King of the Gold Coast: Cap'n Streeter, the Millionaires and the Story of Lake Shore Drive

by Wayne Klatt

Chicago's breathtaking Lake Shore Drive, with its beaches and luxury homes, has its origin in a neglected marsh and a clandestine land development. Meet the uncrowned king of the disputed shore, George Wellington Streeter, the outlandish swindler, unlikely hero and self-proclaimed founder of the Gold Coast who tried to secede from the state of Illinois. Opposing him was the quiet vision of Potter Palmer and the full weight of his investment syndicate. With this keen piece of investigative history, Wayne Klatt uncovers the secrets that both sides of the conflict managed to keep in spite of lawsuits, state inquiries, a presidential forgery and two murder trials.

160 pages, Paperback

First published July 28, 2011

Reviews

[Todd]

This book is horrid; full of misinformation, and poor research. Even the captions on some of the photographs are incorrect. I didn't even want to give it one star.

[Brandon]

A fascinating story! I love Chicago history and was really excited to read this! Cap'n Streeter is indeed one of the strangest characters in the city's history. I must admit, though, I found the writing and organization to be a bit lacking and confusing. With a cast of characters as huge as is necessary for this tale, it was far too easy to forget who is who. Additionally, at one point, it just seemed like "then he shot more people. then he shot more people. then he shot more people. then he went to trial. then he went to trial. then he went to trial." So I wish the organization were a little more targeted and the author made more of an attempt to identify the important key players. Also, a few oddly racist moments. "The lawyer, who was black, did blah blah blah..." Wait, what? Sounds like my mother telling a story and trying to be not racist...

All in all, it was all right. A great story, told reasonably well.

[Lexy]

As a Chicago history nut and someone who spends a good deal of time in the Gold Coast/Streeter area, I found this book to be a very interesting an informative tale of Lake Shore Drive and how these two neighborhoods came to be.