.  They were viewed as outsiders and were causing trouble with groups of young men in the neighborhood.  A group of men in their early 20s had enough of the Outlaws and created their own club to deal with the rival biker gang that they called the “Gay Lords.”   The Little Village Gay Lords were the first gang to use the name “Gay Lords” back when the Junior Postals were still just a baseball team.  The original Gay Lords of Little Village were men in their 20s and they soon would get into bikes as well.  They opened a motorcycle repair shop right across the street from the Outlaws at 25th and Rockwell and this heated their rivalry up. The headquarters for the Gay Lords in Little Village was 24th and Whipple and that’s where it all started for this group of Gaylords, but this is not the beginning of the story of the ALGN necessarily.

At the intersection of 24th and Whipple there are two properties right on the corner designed for businesses.  One of them is a former CFD firehouse located at 2358 S. Whipple.  The other is a what looks like used to be a bar.  I theorize that these two locations were perhaps the first hangouts of the Gay Lords of Little Village.  Perhaps the first Gay Lords were firefighters or sons of firefighters, and they all possibly drank at the bar right across the street.

Now let’s revisit the Junior Postals in West Town.  In the early 1950s the Junior Postals grew a little older and started acting like greasers, drinking, cussing and all in all causing trouble.  There were mostly pre-teenage boys living in the Grand and Ogden and Huron and Noble area in West Town.  In the year 1953 They took their drunkenness into the Postal’s club house and ended up wrecking sports equipment that the club house owned.  The Postal Athletic Club had, had enough of these teens and threw them out of the club house and into the streets.  13-year-old Anthony “Johnny Boy” Anarina and his good friend Bobby Shipball, somewhat started their own club; however, they went by no name but were a bunch of former Junior Postals and other kids hanging out in the Grand and Ogden area.  This is how the story began.

 

 

Jumping back to Little Village, the year was now 1954.  The Gaylords712 site shows early evidence from March 3rd, 1954, of the Little Village Gay Lord’s existence.  I retrieved this very article that the Gaylords712 site briefly discusses, and I will expand upon in greater detail.  The article was in the Chicago Tribune dated March 3, 1954, and it talks about a basketball game at 2300 S. Lawndale Ave (23rd and Lawndale) between the Gay Lords and the Outlaws in which the Gay Lords beat the Outlaws in a close match 58 to 56.  After the game, a huge brawl ensued that involved 60 guys slugging it out.  I could only imagine the tensions were high after having such a close game.  Those that know basketball know that the end of a close game results in fouls and hot tempers, so everything just erupted on that court.  Apparently, someone called the Police as soon as 50 members of the Outlaws showed up to join in on the fight.  When the Police came, they only arrested one member of the Outlaws but they arrested 5 Gay Lords.  Two other Italian guys were arrested that resided in Cicero who I think were old school Outlaws, but Police found no gang affiliation with these two men that were 24 and 25 years old.  The other 6 that were arrested were 16 to 19 years old.  The addresses of all the Gay Lords mentioned all had Little Village addresses not West Town addresses or anywhere close to that area.

The 1954 article shows both gangs had already swelled in great numbers by then as having 50+ members of each gang early in the year.  These Gay Lords hung out at 24th and Marshall Boulevard out in front of John Spry Elementary School (2400 S Marshall Blvd, Chicago, IL 60623) which is the same intersection where the legendary 24th and Marshall Boulevard Latin Kings started, however, they didn’t come along until the mid-1960s and that was mainly because Gay Lords were voluntarily relinquishing this corner to serve in Vietnam.  The Gay Lords were also heavily in attendance at the high school across the street then known as Harrison High School.  They also hung out in front of a bookstore that was right across the street from Harrison High School.  The Gay Lords of Little Village were Polish and Bohemian while the Gay Lords of West Town were mostly Italian with some Mexicans so that is a difference.  The Gay Lords of Little Village wore the colors grey and blue which became official colors for the Gaylords in later years.  At the 25th and Rockwell garage the Gay Lords were greasers that fixed up and rode Cushman and Whizzer motorbikes.  Greasers world-wide in the 50s were big into bikes and fixing them was a big hobby of theirs too so these Gay Lords fit the classic 50s greaser style.

In the mid-1950s there were for sure youths in high school that joined the Gay Lords in Little Village and soon they dominated Harrison High School and the Junior ROTC program.

Another part of the founding history is that of the Gay Lords SAC that was founded in 1954 in the Near West Side neighborhood at the intersection of Ashland Avenue and Taylor Street.  By the later 1950s the Taylor Street Gay Lords relocated to Polk and Miller in the Near West Side community before they closed their chapter in 1964.  This group of Gay Lords was not a fighting club according to the http://www.gaylords712.com/history1.html website.  They were just a club that played basketball, baseball, football, bowling and attended dances.  There is no history of them fighting anyone.  It is also not known if this Gay Lords club had anything to do with the Little Village Gay Lords, but I see no evidence they were connected.  It could be possible this group broke away from Little Village or branched out and started their own Gay Lords chapter.  Even if not true they were very similar to each other.  The West Town and Taylor Street Gay Lords were mostly Italian, all three clubs were heavily into sports.  The West Town and Little Village Gay Lords were big into bikes and the West Town and Little Village Gay Lords would eventually slug it out with Latin Kings in later years.  Regardless of what you can make of this, the Gaylords had a very complex history from being “Gay Lords” to “Gaylords.”

Starting in the mid-1950s and into the late 1950s the Little Village chapter grew larger and now dominated from 21st Street down to 26th Street from Whipple Street across to Marshall Boulevard.  By the later 50s Gay Lords graduated to Harley Davidson Motorcycles and this made the girls flock to them; not only that, but the Gay Lords were also running Harrison High School and the Outlaws were not happy with any of it causing more conflict.  The Gay Lords were also fighting with black gangs from the nearby Near West Side neighborhood.  Gay Lords were fighting with Vice Lords, Egyptian Cobras and Roman Saints because they were attending Harrison High School as they commuted from the Near West Side neighborhood from the Maxwell Street Market area.

Going back to West Town in 1956, Anthony Anarina was now 16 years old and organized the group of now 37 guys into something similar to a club, but it took until 1958 for them to officially name themselves “Gay Lords,” Bobby Shipball came up with the name.  As soon as the Gay Lords organization began in 1958 there were now 90 members making them one of the bigger outfits in the area and the legends began at the intersection of Huron and Noble which is the motherland of the AGLN Gaylords.  The original club house of the Gaylords was at Willard Court and Huron in 1958-1961.  In 1961 a new club house replaced the Willard Court one at Ohio and Noble.

The Gay Lords participated in basketball in the colder seasons then Baseball in the warmer seasons.  The Gay Lords played in tournaments at St. Mary’s church and were said to have a good team for a long time. When the Gay Lords were first cast out, they hung out at a place they called “Guys” which was a candy store owned by a woman at Huron and Throop.  The Gay Lords were only allowed to hang out outside of the shop but if they gathered in numbers inside, the woman would push them out.  When it was cold outside the Gay Lords hung out in Eckhart Park which has the boundaries of Chestnut to Chicago Ave and Elizabeth to Noble.  At this Park they liked to hang out in the lobby, the game room, and the gym.  The park staff was always upset with the Gay Lords because they made a lot of noise, were often disrespectful and caused some destruction, typical of a greaser club.

The late 1950s West Town Gay Lords could be seen wearing light green summer jackets with a coat of arms sewn on it with a shield, a skull with a top hat, a whiskey bottle, dice, and a cane.  The early racial makeup of the Gay Lords was mostly white members that were Polish, German, and Italian and early accounts even say there were Mexican members too (Short & Strodtbeck, 1961)

In the late 1950s, the West Town Gaylords began growing larger and became a major presence at Wells High School (936 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60622) located in the East Village neighborhood.  Gaylords, C-Notes, Dominos and Lazy Gents were the dominating Italian gangs and the Playboys were started because they felt the Gaylords, and the other Italian gangs were bullying them and causing trouble in their neighborhood.  The formation of the Ventures was also said to have been caused by Gaylords as both gangs used to slug it out in the stairwells at Wells High School in the early 60s.  The bottom line for the conflict between the Italian gangs and the Polish and Irish gangs was over girls and school dances, the usual cause of conflicts for greasers.

By the early 1960s the Gay Lords still ruled Little Village and now fought with Satan Disciples from nearby 18th Street.

In this period, the West Town Gay Lords had about 30-40 members according to social services workers.  The President of them (1961) was not totally aware of who all the members of the club were.  He was aware of 7 other solid members, but most members came and went over time.  Sometimes you could be a Gay Lord for the day if you were down to fight against the enemies Source: (Short & Strodtbeck, 1961). The worst enemies for the Gay Lords up north were Playboys, Sons of Satan Slaves (Ventures), Pulaski Park, C-Notes, and some small groups of Puerto Rican gangs like the Imperials and Skulls (Later known as Latin Kings).

There were Senior Gay Lords and Junior Gay Lords dating back to the early days.  It was also in the early 1960s that the Gay Lords were in a transition with their name changing from “Gay Lords” to “Gaylords” and their new colors were to be grey and black or light blue and black depending on the section.  Another big change was the emblem that the Gaylords would wear, as the skull with whiskey bottle etc… was being replaced by a Celtic cross with a sunburst which would become the permanent Gaylords’ symbol (Short & Strodtbeck, 1961).

In the year 1962, the Gaylords in Little Village had new competition right at the intersection of 24th and Marshall Boulevard.  Some of the first Mexican families were moving into the Little Village community at that time and soon the first Mexican gang started up at this intersection to defend themselves against the Gaylords and Outlaws.  This gang of kids from John Spry School called themselves the “MarKings,” naming themselves after Marshall Boulevard.  The Gaylords were furious about these young invaders and fought them well especially the Junior Gaylords.

In 1964, the MarKings got connected with the Imperials and other gangs from up north and merged into one organization known as the “Latin Kings.”  The Latin Kings hit the ground running and soon became a major force to be reckoned with.  The Gaylords from West Town were familiar with Latin Kings and Imperials and so were the Taylor and Ashland Gaylords.  The Latin Kings were massive right from the start, Leavitt and Schiller were governing the 24th and Marshall Boulevard Latin Kings which meant north side Latin Kings would come in and back up the south siders, this meant more trouble for Gaylords.

Latin Kings spelled trouble for the Italian, Irish, Polish, and German gangs in the West Town area.  The Gaylords responded to this by calling a truce with C-Notes and Lazy Gents to counter the Latin Kings and Warlords.  When the Playboys, Ventures and Pulaski Park came together later in that same year of 1964 called the “P.V.P” This was the beginning of a very close brotherhood between the C-Notes and Gaylords to fight against Puerto Rican gangs and P.V.P; however, fighting with P.V.P became a much lessor priority which became the beginning of that brotherhood with P.V.Ps as well as the war with them waned greatly in the mid-60s.

By the mid-60s the Gaylords had hundreds of members in West Town and were a major force to be reckoned with.  Many Puerto Rican people that moved into the West Town/Humboldt Park area in the 1960s can recall how dangerous they felt the Gaylords were as they nicknamed them the “Polish Mafia.”  Many Gaylords roved the Humboldt Park Park area and terrorized Puerto Rican gangs and many other Puerto Rican youths that claimed to have been attacked and beaten in the park by Gaylords.  Puerto Rican people often understood they were moving into land that wasn’t considered theirs; therefore, they did not consider this racism.  Gaylords indeed had some just cause because alongside the Puerto Rican migration came many undesirables into these communities, although mostly not intentional from the Puerto Rican community this is just what tagged along with the Puerto Rican populace.  Drug dealers arrived in the area to serve a perceived growing impoverished area.  Gangs from other communities arrived like the Paragons and Young Lords.  Misguided Puerto Rican youths also formed gangs in the early 60s that became considered undesirables like the Latin Angels, Young Sinners, Junior Paragons, Spanish Kings, Hirsch Street Lords, Imperials and the Skulls.  The Skulls were especially a threat because they were right in Eckhart Park on Chicago Avenue which was on the border of Gaylord territory.  The Gaylords would eventually defeat the Skulls and push them onto Leavitt and Schiller to join forces with the Imperials, the marriage of the two along with other groups brought about the birth of the Latin Kings in 1964; therefore, part of the very reason the Latin Kings formed is because of the Gaylords.

As the Gaylords were finding a way to reinforce themselves up north in the mid-1960s the Gaylords of Little Village ended abruptly as soon as the Vietnam War began.  The spirit of serving their country was widely felt within these Gaylords and this stems from their background as always dominating the R.O.T.C program at Harrison High School.  These Gaylords always had a strong sense of military pride and now most of them went to serve in between 1965 and 1966 and by 1966 24th and Marshall Boulevard was completely handed over to the Latin Kings making that section became stronger than ever without the Gaylords present to stop them.

As the Little Village chapter closed by 1966, a Gaylord living at 18th and Western in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood got connected with a gang of Irish kids that hung out at Garfield Boulevard (55th Street) and Halsted at Big Jim’s pool hall.  These kids were in a gang since the early 1960s called the Halsted Street Hustlers and they formed because the black gangs from the nearby Englewood neighborhood were causing trouble by the border of the Back of the Yards neighborhood and Englewood.  They also fought with the Saints, a Mexican white gang that claimed more northern territory as their own.  There were of course Latin Kings at 57th and Halsted to tangle with too.  They also fought with the Village Sharks, a Puerto Rican gang from 55th and Halsted.  Eventually the Halsted Street Hustlers started to get into fights with a nearby gang that just formed called “The Burger King Boys” that were from Garfield Boulevard (55th Street) and Ashland.  The Burger King Boys got their name because they hung out at a Burger King at this intersection.  Much of the fighting was because the Halsted Street Hustlers were hanging out at the bridges by Sherman Park library and by the bridge at Libby School.  The Halsted Street Hustlers were big into weightlifting and lifted at the Sherman Park weight lifting room.  The boys also had hang outs in the nearby West Englewood neighborhood while it was still mostly a white neighborhood by Moran Park at 57th and Racine and at 59th and Throop.  Many of the members of the Hustlers lived in West Englewood so they wanted a hangout closer to home and Sherman Park was perfect.  There was a pool and a weight room and various things for a young teen to do.

In that year of 1966, Joe S, Sam Smith, and Johnny G of the Halsted Street Hustlers were converted into Gaylords, “Slick” was the main founder.  Joe S and Johnny G were Gaylords from 18th and Western, therefore, 18th and Western Gaylords gave birth to the Back of the Yards section of Gaylords.  The 18th and Western Gaylords did not yet have that section officially established but they were living there, and these guys were connected from Polk and Miller Gaylords which was the group that closed their doors in 1964.  This all means the 18th street and 55th street Gaylords were not part of the West Town (AGLN) Gaylords.  Sherman Park was the turf these new Gaylords wanted right at 55th and Ashland and the Burger King Boys were the worst to stand in their way.  In the late 60s the Gaylords fought viciously with the Burger King Boys.  The Gaylords of the Back of the Yards also tangled badly with Black P Stones of West Englewood resulting in many shootings, stabbings and violent rumbles happened between the two gangs.  The Gaylords also tangled with the Devil’s Disciples of 59th and Peoria but to a lesser extent.  At one point the Gaylords even tried calling a truce with the Disciples to fight side by side against the Stones.  55th and Ashland Gaylords also fought tough battles against the Saints and Cornell Dukes from the Back of the Yards.  Other rivals were the Outlaws MC and the Latin Souls.  The 55th and Ashland section developed a major following and soon there were white youths from as far south as southern Marquette Park wanting in on the Gaylords, including quite a few from 67th and Kedzie in Marquette Park.

Gaylords began expansion into new territories in the year 1967.  In the mid-1960s Gaylords hung out in multiple other neighborhoods especially on the northwest side of the city.  Gaylords would frequent Irving Park, Hermosa, West Humboldt Park and possibly Austin.  At the time these neighborhoods were majority white and had many bowling alleys and bars especially along Cicero Avenue.  The attraction to these areas led the Gaylords to settle at Manor Bowling Alley in the Belmont-Cragin community at Belmont and Central Ave.  This was the establishment of the Manor Bowl Gaylords.  Manor Bowl was the second new section in ALGN history.

By the later 1960s it was rumored that the Gaylords had grown to have over 1,000 members city-wide.  Although their north side legacy is the strongest ever told, it was the south side that was perhaps larger now especially as 55th and Ashland kept growing but it was the West Town Gaylords that were some of the toughest greasers ever known up north.  Gaylords had grown older in West Town and became a very serious organization that brought fear to all rival gangs in the area.  The Gaylords didn’t wait for rivals to invade their turf, the Gaylords would come pay a visit to rival neighborhoods and wreck havok.  Gaylords were violent and would even drag the dead bodies of rivals from the bumpers of their cars down the street.  The Gaylords were also known for hanging slain members of the Latin Kings from trees in Humboldt Park to send messages to their rivals.  Older retired rivals can still talk about how they experienced a lot of grief when they had to go against these Gaylords and when the Gaylords showed up several cars full of guys would show up and beat the crap out of the rivals.  The Gaylord’s worst enemies now were the Latin Kings, and all Puerto Rican gangs, the conflicts with P.V.P. were lessening by 1969.

By 1969, Logan Square and Albany Park began to change as Puerto Ricans began to rapidly move into these neighborhoods.  Soon the neighborhoods did not look the same as poverty set in deep and drugs and prostitution ran rampant.  Puerto Rican gangs Ghetto Brothers Organization, Yates Boys Organization, Imperial Gangsters, Latin Stylers and Haas Parkers developed in Logan Square.  White youths were now being preyed upon by Puerto Rican gangs as the white youths were becoming increasingly outnumbered.  You can find countless sources in books, online or anywhere where the injustice against Hispanic and black people is well documented but what is not well documented is the prejudices white youths faced after all the middle-class whites hopped on the white flight bandwagon and evacuated these communities leaving the poorest white families behind that had to watch their neighborhoods change, many times for the worst.  I am not blaming any race of people for this change, but I will say the white youths began to struggle in these communities as they had to deal with scores of gangs, this is when they turned to gangs like the Gaylords for protection.  Many of the families in these communities looked to the Gaylords to help protect them, even if they had nothing to do with gangs.  The Gaylords became the guardians of any area they considered their turf.  Gaylords had a white pride stance, but they were not white supremacists, in fact, they kicked the neo-nazis out of Irving Park at one time.  There were many Hispanic families living in Gaylord neighborhoods that were treated with great respect and even some of the original Gaylords from West Town where Mexican and many more Mexicans and even Puerto Ricans joined the Gaylords over the years.   The need for Gaylords became strong because of the way they protected certain areas in changing communities, and this soon brought them new turf in 1969.

The Gaylords had opened a section at Cicero Avenue and School Street in 1969 at Century Bowl bowling alley.  The Gaylords now held down the Belmont-Cragin bowling alleys in 1969. The Gaylords were die hard Americans with a strong sense of civic pride and they wanted to move into areas where they could make the most difference.  Belmont-Cragin in 1969 was a completely white community and many youths in this neighborhood were interested in keeping it that way this what drove Gaylord recruitment in Belmont-Cragin.  From the two bowling alleys these Gaylords were able to branch out significantly in this northwest side paradise.  The Manor Bowl Gaylords started the Reinberg School chapter over the Belmont border in the Portage Park community in 1969 moving Gaylords into another part of the white wonderland northwest side.  The Cicero and School Gaylords moved out of Century Bowl and into the coveted Kilbourn Park.  The only issue was that Kilbourn Park was Pope territory.  The Gaylords had been hanging out with the Popes in Kilbourn Park since the mid-1960s and were pals with the Popes.  In 1969 the Popes gifted the Century Bowl Gaylords this park in 1969.  This moved the Gaylords into the Irving Park neighborhood that year taking another piece of the northwest side.  In Belmont – Cragin Gaylords exploded in size as they settled Belden & Lavergn (Blackhawk Park), Cicero & Wrightwood, George & McVicker (Mary Lyon School) Belden & Major, Fullerton & Monitor, and Austin & Diversey.  The Gaylords were a big hit with Belmont-Cragin youths.

In 1969, the Kilbourn Park (KPGL) Gaylords came to visit the Palmer Heads street gang of Logan Square.  They convinced higher respected members of the Heads and these men decided to make a Gaylord section in the Logan Square neighborhood at Palmer and California.  This group of Gaylords was starting in a racially transitioning community and Hispanic gangs were becoming plentiful.  The Imperial Gangsters and Latin Kings had just migrated here and groups like Latin Stylers and Milwaukee Kings were forming for the first time on these streets.  Logan Square was not like the northwest side where those Gaylords were forming in low crime neighborhoods not yet touched by migration.   Logan Square was a tougher community, and this required tough Gaylords making the Palmer Square Gaylords one of the toughest sections in the city and it all began in 1969.  This section became so popular that Logan Square white youths fell in love with the Gaylords and were soon lining up to join and/or start their own Logan Square sections.  In 1969 Altgeld & Avers, Altgeld & Lawndale (LA Gaylords), Moffat & Campbell, Palmer and Sacramento, Ridgeway & Fullerton, Diversey & Avers, Diversey & Rockwell all opened in the same year.  The Lawndale and Altgeld Gaylords were also one of the toughest Gaylords sections in Gaylord history.  Moffett and Campbell Gaylords were also known to be a hard-core section that put their enemies through hell.  Logan Square Gaylords in general became some of the toughest ever known.

In 1969 In the Uptown community on Chicago’s further north side, people in this community were dealing with a sharp increase in crime.  Vagrancy was much more of a common site among decaying buildings suffering from urban blight.  Uptown was cheaper than ever to live in as it became one of Chicago’s more blighted communities.  Uptown had a gang element among the newer arriving Hispanic community since 1964.  The Latin Kings and Harrison Gents, two allied gangs, had been on these streets since 1964 and now began to increase in number greatly.  Black and Hispanic migration increased in 1969 as the poorer income classes could now afford Uptown.  This was all started by a white flight surge that was sudden and drastic in 1969.  Impoverished white families could not afford to leave Uptown and now they began to be bullied by Hispanic and black gangs like Vice Lords, Harrison Gents and Latin Kings.  This brought a call for the Gaylords to open a section of eager white youths at Sunnyside and Magnolia.  Sunnyside and Magnolia Gaylords were immediately one of the craziest Gaylords group in the city.  These Gaylords were often very impoverished and came from some tough homes.  In the same year two more Uptown Gaylords groups would form, Lawrence & Broadway, and Wilson & Dover (Dover Lords) began the same year.  The Gaylords of Uptown considered the Latin Kings to be their worst enemy just like the Logan Square Gaylords.  Rivarly with Latin Kings was big for Gaylords in the Back of the Yards and the original Gaylords in West Town.  This sewed much hate between Latin Kings and Gaylords.

The new enthusiasm for Gaylords in Belmont-Cragin brought them into nearby Hermosa.  Hermosa was another coveted white neighborhood that experienced only a slight amount of Puerto Rican migration.  Hermosa was filled with hippies that often called themselves “Freaks.” The Gaylords arrived and opened multiple territories in 1969 at George & Kolmar, Armitage & Tripp, Fullerton & Kildare, and Belden & Kenneth.  The Gaylords now took over another northwest side neighborhood.  The youths of Hermosa welcomed the Gaylords especially since Hispanic gangs were just south of the Bloomingdale border.

South of the Bloomingdale border in West Humboldt Park, white youths were battling the notorious Latin Kings and Imperial Gangsters.  Black gangs were also south of Chicago Avenue fighting for whomever gets territory.  West Humboldt Park had become a tough area of the city as it housed the notorious Beach and Spaulding Latin Kings that often gave many white youths a hard time.  The Simon City gang that once protected this neighborhood no longer walked these streets leaving no dominant white gang on these streets.  This was not the most ideal territory for Gaylords but the youths needed the help the most the Gaylords could offer.  The Gaylords started with a section of Italian Gaylords at Augusta & Monticello in 1969.  These Gaylords were in for a big fight and if needed the later in the year formed Le Moyne & Springfield and Keystone & Wabansia sections could assist.  This brought more of a war with Latin Kings and Imperial Gangsters.

In 1969, the highly coveted Austin community now was experiencing their first waves of black migration to their borders.  It all started with some blight and white flight at Cicero and Jackson which soon evolved into a section of Conservative Vice Lords in 1967.  Now Austin had the Cicero Vice Lords and Apache Vice Lords that now were lined up along Cicero Avenue.  Austin had two main veins through it that intersected with each other at the magnificent busy intersection of Cicero Avenue and Chicago Avenue.  Both of these roads were lined with shopping, bars, bowling alleys and restaurants.  Austin had magnificent homes that gave a suburban feel.  This neighborhood was the last west side neighborhood that had not been heavily infiltrated by Hispanics and blacks.  The gang threat of the Vice Lords was minimal in the late 60s in Austin, but undesirables were still arriving alongside the migration wave.  The Gaylords were now welcomed to these streets after a few years of early enjoyment along the main reins of Austin.  Leamington & Jackson and Ohio & Leclaire. The Gaylords now graced Moore park which was just one block from the new Leamington and Jackson Gaylords.  The Gaylords became the first significant white gangs to walk these streets.

With all the expansion came a heavy truce with the P.V.P. organization.  Gaylords, C-Notes, Lazy Gents, and P.V.P now stopped feuding with each other and put together an alliance known as the G.C.G or Gaylords, C-Notes and Gents.  The PVPs were also looser allied with the G.C.G.  The G.C.G started a very tight relationship between Gaylords and C-Notes that would last for some time.

As the 1970s ushered in the Gaylords would soon become giants in the city of Chicago expanding in many new territories.  Neighborhoods were changing rapidly from white to Hispanic or white to black and the Gaylords’ main goal was to slow this down, many claim they were successful in slowing down migration especially in the 1970s and 1980s.

In 1971, “King Fish” of the Satan Disciples was convinced to flip to a Gaylord because Satan Disciples were now becoming majority Hispanic.  King Fish then flipped several white Satan Disciples to officially establish the 18th and Western chapter of the Gaylords.

In 1971 a big meeting or meetings were called for all white gangs to attend that were mainly from the northern part of the city and some south siders, this was to discuss to growing problem of Hispanic gangs such as Latin Kings, Latin Disciples, Latin eagles, Imperial Gangsters, and many others.  This meeting was to bring about an entire unity of white gangs.  The unity was a success for the next four years as Simon City Royals were shaking hands with Gaylords and so on.  The unity was called the “WPO” or “White Power Organization” which greatly contributed to major territorial expansion for white gangs.  Almighty Popes (now known as North side Insane Popes) opened up several sections during these years, Simon City Royals turned into a power house organization. C-Notes rolled in many new pieces of territory.  Young Freaks (Now known as Stoned Freaks) converted into a full-fledged street gang and opened lot of new turf in the early 1970s. Taylor Jousters were able to expand outside of the Near West Side neighborhood more and of course the Gaylords would benefit from this alliance as well.

In the year 1971 Gaylords got acquainted with a newly arrived group in the Logan Square and Wicker Park communities.  This was the Taylor Jousters.  Jousters and Gaylords had a legendary alliance which would help bring Taylor Jousters to Belmont-Cragin.  The alliance Gaylords had with Jousters was the G.J.N or Gaylord Jouster nation.  Gaylords also chummed up real close to Playboys and Ventures.  Both groups came to Belmont-Cragin, Austin and West Humboldt Park in 1971 and came in peace with the Gaylords.  The Gaylords of West Humboldt Park especially were close to the Playboys and Ventures forming the P.V.G alliance which stood for Playboys Ventures and Gaylords.  All three groups now teamed up in 1971 to join forces in a war against Latin Kings and Imperial Gangsters taking over the neighborhood.

By 1972 the Gaylords opened new turf in the Ravenswood part of the Lincoln Square neighborhood at Seeley and Ainslie in Winnemac Park.  This set was a result of a gang called the Maniac Drifters fading out in the area and younger members were still looking to stay active in a gang, so they joined forces with the Palmer Gaylords and became the Winnemac Park Gaylords.  Soon after in 1972, the Seeley and Ainslie Gaylords opened up the Seeley and Eastwood Gaylords that were located right in front of the fire house station at 2100 West Eastwood (closed down).  These Gaylords became known as the “Firehouse Gaylords.”

In 1973, Chi West, Taylor Jousters, C-Notes, Gaylords and PVPs attended a meeting that was guarded with Chi West gang members with crossbows at North Ave and Damen in Wicker Park hosted by Chi West. This meeting was to discuss the creation of the UFO unity (United Five Organization) which was put together by these five clubs that were going to team up against the Hispanic gangs.  Chi-West decided to decline membership into the alliance but Gaylords, C-Notes, Playboys, Ventures and Pulaski Park all agreed on forming this coalition.  This unity brought about an incredible friendship between these five gangs that would bring about some of the closest brotherhoods over the next decade and would help each of these organizations expand much larger.  These gangs would rove together many times in packs of 100+ members and go out looking for their common enemies and smash them.  They wore white arm bands to show they were UFO.  This unity was at first inside of the WPO unity, but the UFO meant they had a brotherhood instead of just a simple cease fire.

In the year 1974, Most of the Gaylords had left the original West Town section leaving just their club house around Huron and Throop which just had older members hanging out.  In 1975, the last club house closed and all Gaylords left the neighborhood.  This ended the legacy of the original Almighty Gaylords.

By 1974, Albany Park was becoming a very rough neighborhood as well as the neighboring communities.  Rundown buildings, drug addicts and prostitutes were now the scene in this destitute area.  The area became well known for its vacant buildings which attracted drug addicts to hide in them.  Once again another neighborhood was changing and white flight was for the privileged that had the money to do so, while the impoverished white youths and various Hispanics and blacks that had lived their whole lives there had to watch their neighborhood change and outside gangs like the Latin Kings came to invade, this is when the Gaylords came to recruit the hard trodden youths of Albany Park to their club.  The first faction section in Albany Park was Wilson and Hamlin outside the Haugan Elementary School at 4540 N Hamlin Ave then eventually a faction opened at Elston and Kolmar.

The WPO alliance was officially ended in 1975 after three murders shook up the Gaylords, Simon City Royals and Insane Popes.  It all started in April of 1975 when Latin Kings murdered the leader of the Simon City RoyalsBimbo” who kept WPO and Royal/Gaylord relations real tight and kept both gangs from going to war, as soon as Bimbo was taken out, the Royals advanced on Kilbourn Park and led a Gaylord out back by the tracks and shot him execution style, this started a major war between Royals and Gaylords in 1975.  The Gaylords gunned down the leader of the Insane Popes, Larry “Larkin” Morris in April of 1975 that brought them to war with the Popes as well, now the WPO was finished and the scene of seeing all Stone Greasers hanging out together at Lenny’s restaurant (4 Buddies Restaurant) as C-Notes, Gaylords, PVP/PVR, Bel Airs, Insane Popes, Chi West and Simon City Royals used to all hang at this diner together between 1971 and 1975, now that was over with.

As the 1970s progressed the Gaylords would open more territory and expand their numbers into the thousands in membership while they boasted that they were slowing down Puerto Rican migration. New sections popped up in the Avondale neighborhood at Troy and George by the PGL then spread to Central Park and Barry and Cleveland School at Byron and Troy over in the Irving Park neighborhood.  The Gaylords then made it to the North Center neighborhood at Berteua and Leavitt, Column and Campbell and Berteau and Milwaukee which is what set off a fire cracker of a gang war between Gaylords and Insane Deuces.

In 1976 Gaylords opened up at St. Louis and Altgeld in the Logan Square neighborhood which became a legendary but short-lived faction.

In 1979 the Gaylords were opening up more territory westward in the northern part of the Austin neighborhood at North Ave and Lamon and Nagle and North Ave in the Galewood section of Austin.  It was in the summer of 1979 when the legendary Sayre Park Gaylords opened around Belden and Oak Park Ave colonizing the rather gang free Montclair neighborhood.  In 1979 alongside a Hispanic migration wave came the Latin Brothers and Latin Stylers street gangs.  This new groups settled among the white population that was left in Austin north of North Avenue.  This area of Austin was still coveted lands that Freaks and Taylor Jousters were fighting to protect. Now these two new Gaylord groups in the northern Austin/Montclair area would add to the neighborhood protection.  This started a bitter and vicious long standing gang war between Gaylords and Latin Stylers and Gaylords and Latin Brothers.

By 1979, the Gaylords had so much momentum it is safe to say they were at their peak and in their prime by 1979.  Data was released showing that the Gaylords were the 4th largest gang in Chicago and had about 6,000+ members.  The Gaylords were the largest white gang in Chicago and the second largest among Hispanic and white gangs right behind the Latin Kings.  Soon after the peak of Gaylord success began a downfall that started with the south side.

In the year 1980, the 55th and Ashland Gaylords came to an end as many members joined the Bishops of 53rd and Winchester.  The surrounding area had become too much of a black neighborhood and white flight had severely ran its course as too many families had now fled to the suburbs.  These remaining whites now had to become Bishops to gain the most protection.  West Englewood was an all-black community by then taking away all the old Gaylord hangouts and Marquette Park was racially changing so there was no more for the Gaylords to claim.  Many Gaylords also ended up in prison or severely addicted to hard drugs.

The Gaylords refused to join the Folk or People alliances and hated gangs on both sides.  The Latin Kings were one of their top two arch enemies along with the Simon City Royals.  The Latin Kings had joined the People Nation while the Royals had joined Folks.  The Gaylords had the UFO to back them up and did not need either of the alliances at least that was the case until the year 1981 when several high ranking Gaylords found themselves outnumbered in prison.  This was the year the People alliance opened up to more organizations joining their ranks.  In 1981, the Folk and People alliance made it to the streets and now Gaylords were informed they were part of the People alliance and that the war with Latin Kings or any other People gangs was the end.  The Playboys joined the People alliance and the Taylor Jousters in prison joined People.  Even the Uptown Rebels joined this alliance because upon incarceration these groups would go ganged up on by both People and Folks.  The C-Notes refused to join People as they hated Latin Kings more than anything.  Now seeing Gaylords and Latin Kings hanging out in some parts of the city did not sit well with C-Notes and this was the beginning of some friction in the UFO alliance.  The C-Notes were also upset about Playboys joining People.

The UFO was not very strong prison; therefore, the Gaylords and the Insane Deuces felt it was time to choose an alliance.  They went with the lessor of the evils which was the People Nation because they had way more enemies on the Folks side.  Think about it, Gaylords were enemies with Imperial Gangsters, Spanish Cobras, Orquestra Albany, Latin Eagles, Simon City Royals, Almighty Insane Popes and on the south side the Satan Disciples who were all Folks.  The People Nation gangs were not as much of an enemy.  The Spanish Lords would dwell mainly in Bucktown and the Gaylords only had one section there.  The Insane Unknowns were concentrated mainly in Wicker Park and West Humboldt Park which the Gaylords had no turf there anymore since the late 70s so they really were not beefing too much with these People Nation gangs except the Latin Kings who happened to be their worst enemy.  The only factions that were still red hot on a war path with Latin Kings were the Lincoln Square Gaylords off Seeley street that were forever angry about the murder of the their leader “Honkey” that was killed a few years prior.

In 1981 the Gaylords suffered a hard loss when one of their most beloved members was stabbed to death.  17-year-old “Wizard” was stabbed to death by an Avers Boys Organization member Casimer Jablonski as he went on a weekend leave from prison.  Wizard was jumped by ABO members and possibly Simon City Royals too, Wizard fought hard and slashed his attackers several times before they wrestled his knife away allowing Jablonski to stab him to death.  This became a major loss for the Gaylords which caused them to get even many times over.

1982 would mark a heartbreaking year for the UFO alliance and the solid relationship between Gaylords and C-Notes.  This is right at the same time that the Gaylords started expanding their territory in the Dunning neighborhood.  Suddenly vicious bloody fights were happening at the Axle Roller Skating Rink at 4510 North Harlem Ave (closed down Halloween 1985) which was located in the suburb of Norridge.  The fights were so nasty and bloody between C-Notes and Gaylords that the UFO had no hope of survival and eventually the Gaylords even opened turf at Grand and Harlem in the Montclair neighborhood and slugged it out with Notes over there too.  Grand and Rockwell (Smith Park in southern West Town area) was another sight of Gaylords and C-Notes slugging it out.  The C-Notes loved Smith Park and wanted it as their own but the Rockwell and Grand Gaylords were the only thing in the way.  The Gaylords and C-Notes both wanted to control “White Wonderland.”  Portage Park and Dunning which consisted of all white middle class neighborhoods, the gang fighting would soon draw attention from law enforcement.

The Gaylords mostly complied with the People alliance except for the Lincoln Square Gaylords, they would never shake hands with Latin Kings ever, and refused to honor the People Nation star, in fact, young Gaylords at Seeley and Eastwood were punished for tagging with People Nation tags which got their set closed for good in 1985 by older Seeley and Ainslie Gaylords.  It was a hard thing to digest for about 80% or more of Gaylords while in some other areas younger Gaylords were hanging out with Latin Kings, Vice Lords and Insane Deuces.

The mid 1980s showed an opening of new sets for the Gaylords even though the overall number of Gaylords were starting to decrease.  In 1984 the sets of Long and Oakdale, Riis Park, Beldon and Knox (branched out from Sayre Park Gaylords), Lockwood and Oakdale and Altgeld and Cicero Ave (St. Genevieve Catholic School) opened up in the Belmont – Cragin neighborhood.  There was now a growing need for Gaylords because the Hispanic gang invasion was in full swing in this neighborhood.  This neighborhood was Also experiencing a Mexican migration wave.  The white families that could afford to leave moved out into the suburbs, but the families that could not afford it were stuck in Belmont – Cragin and that is when a nasty gang war ensued between white gangs and Mexican gangs unless of course they shared a star.

In the year 1984 the Gaylords of Hermosa were declining in numbers as a heated war between Stoned Freaks and Gaylords was taxing on both sides.  These two former allies had been warring for a few years now.  Both sides now became distracted at the arrival of the Spanish Cobras in Hermosa.  Now Gaylords and Freaks settled their differences and once again became allies in an alliance known as G.F.N or Gaylords, Freaks Nation.  This would begin an era of wild gang banging in the streets of Hermosa that brought in lots of gun play.  Gaylords all over the northwest side were strapped with guns shooting it out with enemies.  This was necessary in this hardened era of gang banging.  The other side had lots of guns so the Gaylords would step up theirs.  Some Gaylord sections even began drug trafficking which often landed some of these members into drug addiction.

In the year 1985, Gaylords of Hermosa were now in a bigger war with Hispanic gangs as Maniac Latin Disciples, Latin Eagles, Imperial Gangsters and La Raza moved into the borders of Hermosa.  These Gaylords were now engaged in the most intense gang wars.  By the mid-80s there were no more Gaylords in West Humboldt Park, West Town and Austin making Hermosa the toughest neighborhood Gaylords were walking the streets of.

By 1985 the Gaylord’s recruitment was slowing and some members were flipping to other gangs because organizations like the Black Gangsters Disciples and Vice Lords opened their doors wide open to letting in kids of other races.  Vice Lords and BGDs were the biggest gangs in the city so white and Hispanic kids were thrilled to have a chance to be a part of these enormous empires.  Not only that Hispanic gangs that had always taken in white kids now were taking in more than they ever did before and actively seeking them out for membership. Gangs like Latin Disciples, Latin Kings, Imperial Gangsters, Satan Disciples, Two Sixs and many more actively sought white members of their gangs.  Many white youths saw a future with these organizations because they were growing at incredible rates and members could make money in the drug trade.  Joining the Gaylords was starting to become out of style for the poor white youths stuck in the slums and rough neighborhoods.

By 1986 new sections opened up for the Gaylords at Montana and Kilbourn and Diversey and Kilbourn in the Hermosa neighborhood.  This was part of a stepped up effort to battle Hispanic gangs in Hermosa.  This was becoming a more violent war year by year.

In the late 1980s the Gaylords did not grow any further in the city instead their numbers at most sections were starting to decline making it easier for other gangs to take over but mainly the Gaylords were killing themselves with drug addiction, key incarcerations, flipping to other gangs (especially Latin Kings), and moving to the suburbs and/or retiring from gang life.  As youngsters, the Gaylords could not afford to leave their neighborhoods because their families were poor but now that many were starting to grow older by the late 1980s, they started moving their families out of the neighborhood into the suburbs.  The new struggle for Gaylords left behind was not to grow larger but to keep what they still had.

The early 1990s brought in more plight for the existence of the Gaylords.  In the year 1990 the Gaylords decided to shut down a number of their sections such as these Logan Square sets: Lawndale and Altgeld, Palmer and California, Moffat and Campbell, Ridgeway and Fullerton, Diversey and Rockwell, Palmer and Sacramento, Avers and Altgeld and Leavitt and Lyndale.  Their whole entire PGL operation was completely shut down in 1990, Logan Square had become 66% Hispanic and most of the white youths were interested in joining Hispanic gangs, it was time to call it quits and move out, the PGL was no more.

If some sections were not a part of the big 1990 closures they soon closed up within the next few years in the first half of the 1990s decade.  Drug addiction, incarceration and retirement were causing closure of Gaylord sections all around the city.  Allies were also a threat to the Gaylords as Latin Kings and Black P Stones were selling drugs within Gaylord hoods causing both addicted Gaylords and also Gaylords that were starting to sell the dope and landing themselves behind bars.  A prime example was in 1991 when the Black P Stones offered complete peace with the Sunnyside and Magnolia Gaylords as long as they could shoot hoops and sell dope on that corner, the Gaylords ended up going down over this with incarcerations from hooking into Black P Stone drug trades. In 1996 “Geronimo” was shot and killed by a 14-year-old Black P Stone, soon after the Sunnyside and Magnolia Gaylords faded away.

The Hermosa neighborhood had now become 70% Hispanic by 1990 and was still changing as the Spanish Cobras and Imperial Gangsters had taken over Kelvyn Park and several sections.  Maniac Latin Disciples and Latin Kings also had a major foothold in this neighborhood and the white gangs were just too outnumbered, it was now time for the Gaylords and Freaks to evacuate the area.  Kilbourn and Wrightwood Gaylords were all that was left as the small group of Stoned Freaks left was all that was left.  The long-standing Hermosa Gaylords were now no more as Kilbourn and Wrightwood closed.  This section was then occupied by the Spanish Cobras that are still there today.

The Gaylords of Belmont-Cragin continued as George and McVicker and Wrightwood and Kilpatrick Gaylords were shooting it out with enemies in this hood.  In the mid-1990s the Gaylords would leave Belmont-Cragin closing a very old legacy.

The Gaylords would close their sections in Irving Park, Dunning and Portage Park by the mid-90s cutting down the size of their northwest side operations significantly.

The mid 1990s brought about the last of the legendary gang wars for the Gaylords that brought about the last major waves of bloodshed the Gaylords would be involved in.  A good example was the bloody gang wars the Sayre Park Gaylords fought with the Latin Brothers and Insane Dragons which caused a lot of damage for all three gangs.  The Insane Dragons decided it was not worth it and left the area while Latin Brothers continued to be a problem for Sayre Park Gaylords which resulted in a bloody conflict between 1995 and 1996 that brought death on both sides.  After this bloody conflict the Gaylords of Sayre Park and in any other parts of the city retired for the most part in 1997.

The late 1990s were a quieter time for the Gaylords as they were declining in numbers more and more.

Beginning in the 1990s and continuing through the 2000s and even 2010s decade the Gaylords maintained newer sections at Milwaukee and Austin in the Jefferson park neighborhood and Beretau and Springfield in the Albany Park neighborhood.  The Gaylords still had Kilbourn Park and Sayre Park mostly operational until the 2010s.

Even though the Gaylords do not visible turf in Chicago they are still active and now have families and legit jobs.  Gaylords mainly look out for their communities and their neighbors as they once did in the past.

Please send in old school pics of graffit and members of Gaylords posing wearing sweaters or group repping pictures.   1950s or 1960s pics will be especially appreciated!

Questions:

1.  What exact year did the Bridgeport section start up and what year did it die out?

2.  What is the story and dates for the Black Gaylords of 35th and State?

Known sections of the Gaylords past and present

Albany Park neighborhood established 1974-present years

Sections of Albany Park

Wilson & Hamlin (Haugan Elementary School Gaylords) Established 1974-1980s

Elston & Kolmar Established 1974-1980s

Beretau & Springfield 1990s-present years

Austin neighborhood Established 1969

Sections of Austin

Leamington & Jackson Established 1969

Ohio & Leclaire Established 1969

North Ave & Lamon Established 1979

Nagle & North Ave Established 1979

North Ave & Central Ave Established 1979

Avondale neighborhood 70s, 80s, 90s

Sections of Avondale

Barry & Central Park Ave 70s, 80s, 90s

Troy and George 70s

Diversey & Artesian 70s

Back of the Yards neighborhood (Not part of AGLN Gaylords) established 1966-1980

Sections of Back of the Yards

55th & Ashland Established 1966-1980

Belmont-Cragin neighborhood Established 1967

Sections of Belmont-Cragin

Belden & Knox

Cicero & Wrightwood Established 1969

George & McVicker (Mary Lyon School) Established 1969

Kenton and Warwick

Oakdale & Long Established 1984

Palmer & Leclaire

Cicero & School (Century Bowl) Established 1969

Belden & Lavergn (Blackhawk Park) Established 1969

Belden & Major Established 1969

Fullerton & Monitor Established 1969

Austin & Diversey Established 1969

Central & Belmont (Manor Bowl) Established 1967-1969

Altgeld & Lamon (St. Genevieve Catholic School) Established 1984

Bridgeport neighborhood 70s, 80s

Sections of Bridgeport

Archer & Throop 70s, 80s

Bucktown (Logan Square) neighborhood Established 1969-1990s

Sections of Bucktown

Bloomingdale & Marshfield (Walsh Park)

Leavitt & Lyndale Established 1969-1990s

Douglas neighborhood

Sections of Douglas

35th & State (Black Gaylords)

Dunning neighborhood established 1982

Sections of Dunning

Addison & Cumberland Established 1982-1990

Irving Park & Narragansett (Merrimac Park)

Eastwood & Narragansett (Dunham Park)

Heart of Chicago (Lower West Side neighborhood, not AGLN Gaylords) Established 1971 (70s)

Sections of Heart of Chicago

18th & Western Established 1971 (70s)

25th & Oakley 70s

Hermosa neighborhood established 1969-1990

Sections of Hermosa

George & Kolmar Established 1969-1990

Montana & Kilbourn Established 1986-1990

Armitage & Tripp Established 1969-1990

Fullerton & Kildare Established 1969-1980s

Fullerton & Kilbourn

Fullerton & Tripp 70s

Belden & Kenneth Established 1969-1985

Belden & Knox 1969-1990

Diversey & Kilbourn Established 1986-1990

Kilbourn & Wrightwood Established 1969-1990

Irving Park neighborhood established 1969-2000s

Sections of Irving Park

Addison to Roscoe, Kenton to Kilbourn (Kilbourn Park, KPGL) Established 1969-2000s

Bryon & Albany (Cleveland School, Cleveland Gaylords)

Francisco & Cullom

Karlov & Newport

Byron & Troy (Cleveland School, Cleveland Gaylords)

Waveland & Whipple

Addison & Pulaski

Lincoln Square neighborhood established 1972-present years

Sections of Lincoln Square

Seeley & Ainslie (Winnemac Park Gaylords) Established 1972-present years

Seeley & Eastwood (Fire House Gaylords) Established 1972-1985

Little Village neighborhood (not part of AGLN Gaylords) established 1950-1966

Sections of Little Village

24th & Whipple Established 1950-1966

21st to 26th, Whipple to Marshall Blvd Established 1950-1966

Logan Square neighborhood established 1969

Sections of Logan Square

Altgeld & Avers Established 1969-1990

Altgeld & Lawndale (LA Gaylords) Established 1969-1990

Altgeld & St. Louis Established 1976-1983

Moffat & Campbell Established 1969-1990

Palmer & California (Palmer Square Gaylords, PGL) Established 1969-1990

Palmer and Sacramento Established 1969-1990

Ridgeway & Fullerton Established 1969-1990

Diversey & Avers Established 1969-1990

Diversey & Rockwell Established 1969-1990

Lyndale & Campbell

Montclare neighborhood Established 1979-2000s

Sections of Montclare

Grand & Harlem Established 1982-1990

Belden to Altgeld, Harlem to Oak Park Ave (Sayre Park) Established 1979-2000s

Near North Side neighborhood

Sections of Near North Side

North Ave & Halsted

Near West Side neighborhood Established 1954-1964 as different Gaylord group not part of AGLN

Sections of Near West Side

Taylor & Halsted (Not AGLN) Established 1954-1964

Polk & Miller Established 1954-1964

Taylor & Ashland Established 1954-1964

North Center neighborhood

Sections of North Center

Leavitt & Berteau

Cullom & Campbell

Berteau & Milwaukee

Norwood Park neighborhood 2000s-present years

Sections of Jefferson Park

Milwaukee Ave & Austin 2000s-present years

Portage Park neighborhood Established 1969-present years

Sections of Portage Park

Central & Berteau (Portage Park) Established 1982-mid 90s

Irving Park to Addison, Narragansett to Austin (Merrimac Park) Established 1982-mid 90s

Major & Roscoe (Reinberg Gaylords) Established 1969-mid 90s

Leland & Melvina Established 1982-mid 90s

Irving Park Ave & Central Park Ave Established 1982-mid 90s

Lawrence to Montrose, Narragansett to Moody (Dunham Park) Established 1982-mid 90s

Southern West Town neighborhood Established 1958-1975

Sections of Southern West Town

Grand & Rockwell (Smith Park)

Huron to Grand, Ashland to Ogden (Otis park) Established 1958-1975

Uptown neighborhood Established 1969-present years

Sections of Uptown

Lawrence to Sunnyside, Dover to Broadway (Dover Lords, Sunnyside & Magnolia) Established 1969-present years

West Humboldt Park neighborhood Established 1969-1976

Sections of West Humboldt Park

Wabansia to Augusta, Monticello to Springfield Established 1969-1976

 

Suburbs

Addison Established 1980

Alton

East Moline

Elmhurst

Moline

Mt. Prospect

Norridge

Springfield

Davenport, IA