Is The Kankakee Area As Bad As Everyone Says? Bourbonnais, Bradley and Kankakee, Illinois 4K.
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- Опубліковано 8 вер 2024
- Kankakee has a bad reputation amongst other Illinois residents. Do the cities that surround Kankakee make up for the disaster that is the crime ridden principle city of Kankakee?
Bourbonnais: 0:51 - 11:23
Olivet Nazarene University: 8:55
Bradley: 11:23 - 15:14
CSL Behring Plant: 11:23
Bradley Bourbonnais Community High School: 13:50
Bourbonnais: 15:14 - 19:20
Bradley: 19:20 - 21:22
Kankakee: 21:22 - 23:30
Bradley: 23:30 - 25:55
Kankakee: 25:55 - 31:46
Downtown Kankakee: 27:45 - 28:40
Kankakee Community College: 31:15
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You missed a large chunk of kankakee
I have lived in Kankakee now for 9 years I have never had any kind of problem with anyone breaking in or harassing me or giving me any kind of a hard time or hard way to go. I walk a lot of places I do have a driver's license and I do Drive however I walk almost every place I go pee right because it's good for me and I walked through a lot of so cold dangerous neighborhoods and I have found it when you give respect and the try to be helpful to people that oftentimes they take it and they smile about it and they responded like kind. The whole concept A people just being mean for the sake of meanness is nonsense. people have told me that I am not right in the head that I should not walk through these dangerous areas the people who have given me a hard time whoever kills me of being a felon what I am not any such thing and have no police record anywhere because I don't break the law. Are some of the officers in the Kankakee Police Department. So perhaps part of it is brought down upon the city of Kankakee by the city of Kankakee. people tell me that I would know because they think that I'm uneducated in fact of the matter is I I am a retired Anthropologist and archaeologist field technician. being the fact I'm an anthropologist I think I know a little bit more about human nature than what most regular people do. At Ball State as well as Indiana University I was taught that if you want to get respect you want to give respect first. And that's what I do I'm very respectful of people and I refuse to be rude. Even if you are rude to me first I will give you the benefit of the doubt and do my best to be respectful and kind.
I appreciate your attempt at these travel logs and look forward to seeing many more of them in the future thank you so much for allowing me to make my comment!
Do Chicago Heights
The City of Kankakee is the county seat of Kankakee county.. other villages, towns, unincorporated areas include but not limited to: Momence, Grant Park, Manteno, St. George, Bradley, Bourbonnais, Hopkin’s Park(Pembroke), St. Anne, Aroma Park, Herscher, Limestone, Clifton, Union Hill.. most of which are not crime ridden areas.. Manteno is an exception because while there is a lot of crime it tends not to be violent crimes.. violent crime hotspots in Kankakee County are east & North Kankakee & Pembroke township..
@@protector5127 he missed about 3/4th of Kankakee but I wouldn’t recommend he go east of the courthouse or north of Paramount or behind St Mary’s hospital which is almost smack dab in the middle of Kankakee judging east to west
The hotel incident you mentioned wasn’t racism. It was because people of all races were renting rooms for parties. They would pay for a room designed for two and bring twenty to use the pool and trash the rooms. It was more expensive for the hotel to clean and take care of the large amount of people plus the parties were disturbing the other guests. They decided against renting to anyone from the surrounding area not just black people from Kankakee.. if you are going to research a story you need to do more than read one opinionated news story
It is amazing to me that people just consume news and believe what they say still. Stories like the one you mention are driven by PR for lawyers typically.
When watching news people should ALWAYS ask "Why is this news". Often the answer is.... "It shouldn't be." Then you realize it is public relations for lawyers on behalf of their clients to push their lawsuit agenda, pushing some local business that has ties to political people, politically driven articles by activists, etc.
The one that gets me is "This person is being nice". That's normal. An act of kindness is not news and how does this become news? Someone ran to the media for attention. Then was the act of kindness genuine or to get the attention of cameras? Narcissists are enabled by stuff like that and some truly terrible people are hailed as nice because of some superficial act.
I find it funny that the kankakee segment is only 5 minutes at the end of a 30 plus minute video
I grew up in Kankakee. We call it the Armpit of America. It's crime rate started climbing heavily in the late 70's. Before that all the shops and stores were open in downtown k3 area. It was safe. If you have not lived there do not make a judgement bad or good. When the industry was raped by the Unions and the Jimmy Carter years Kankakee started a downward spiral. Companies closed or left and the unemployment rate rose fast. People moved away and the vacant houses could not sell. Landlords bought them and started making Apartments out of the big old homes in some areas. They bought the vacant houses and rented them out to people moving from Chicago and other areas. So in a sense these areas of Kankakee quickly became hotspots for drugs, crime, etc,etc. Yes the people moving in were mostly unemployed Blacks. So many factors were to blame for the way it is now and racism is NOT one of them. The are is infested with Gangs. Hopkins Park is notorious for it. No one forces them to be the way they are. Many CHOOSE NOT TO HAVE A JOB BECAUSE SELLING DRUGS IS MORE PROFITABLE AND is a fun lifestyle for them. The ones who want a job have a hard time finding anything because most companies of any size like A.O.Smith, Ropers, left the area. The Employers get to be extremely picky on whom they hire. The City was once vibrant and growing but a very Bad Carter admin and Companies leaving killed it. Greedy Landlords didn't help either.
My family moved to K3 from New Jersey in the late 70's. Being a military family, I've lived in several places and honestly it's got to be the worst place I've lived in my entire life. Thank God I only spent two years there! Two high schools Eastridge (later became a jr high) and Westview, few jobs, fewer outlets for young people and super racist. Left there ASAP and never looked back!
I was born at Riverside Health CTR in 1964 the year that Riverside Health Center opened. Kankakee has its good and bad issues like other cities but I believe all are getting better. Just to mention I'm African-American and have friends through out the KANKAKEE AREA of different nationalities. Good place to live.
I was born in 1964 as well, but I was born in Joliet and live there still
I lived on Sunset Lane there from ‘69 - ‘72. I’ve been afraid to visit due to negative stories and the fact I am white. When I lived there and attended Taft Elementary, looking back, it seemed a pretty good balance of African Americans, Whites and Asians.
I was born at Riverside also 😄
@@SarahbuildsstepsequencersWhat does being white have to do with anything? White people live in Kankakee too 😂 what’s wrong with you
You totally missed the highlight of the area: the Kankakee river.
The main problem with the Kankakee area is that negativism and rudeness is rampant and goes unchecked. Depression and other mental health issues are endemic--also just plain low intelligence. People say what's on their mind, and what's on their mind is often pretty unpleasant.
@@NightowlTrucking I'd be highly surprised if it wasn't the same before the factories closed. Some towns have positive, nice people and weak economies. In addition to an industrial base, Kankakee County had two massive insane asylums where the inmates tended to be horribly mistreated. The employees at those places tended to be awful people, or became so after working there for a long time.
And then there's the history of the most infamous Kankakee politician, Gov. Len Small. He may have been the most corrupt ILLINOIS politician of all time, and that's saying a lot. He controlled Kankakee throughout the early 20th century and his family still owns the newspaper and controls what it prints.
The Kankakee area reminds me a lot of Utica, New York. Manteno reminds me of Rome, NY. I've lived in both states and agree with you one hundred per cent.
@@michigandersea3485 Government workers are the worst.
I used to deliver in this area and Kankakee is weird. You drive 1 minute and you go from the beautiful historical district to the ghetto with half burnt down buildings.
you forgot 1 detail about Olivet Nazarene University . For almost 20 years ( 2002-2019 )it was the home of the NFL's Chicago Bears training camp drawing thousands of people to the area every year
stop pushing rumors ...you dont live here......there is mixed races in all of our towns
Not a bad video, and I think a decent amount of your assertions are correct, but I gotta say considering this is a Kankakee Area video you omitted a large chunk of Kankakee City itself. Especially considering you mentioned Riverside as being one of the largest employers in the area and didn't even show it, nor did you point out Shapiro. I understand you can't touch on everyhthing, but it felt like quite a bit of interesting locations were left out.
No doubt
Do you live in the Kankakee area?
@@protector5127 Grew up and lived there for 21 years. Still visit often.
This video misses a lot of kankakee including the river, hospitals, real downtown, Westside, 308, and the riverside neighborhood and riverview historic district.
Yes, I grew up in Riverview and was disappointed not to see any of it
I can tell you with 100% certainty that the hotel you mentioned did NOT refuse service due to racism. In 2014 my wife was very pregnant and "nesting" I painted several rooms and as it was winter, we could not open windows to air out the house. The fumes were getting to us both so I tried to rent a room in mentioned hotel. They refuse me, a middle aged white man, service because I was "a local". Apparently, they had issues with locals renting a room to use their pool, then the locals would proceed to call all their friends over to trash the pool area. I walked across the parking lot to the neighboring hotel (without a pool) and booked a room for the night to sleep paint fume free. I lived on Kathy Drive in Bourbonnais. The first street you turned down from Covenant. The yellow house with the red car in the driveway after the stop sign (we've moved so it's not our house anymore). Anyway, it was NOT racially motivated. At all. Period.
@Mark E Betz
You are right! After writing a reply I remembered you were right when I saw your comment. Now it makes sense why I remembered it as a local management issue. It was set up only by the local management. I remember many people feeling race had to do with it. That particular problem had gone on and had been allowed to go on at a few local hotels/motels for years. That also explains why I had never seen another Hampton Inn like that anywhere and I had stayed in many of them.
It’s not even a full hour from Chicago on 57 north
It’s maybe 30-45 minutes
45 mins to be exact.
I was born in Kankakee in 1971 and grew up in Bonfield. 3 decent places to work and ZERO for entertainment. No thanks, I moved to the Shawnee National Forest area!
Things are different now.
You should've come out to Pembroke and Momence.
That's not part of the metro area but maybe they should get their own episode!
He drove through Hopkins Park. It was an interesting video as I'd always heard of it but had no idea what it was like. Very rural, very few homes spread far apart.
Please stop with the racial garbage.Till you have lived there for a while.
Boilermakers? "Stolen from Purdue"? The buildings to the left before you crossed the tracks on North Street were the David Bradley factory buildings. They later became Roper Corp. They built household items...including boilers. Homage to the city founder...not the university in Indiana.
@Dacisu89
Yep! My dad worked years there after it was Bradley Ropers! That is correct!
I passed by Kankakee on my way to Chicago. I wish there was more public restrooms in that area. After a long drive from Dallas I just wanted to pee so bad.
Just moved to Kankakee near Court Street. Yeah, it might have seen better times, but if you're looking for a house you can afford, give it a try and join us. 92.7 the Valley is my new FAVORITE oldie station! ❤
In the 60's and 70's I grew up 15 miles away in western Kankakee county. My first job out of college was at Armour Pharmaceutical which is what CSL Behring was originally. Kankakee has had economic, race and crime issues for a long time. It used to have a significant amount of industry with union factory jobs, but in the mid to late 60's those plants and their jobs started to leave town for southern states with lower taxes and cheaper labor.
26:55 that railroad crossing on Indiana heading south was always a blast. Indiana is the fast way to go n-s through town as opposed to Schuyler. Going over that bad boy at 45 was always a blast. There's tons of those around town. I live in TX now and moved away from Kankakee years ago and haven't been back for what feels like ages. Thanks for posting this so I can experience a bit of nostalgia. Oh, and go Kays!
I grew up in kankakee , it wasn't bad when I was there , of course I left back in 1974 moved to Florida, have been back a few times . It has changed since I lived there .
We left in ‘72. Haven’t been back but I want to visit.
And don't let Bradley and Bourbonnais fool you. Those cities have issues too, especially with overdoses in the last 5 years.
I'm a truck driver and have delivered to many of these places you drove by. Kankakee / Bradley are one of my favorite peddle routes to run. Not a perfect town by any means but far from the worse in the world some parts are a little rough but I just mind my business and nobody bothers me. I have met alot of very nice people out here. I always enjoy coming out here the only thing I hate about coming out here for work is driving over the river and not being able to fish it lol.
Kankakee is a strange place. Half the town is all black, the other half is all white. The surrounding towns are mostly white. So my question is: How did these black people find their way to Kankakee?
kankankee was originally a lot more black people but back in the day it was split via race to the point kkk would do marches in one of the cites sorry this is retelling of one my uncles stories when he was young but currently Kankakee is made of mostly older people while some of my demographic (20 somethings) try to leave
Migration, like everywhere else.
The first black people started to come to Kankakee County during the civil war to move to the black farming settlement of Hopkins Park (Pembroke Township). Many then moved to Kankakee from there. Also, there was black migration from the south during the Great Migration era.
You missed the whole eastern half of Kankakee where all the fun stuff happens.
@benjamin ramsey gang activity, shootings, and other violent crimes.
@benjamin ramsey That’s a shame. I think it was 2 or 3 summers ago some of the fine citizens were taking pop shots at cars going down the street just for fun. Only one or two cars actually got hit though.
Should have took a stroll Behind the Bricks
Truth
Yeah 😂 the eastern half is the worst part
Families with children in school are drawn to cities with better schools, even if it cost more (school taxes on property). The flip side to that is that households with no kids in school are drawn to areas with lower costs, even if the schools there are not as good.
Illinois needs to cut back on state spending in general as a way to keep taxes of all kinds from driving people away. As the old saying goes:”If you want less of something, tax it!” That’s a classic bit of basic wisdom from a high school economics class, and it”s still true. People go where they can get the best deal. That’s why Illinois is losing population.
Born and raised on Fraser street! Great video, was really cool to see things I saw growing up. Pretty cool Bozo's is still there. Bozos and Taco John's on Kennedy were always the go to for us. We played at the church parking lot attached to Small's Park as well as the park and museum itself. Had a cousin get married at Smalls. Went to Taft, Kennedy, then Kankakee high school before moving in 2007. Rode bikes all the time on that side of Kankakee and visited Family Video on Court street almost weekly to rent games and movies!
Pls don't toss out the phrase racist town. Because people listen to social media without doing their research. Do u call Chicago racist city because there are more of one ethnicity living in one area vs another.. As a whole our area has worked hard to improve its status and image. Plus our healthcare isn't lead by Amita healthcare. Yes Shaprio and Amita are a big part but Riverside employs more healthcare workers in the area.
I was born and raised in K3 and I am black.. Its a racist ass town lol. The Klan is active in the area.
It absolutely is! There’s no town to live in Kankakee County that’s better than the other. I hear Bradley and Bourbonnais are nice?? Well I think that depends on what you consider nice. I.had to relocate here for a a job. No one, unless they are from a family that planted the first seed in the area would move here otherwise. This area is extremely provincial. I assume lack of education attributes to that. I look forward to leaving soon because I honestly just can not stand it.
It really liked how Chris Harden changed the tone of the music, from pleasant to vigilant, as he crossed the border from Bradley into Kankakee. That alone shows that Chris Harden does his research.
Sheesh, the US certainly likes to build endless road with next to nothing on it. Unsurprisingly, it's completely deserted. I don't think I saw one person walking around. That's a lot of road, electrical, and sewer you have to repair and replace when it starts breaking down. Coming up with the money to pay for that must be a nightmare for towns. If it was built in the 50s/60s, it's got perhaps another 15-20 years left before it needs re-doing.
Another very well done classic production where the route, narration and music all come together. Economic policy (taxes), economic means (school districtsetc.) result in why things happen and look the way they do. No other channel does this better.
Another major factor that contributed to Kankakee's issues was that Bradley /Bourbonnais offered significant tax advantages to businesses that wanted to be in this area- and the Kankakee "powers that be' did not reciprocate. So- the businesses ; developments went to B/B- right when Kankakee was losing manufacturing jobs, too.
Wow the fact you went right at the light and not left tell me all I need too know! Sad video
One thing that makes me want to leave: All winter your house is shut up, in spring and summer when the rain stops and it might be a rare cool moderate day you want to open doors and windows..... immediately someone will start a stinky disgusting bonfire in their backyard and you have to shut up your house again. There is no law stopping it and the people who could change that won't, so it's "too bad for you sucker!" to anyone who invested money in a home.
That couple wasn't the only couple they refused. They refused rooms to anyone that lived within 30 miles. After a couple contacted a news network the hotel changed its policy.
What hotel was it? I’m from the area
The Hampton Inn across from Northfield Mall.
@@MrsKRRJ I asked because I had family coming to town and wanted to make sure that place didn’t receive our business!
@Kimberly Adams
The Hampton Inn had to do with management and it is the best motel in the area as far as quality goes. Not sure if all Hampton Inn's are. It is actually a Nationwide Hotel Chain. I have stayed in several of them through the years and never seen what I heard was happening here. It happened in 2019 and from what I have found out when asking when I schedule other hotel reservations at Hampton Inn's none have ever done that. I have heard it was only policy here through their current management. Like someone said there is still racism here like other places although I do believe it is bad everywhere, just been pushed under the rug. However, if this is after your guests are coming to area when you get this response, you may want to see if management from 2019 is gone from here as I do believe Hampton Inn is generally a wonderful place to stay. I do feel bad for those people. It SHOULD NOT happen anywhere. There are issues with every race and true racism is about all races no matter what the race is!!
Bro how did you drive through all 3 towns and miss the nicest parts in each one 💀
I lived in Kankakee for 58 years..... worked for a large retail store for many years. Started out as an auto mechanic. And of course worked directly with the public. Met boatloads of fine people, then transfered to be an appliance tech. Ive been on every road and town in the surrounding area..... of course Kankakee,....... Bradley, Bourbonnais, and every single town surrounding these areas, including what some people call the worse of all, Hopkins Park. In 50 years of working I've had one or two race issues, nothing bad. Met MANY fine people out at Hopkins Park, I admit I dealt with the older generation out there. I was a school teacher for a Career Center, and had students from every town south, north, east and west. Only met one student that was not a good person. Work for a locksmith company, and went to more homes and businesses. And I would say in my 50 plus years of serving this community. Ive had 98% positiveness with all the people of all races. When you put all these people together, sure there are going to be differences. People are just who they are, with what they have experienced in their life. The way the parents raise their kids. And how people create their own opportunities. I moved out of Kankakee not because of the people, or any crime, but because of the high property taxes. I just could not choke up every penny I had to continue living there for property taxes. Remember, I've been on about every street and every neighbor hood in all the area. And over all, I think its a pretty good place. The problem has always been with the people that have run the city. I collect old items from the city, so I like the old time city. It had a wonderful downtown shopping area, with many great buildings. The city seemed to never enforce building codes to keep the business buildings from falling into disrepair. And the city, not the people, just tore down every single historical building that was down town. And created a parking lot on damn near every corner. A parking lot for what business? They ripped all the buildings down that housed a business. Now for this video....remember, this guy is not from here, he don't know anything more than what he reads or maybe hears from the few people he might of talked with. He for sure showed more of Bourbonnais and Bradley, he should have focused on the city in the title which seems to be Kankakee. So his video is sort of big time not relevant to the title. He enters into the city of Kankakee known as the west side....well no, he entered into the southside...the westside is over more where Westview/Kankakee High is, but he really doesn't know that. I read all the comments, and some people just hated our community, and never wants to see it ever again. Thats fine, they created the hate, with whatever opportunities they chose not to take, they may have had friends that held them back and blame Kankakee. I went to Kankakee schools......and had many great teachers that cared for us students. Met thousands of people when I was working. It has changed some over the more recents years, but to make it out as a super horrible place seems unfair. Is there places in town maybe you should not be in? Of course there is, I've been in those areas because of my jobs. Have I been in homes I knew were criminal type people? Sure have, but even they need service repair sometimes. I treated them with the same respect as any other person, and you know what? They treated me the same way. Any city of any larger size is like that. Don't go around those places, mind your business, and as with any city, be aware of your surroundings and be careful.
Graduated from Westview High School class of 1982! GO KAYHAWKS GO! Wonderful upbringing 💟
@@Pomegranate2471 Westview is where I went too.... I had a great time there, and some great teachers whom some, are my best friends.
Kankakee still redlines as far as property. Born and lived here my whole life, and man the way Bradley and Bourbonnais police used to harass Kankakee residents driving through in the 90s is ridiculous.
Fun fact some police in Kankakee still do
@@lame4543 you right. Majorly messed up too.
I’m a transplant to Kankakee but it’s my city and I love it some great culture is hidden here
Rumor has it that the Bradley-Bourbonnais CHS Boilermaker Mascot was adopted after a Purdue Alumni coached at the school in the 1930's. I haven't been able to find anything official about that, but Purdue University officially permits the use. Similar to how Western IL University shares the Leatherneck name and Bulldog logo of the US Marine Corps after a former USMC Commandant was the school's dean.
Me and my boyfriend moved to Hersher a year and a half ago. He works at the hospital down in Kankakee in the ER department. Soon after we moved in, I started hearing how Kankakee was bad from locals. Didn't really believe it until my boyfriend started working at his new job at the hospital and would come home saying "we got another stabbing today" or "we got a 3rd overdose". More often than I would like to admit, they get a gunshot wound. I sometimes ask if he knows how it happened or if he got more details regarding the patient(s). Once, he said" I think some of the 4 people who got shot today happened to drive by when these 2 rival gangs started going at each other, cause one guy who came in got shot with his kid in their car." Yikes!
My wife went to Olivett. We actually went back up there a couple of years ago for an event. I think for the most part it is still a pretty decent area. I mean unless you go to a really tiny town there is almost always a higher crime, bad side of town. The Kankakee river is really nice and very clean. My dad and I used to go smallmouth fishing in Bird Park. People also take canoes down the river. Kankakee River State Park is beautiful, I actually proposed to my wife there. (LONG time ago!). When we used to live in the southern Chicago burbs we’d often ride my motorcycle down country roads and have a picnic at the State Park.
I also went to Olivet! I have lived in Bradley all but 2 years of my entire life and have seen it change drastically although as many said crime and all has changed and is changing everywhere. I do remember when highway 50 was only a 2 lane highway. Actually now that I think about it all those 4 lane main roads were 2 lane!! But it does still have good and bad areas and I apparently liked something or I would not have stayed or moved back here after 2 years in another state!
@@brendacluney2052 I grew up in the area and some of my favorite memories from Bradley are their great parades down Broadway in the 60's, eating at Golden Bear and cruising the K3 strip in the 70's. The state park was always fun. I moved away in 82 but get homesick a lot.
You could drove pass the Bradley house. And stayed on the north side of the river to show how some down historic district of Kankakee looks.
Try not to blink!
26:48 you hit it right on the head bro everybody goes fast over that little embankment.. it is actually there because there’s a rail system there, though I’ve only seen it used for the factories that surround that area(Valspar, Armstrong, JR Short Milling).
King Von is the only reason I know of this city.
Of bourbonnais did he live here?
Nice Going, you just identified the south side of Kankakee as West Kankakee.
I was born in Kankakee in 1974... But i lived in Bradley till 1984. My grandpa used to have a Trailer Sales in Bradley.. Brush trailer sales
I love your work. Opinions may vary...and NUMBERS like DNA don't lie. Keep up the amazing work!
Yet you are insinuating that it Is racist. People are racist. Not towns and cities. Come on man.
Bradley, Illinois isn't actually extremely bad. Bradley is the more in between place. Looks like it would be bad, but it's more calm than most think. I've lived in all three areas, and I currently live in Bradley.
I also am currently preparing to go into my Senior year at BBCHS.
Bradley is sweet ain't no one think otherwise
I use to live in Kankakee, I am glad I move to a big city.😊
This video was so important for me
Thank you for sharing. Brought back a lot of memories
Makes me want taco John’s, Monicals, and jaenickes. Bourbonnais and Bradley are chill. I really liked it there. The river is amazing!!
Chris, I really like your documentary style. It is refreshing and rather unique. But you really could have devoted a little more footage to Kankakee itself. I'm from Kankakee and still have family there. They moved to Bourbonnais. Had the large manufacturing employers not left for the South in the early late 70's and early 80's things would have not become so bad. I should add that Kankakee was divided economically between those that had and those who had not regardless of race. Still a good look at the area.
My parents talk about how nice kankake was 50 or 60 years ago, and it does still have some beauty in it. Unfortunately there is too much bad in it now to see the nice parts of it
It became a black town. Everywhere they come to turns to shit. Everyone knows it but few will acknowledge it
bro didnt even ride down hobbie ave cmon now
The city of Bradley is split into two separate areas because of Interstate 57. You have the north area with Northfield Square Mall, Adventure Commons and numerous stores and the south area with additional stores and Exploration Station.
I just moved out of Kankakee and I’m going to be honest, worse time of my life! I will never EVER go back
The first basketball coach at Bradley Bourbonnais high school was from Purdue and chose the mascot.
Bradley and Bourbonnais are nice the are even more towns they have left out in this county like St.Anne Aroma Park Manteno Momence all nice places. Kankakee has so issues but i have seen worse
There has been shootouts in Bourbonnais and Bradley before
@@lame4543 true, there was just a shooting in the mall😑
When did folks start to pronounce Bourbonnais in the French manner? When I lived there in the fiftys we said something more like Burr Bo Nuss.
I remember when I was younger in the ‘80s and ‘90s almost every one said it the anglicized way. Now you rarely hear it. I think it happened around the time The Bears established their training camp at Olivet. Anyone in the Chicago broadcasting area (which includes Bourbonnais) would have heard sportscasters say it with the French pronunciation. I think people just picked up on that. Plus local radio ads have been saying it the French way since before it was more prevalent.
@@ajackson5955 Thanks!
1976 For the bicentennial, people who thought they were better than they were.
@@monkeysuncle2816 Thanks!
@Tom Cruise Control
Actually, the French pronunciation is actually is the way the French Canadians pronounced it when they settled here. It was changed back to the French Canadian pronunciation many years before the Chicago Bears even thought of coming here! However, many people choose to continue to call it one of original ways due to finding it easier to say it the way we grew up. They changed it back to original name 20 years or more ago!! It was originally settled by several Indian groups, including the Kickapoo, Iroquois, Mascouten, and Potawatomi. The pronunciations were the way the Potowatomi indians said it. It used the "l" sound in place of the "r" sound because they could not say the r sound clear. So the names they used were Bullbonus, Bullbonus Grove and Bullboney. Of course spelling was not clear either back then. Then in 1824 Bourbonnais was settled by French Canadian Courier Bourbonnais, Francois Sr who lived Bourbonnais until 1834 when the family moved to Kankakee. His wife was a meritus from the Potawanami and he became a fur trader between the Potawanami Indians and fur companies. So it was never pronounced the way we knew it. Somewhere along the years people in area began pronouncing it the way it was spelled although it was not corrected. Then when someone found this information they brought it to light and we have the current pronunciation!! The original also said the beginning 3 letters with a long "o" sound where we know it as "bur" sound. Most who use the original however have a struggle with that and the s at end being silent. So most of us that use the oldest (which as I said we did not know growing up!) say it "Burbonna" and do not worry about the "o". Now we have people using 3 ways to say it!! A few say Borbonna, some say Bourbonna and some say the way we knew it Bourbonnais! Hope that wasn't confusing!
Born and raised in Kankakee on Washington street in two different houses one on the left hand side on the first block and second on the corner right across from the street from the church by the railroad tracks. 3 or 4 houses down from the Greek Orthodox church, lived in limestone on a farm too, moved to Bradley for a few years then moved to st Anne before moving to Kansas city.
I live in area moved here from Oregon 4 years ago. I have NEVER met or seen as much racism as I have in Manteno, bradley, Bourbonnais. It is the saddest thing I have ever experienced. Unfortunately I would love to have diverse relationships and friendships I am getting labeled the same as if I am from racist. I understand why people feel
That way. I would love to see it changed but I notice a lot of the while Midwest is typically more racist.
That's very strange. I have never encountered any racism here that I could tell.
That's weird. I know the area really well and I can't imagine what you mean.
I’m surprised you haven’t done Rockford yet.
jus got some top from dis skripper bit
Just got a glock with this ruler clip you don't play with me
Lol
King Von sent me
Kankakee lame af it’s not as bad as he trying to make it seem trust me😂😂😂😂😂😂
So we not gonna forget how much body’s dropped and shootouts there is in 1 week? Orrrrr you just live in the safest part of Kankakee ?
@@lame4543 I dnt live there I have family there n I have been back n forth since I was a child. No one in my family has ever complained about shootings or crime n I have never seen it there. It’s actually extremely lame n boring compared to where I’m frm n live.
@lame4543 I grew up on the east side of town and it's not as bad yall make it out to be. Yall act like it's o block or something. Kankakee is quiet and pretty boring for the most part. Especially now a days. It was way worse in the late 90s and early 2000s when I was a kid
I delivered juice for Home Juice co from Joliet all over this area and cities south and east of Kankakee area
Clearly, your goal was to make the area look bad, and you did a very good job. You completely missed the beautiful subdivisions and upper-class homes in Bourbonnais and Bradley, and the beautiful and historic homes in the lower Riverview along the Kankakee River.
The parks are super nice too especially the Indian caves and trails in Bourbonnais
Im born and raised here in Kankakee and let me say this video was great.
I use to be a Amazon delivery driver for Kankakee and I hate it there lol too ghetto
I'm planning a road trip very soon. Was considering a stop over near Kankakee. Rethinking it now that I toured via your vid. Thanks! I'm so appreciative of your video. I'm going to check out the others so that I can have a better idea where I do want to stop over.
I will say I still feel a hell of a lot safer in K3 then I do when I go up to Chicago. But I'm Manteno and that's one of the nicer towns in Kankakee Country, squished in between Bourbonnais and Peotone.
Bro you were prolly in the safe part of Kankakee aka the west side you second I seen you say “hell of a lot safer in k3” that’s when I knew you didint live on the north side/east
Wow you showed Bbchs but not Kankakee highschool I’m hurt
You should do a video about Hopkins Park I could show you around.
Went there on the same day that I went to Kankakee. ua-cam.com/video/Okb0zaEgzq4/v-deo.html
@@ChrisHarden That was an interesting video as I'd heard about it all my life. I knew generally where it was but knew nothing about it. I enjoy your work.
@@bettyhair5007 Thanks!
Bishop "Mac Nuh Mare uh". Lovingly called Bishop Mac
He talks like an AI
Born in Kankakee. Lived there and got robbed at gun point on my way to work. I got mixed feelings dude also I lived off Charleston then above that home improving place with the vault boy logo and off of Brighton
There is a somewhat valid reason for many hotels/franchise systems to restrict locals (let's say people with addresses within 30 miles of your hotel). In a lot of cases locals cause damage to rooms, either booking them for parties, having an occupancy of 4 per room but inviting 20 kids in to use the hotel pool for some type of birthday celebration etc.. sex romps (where prostitution may occur) , or sometimes just using the room to cook drugs in the coffee maker. It's not always a racial matter as it can be a "zero tolerance" restricted to locals guideline established by a hotel franchise system.. There are plenty of hotels in metro Kankakee that accept locals, it's a private business decision to allow a quiet environment for the rest of the guest especially if that hotel caters to business travelers who desire a good nights rest or who may be booking conference rooms for business meeting and dont' necessarily want a bunch of roudy teens running up and down the halls or having a sleep over with 10-15 kids in one hotel room . IF they wish to establish anti local restrictions (by milage or by nearby zip codes) it's up to them. Now if they are simply restricting by race? or sex or ethnic basis that's a completely different kettle of fish. But it's not necessarily a bad idea especially if they've had past poor experiences with prostitution or the hotel being used as nightly drug dens or shooting galleries.
I can respect that response. I didn’t explain the end part in the video, but the hotel owner offered the couple a steak dinner and $1,000 to keep their mouths shut and to not go to the media with their story.
The owner also refused to respond on the matter. The hotel chain had to issue a statement saying that they don’t stand for discrimination. I still think that the hotel owner was discriminating as he banned Kankakee residents. I still think that banning to serve residents of a certain community is a classic and historical practice of racism. I think that the way the owner chose to go about it didn’t help his cause.
None-the-less, I thought that you’re response was well thought out and had good insight, and I’m not saying that you’re wrong or that I’m right.
Maybe it would’ve been better for the hotel owner to ban all locals within a 30 mile radius instead of just Kankakee residents.
Von brought me here looking for that stripper bi thoo
Born and raised in Kankakee (K3) and I wouldn't have it any other way! Fond memories and wholesome up bringing.... No place is perfect. I moved to the Chicago metropolitan area some years ago but I still go home every now and then. This video does not do Kankakee justice.
Hey, what about Aroma Park, Momence, etc. since you were doing the Kankakee area?
Those aren't part of the Metro though
steer clear of kankakee....(old joke about a steer that got loose out of a trailer downtown and was shot by police).... i grew up there, and still live nearby...
Do you know a guy that does weird things with handbags? You know like pooping in them? LOL,LOL,LOL......David, you need to be working, not on the computer! LOL......
I grew up in Kankakee county...its not a great place
I’m black and trust me racism happens daily for us we just don’t report it that much.
I’m sorry.
I can't say I've ever experienced any racism in my 4 years here (Bradley, but I go all over).
It’s not bad place to live. It’s boring but it can beautiful if they invest in it.
Kankakee is no where to live unless ur far away from the hood lol
Why invest in Kankakee when there are so many better places to invest in? That's the big question.
Chris harden, I grew up in a small town called "stone park ill". I live in Texas now for 30yrs and never went back home. I would love to see you do a segment of my home town please? I am 57 so it would be a honor to see it before my time is up.
Stone park got it’s bad parts now . A lot of shootings n strip clubs
Yup Stone Park is a of a shitty area now
I can follow where you are driving I used to drive those routes to different employments I had over the years.
Kankakee is beautiful when it wants to be
My birthplace '55 ,class of '73 Eastridge.havent been home since '79.
@@homoerectus744 don’t come home trust me lol
@@lame4543 a gentleman named chito acevedo keeps me immersed.
I grew up sadly in Kankakee. I now live in Los Angeles. I have traveled around the world, and trust me the worst place to live is my hometown Kankakee, Il. Next place Portland, Or.
I live in Kankakee and go to the high school it’s not what every one thinks where like a family and they push use to be are best selves
I can see my old car in my driveway 🤣🤣
What parts of the Chicago area you been to recently
Only drove through the Chicago area on the freeways recently. I’ll have a few night Chicago freeway drive-lapse’s coming later.
@@ChrisHarden there are 77 community areas in the city O’Hare in the far northwest side to Hegewisch in the far south side
ALL OVER 🤔
Did you repost this? I swear I saw this already
🤣 yup. I had to correct a few minor errors. The city coordinates on the bottom were wrong in a few spots
@@ChrisHarden ohhhhh ok I gotchu. I was so confused like "what?! I know I saw this one" 🤣🤣🤣 thanks for clearing that up
@@ChrisHarden Keep fixing those errors. "This part of Kankakee, though south of the river, is known as West Kankakee. That's great, except everyone calls it the south side. When you said that you were literally 2 blocks from the old "South Side Pharmacy". West Kankakee is West of Wall Street.
Also, when you mention "more boarded up buildings and houses in Kankakee", you were still passing through Bradley. 🤣
Fred Mac Murray from My 3 sons would be rolling in his grave.
They do that in sc only workers can book hotels because we have so much new jobs and most workers aren’t from here
Yeah it is i grew up there xd
Same