Pershing Road is an east-west street on the south side of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and in its immediate western suburbs in

Cook County, Illinois Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 2 ...

. It is precisely four miles south of Madison Street, the division point between north and south street numbering, and marks the 3900 South point in the region's street numbering system. Its western segment, more commonly referred to as 39th Street, runs east from a U.S. Route 34 (

Ogden Avenue Ogden Avenue is a street extending from the Near West Side of Chicago to Montgomery, Illinois. It was named for William B. Ogden, the first mayor of Chicago. The street follows the route of the Southwestern Plank Road, which opened in 1848 acr ...

) in Lyons to

Illinois Route 50 Illinois Route 50 (IL 50) is a north–south state road in northeastern Illinois. It runs from the junction with U.S. Route 45 (US 45) and U.S. Route 52 (US 52) in West Kankakee north to US 41 in Skokie. In Chicago and the sub ...

(

Cicero Avenue Cicero Avenue, also known as Skokie Boulevard in Skokie and Wilmette, is a major north-south street in Chicago and its suburbs in Cook and Will Counties. It carries Illinois Route 50 from its south end to Skokie, and U.S. Route 41 from Skok ...

) in

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

. Its eastern segment, officially known as Pershing Road, runs east from a cul-de-sac at 3600 West to Oakwood Boulevard, which continues east ending at U.S. Route 41 ( Lake Shore Drive). All of the eastern segment lies within the city of Chicago. In the suburbs, 39th Street constitutes the boundary between several of Cook County's townships. West of

Harlem Avenue Harlem Avenue is a major north–south street located in Chicago and its west, southwest, and northwest suburbs. It stretches from Glenview Road in Glenview to the intersection of East South Street and South Drecksler Road in Peotone, where ...

, Proviso and Riverside Townships are on the north and Lyons Township is on the south; east of Harlem, Berwyn and

Townships are on the north and Stickney Township is on the south. In

DuPage County DuPage County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, and one of the collar counties of the Chicago metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 932,877, making it Illinois' second-most populous county. Its county seat ...

, The entire route segment borders Downers Grove Township on the north and York Township on the south.

Route description

39th street starts as a small residential road in

Downers Grove Downers Grove is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1832 by Pierce Downer, whose surname serves as the eponym for the village. It is a south-west suburb of Chicago. The village is located between I-88 and I-55. ...

in a wooded neighborhood. It runs for approximately 1.9 miles while intersecting with Highland Avenue and Fairview avenue before interruption in a neighborhood after Washington Street by a retention area. The road is a brief side street ending on Cass Avenue in Westmont for the DuPage County route. Two smaller unconnected routes are in LaGrange and Lyons. It resumes in Cook County at U.S. Route 34 (Ogden Avenue) in Lyons. While still in Lyons, 39th Street intersects with

Illinois Route 43 Illinois Route 43 (IL 43) is a major north–south state highway in the U.S. state of Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 30 (US 30) in Frankfort north to the large intersection of IL 120 (Belvidere Road) and US 41 (Skokie Highway) in ...

(Harlem Avenue). The road continues east until it intersects

(Cicero Avenue) in

. 39th Street and Pershing Road are split into two segments because

Interstate 55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The h ...

( Stevenson Expressway) runs in its path if it were to continue in either direction. Pershing Road begins at a cul-de-sac at 3600 West, just west of St. Louis Avenue in Chicago. Continuing east, Pershing Road intersects

Kedzie Avenue Kedzie Avenue is a major north–south street in Chicago, Illinois. Both Kedzie streets in Chicago and suburban Evanston are named after John H. Kedzie, an early Chicago real-estate developer. Kedzie Avenue extends more than from the southern ...

Archer Avenue Archer Avenue, sometimes known as Archer Road outside the Chicago, Illinois city limits, and also known as State Street only in Lockport, Illinois and Fairmont, Illinois city limits, is a street running northeast-to-southwest between Chicago's ...

, and Halsted Street. About three-fourths of a mile east of Halsted Street, Pershing Road intersects Interstate 90/ Interstate 94 (

Dan Ryan Expressway The Dan Ryan Expressway is an expressway in Chicago that runs from the Circle Interchange with Interstate 290 (I-290) near Downtown Chicago through the South Side of the city. It is designated as both I-90 and I-94 south to 66th Street, ...

). The street finally ends at Oakwood Boulevard, which continues east until its terminus at U.S. Route 41 ( Lake Shore Drive) in Burnham Park.

History

Both segments of Pershing Road/39th Street were once called just 39th Street. The eastern segment was renamed to honor American general John J. Pershing. It had previously been known as Egan Street, named for William Bradshaw Egan.

Major intersections

References

{{Streets in Chicago Streets in Chicago