Today in Chicago History: Thousands mourn Mahalia Jackson

Here’s a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Jan. 31, according to the Tribune’s archives.

Is an important event missing from this date? Email us.

(Business) front page flashback: Feb. 1, 2023

A renovated Terminal 5 — that included 10 new gates and an additional 350,000 square feet — was unveiled at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport in early 2023. (Chicago Tribune)

2023: O’Hare International Airport’s Terminal 5 reopened after a $1.3 billion renovation.

The terminal, which serves domestic and international flights, added 10 new gates, reconfigured customs facilities and a new baggage handling system.

The newly expanded Terminal 5 at O’Hare International Airport on Jan. 31, 2023, in Chicago. The expansion included 350,000 square feet of vaulted ceilings, natural light, and floor to ceiling high-performance glass offering an expansive view of the airfield. (Stacey Wescott/ChicagoTribune)

Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago)

High temperature: 65 degrees (1989)
Low temperature: Minus 21 degrees (2019)
Precipitation: 1.52 inches (1914)
Snowfall: 9.5 inches (1914)

Mourners line up at Greater Salem Baptist Church in Chicago at 215 W. 71st St., for one of the three funeral services for Mahalia Jackson on Jan. 31, 1972. (William Kelly/Chicago Tribune)

1972: ‘Heaven came a little closer to Chicago.’ A visitation for gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, who died at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park on Jan. 27, 1972, was held at Greater Salem Baptist Church where she had been a parishioner for more than 40 years.

People lined up for blocks to see Jackson’s open casket, which was on-site from noon to midnight so “all the people who loved her (could) see her,” a church spokesman told the Tribune.

Among those attending funeral services at Arie Crown Theater for Mahalia Jackson are the Rev. Leon Jenkins, from left, pastor of Greater Salem Baptist Church; Joseph Jackson, who gave a eulogy; Mayor Richard J. Daley, entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. and Eleanor “Sis” Daley on Feb. 1, 1972. Editors note: this historic print shows some hand painting in the background. (Walter Kale/Chicago Tribune)

The next day, Daley, Sammy Davis Jr., Ella Fitzgerald, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Coretta Scott King were joined by 6,000 mourners at the Arie Crown Theater inside McCormick Place for Jackson’s funeral. Aretha Franklin sang “Precious Lord, Take My Hand,” which was written by Chicagoan Thomas A. Dorsey, who was known as the father of gospel music.

Comiskey Park was shrouded in fog on Jan. 31, 2003. Chicago White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and U.S. Cellular President and CEO John Rooney held a news conference that day to discuss an agreement that renamed the park U.S. Cellular Field. (José Moré/Chicago Tribune)

2003: Chicago White Sox executives announced the team sold the naming rights of Comiskey Park to a Chicago-based wireless company for $68 million over 20 years. The ballpark would become known as U.S. Cellular Field.

The stadium is known today as Rate Field.

A snowplow piles more snow on top of parked cars on Stockton Drive in Chicago on Feb. 1, 2015. (Nancy Stone/Chicago Tribune)

2015: Four years after the 2011 Groundhog Day snowstorm, Chicago experienced another blizzard — this one during Super Bowl weekend. Unlike in 2011, which forecasters predicted days in advance, this storm was harder to pinpoint. A total of 19.3 inches of snow fell, making it the fifth largest in Chicago history.

Chicago Public Schools had its third weather-related closing of the year. More than 2,000 flights at O’Hare International Airport were canceled with at least another 400 canceled at Midway Airport. At its peak, the storm caused about 51,000 ComEd customers to lose power due to a “pretty rough combination” of high winds and heavy snow, a ComEd spokeswoman told the Tribune.

About 1,200 customers of a local furniture store welcomed the snowfall because it meant their orders were free. Art Van Furniture’s weather-related promotion offered to refund buyers’ money if more than 3 inches of snow fell on Super Bowl Sunday. When more than 16 inches was recorded, Art Van returned $2.5 million to its shoppers.

Terrence A. James / Chicago Tribune

Pedestrians contend with snow and cold weather at Clinton Street and Jackson Boulevard in Chicago on Jan. 28, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A man walks along the Chicago Riverwalk on a cold and morning, Jan. 25. 2019.
Steven Rosenberg/Chicago Tribune

Commuters wait in below zero temperatures for a CTA Red line train at the Belmont station, Jan. 25, 2019.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

Ice forms on Lake Michigan along Lake Shore Drive Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

Safe passage worker Margarita Panora keeps watch for children as she stands outside a school near W. 23rd Street and S. Leavitt Ave., as the cold weather envelops the city, Jan. 25, 2019. Panora was layered up with four shirts and three pairs of pants.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

CTA passengers stand in a heat shelter at the Blue Line Damen stop on Jan. 24, 2019, in Chicago.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A photographer watches the sun rise on the Chicago lakefront at North Avenue beach on Jan. 29, 2019.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

With temperatures around minus 20 degrees, a person crosses the tracks as a late-arriving Union Pacific-Northwest Line Metra train pulls out of the station early Jan. 30, 2019, in Palatine.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

Canadian geese appear to line up for food provided by a kind soul at Montrose beach in Chicago, Friday, Jan. 25, 2019. (Antonio Perez/ Chicago Tribune)
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

Ice begins to form on Lake Michigan as cold weather envelops the city, as seen from 360 Chicago Observation Deck in Chicago on Jan. 25, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune

Stephanie Haaser, 32, gets her cot ready before going to sleep in a warming center at the Salvation Army’s Freedom Center on the 800 block of North Christiana Avenue on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

During a second morning of deep cold Kim Guzman of Chicago waits for a CTA Green Line train in the Austin area of Chicago early Jan. 31, 2019. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Icicles form around several bushes at Whiting Lakefront Park during sunrise Jan. 31, 2019, in Whiting, Ind.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Pedestrians walk through the snow near Buckingham Fountain in Chicago on a cold Jan. 27, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

Pedestrians walk to the CTA Montrose Blue Line station in Chicago on a cold and snowy morning Jan. 28, 2019. The inbound Kennedy Expressway is on the right.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Crews work the scene of a broken water pipe that covered in the road in ice near the 5500 block of North Nagle Avenue on Jan. 30, 2019, in Chicago.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Metra trains go in and out of the Western Avenue Station in subzero temperatures on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago. The tracks are heated with gas-fired switch heaters that help prevent switching problems in extreme weather. Metra spokesperson Meg Reile said, “They are like giant gas grills.”
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

Diversey Harbor on a cold and frigid Friday morning in Chicago, Jan. 25. 2019.
Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune

Metra Electric line commuters at the Flossmoor station listen to an announcement from the agency that all service is suspended on the line early Jan. 30, 2019, due to problems related to the extreme cold.
Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune

People walk in temperatures near zero degrees as snow and wind swirl during a cold weather snap on Jan. 29, 2019 in Chicago’s Loop.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Metra trains go in and out of the Western Avenue Station in subzero temperatures on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019 in Chicago. The tracks are heated with gas-fired switch heaters that help prevent switching problems in extreme weather.
Mark Hume/Chicago Tribune

People trudge through newly fallen snow as they cross Michigan Avenue at Randolph Street in Chicago early on Jan. 28, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Firefighters work at the scene of a fire on the 100 block of North Green Street late Jan. 30, 2019, in Chicago.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Firefighters move a person to a waiting ambulance at the scene of a fire on the 8000 block of South Prairie Avenue early Jan. 31, 2019, in Chicago.
Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune

A man walks along an icy breakwater at sunrise at 31st Street Beach in Chicago on Jan. 29, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

During a second morning of deep sub-zero cold people cross an icy Chicago River on the DuSable Michigan Avenue Bridge, in downtown Chicago on Jan. 31, 2019.
Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune

A man sleeps on an empty CTA “L” car with a shopping cart of possessions in the Loop during below-zero temperatures, Jan. 30, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

The sunrise reveals a frigid Chicago lakefront with temperatures around minus 20 degrees early Jan. 30, 2019.
Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune

The city’s James J. Versluis, an 80-foot ice-breaking tugboat built in 1957, at work Thursday, Jan. 31, 2019 in the Chicago River. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

Andre Torres, left, waits to hear his engine to start as he gets a jump for his stalled car from friend Leo Lopez outside an Oak Park gas station, Jan. 31, 2019.
John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune

People wait for buses in the 600 block of North Michigan Avenue on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

Ice forms on a railing at North Avenue Beach as the sun rises over Lake Michigan and downtown Chicago with temperatures below zero and highs only reaching the single digits, Jan. 25, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune

A man covers his ears as he walks on West Wacker Drive in Chicago on a cold and frigid Friday morning on Jan. 25. 2019. (Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune)
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Clad in blankets to keep them warm, Fintan, left, and Chester, right, stand in the sun at the Hoofed Animal Rescue & Protection Society (HARPS) on Jan. 25, 2019, in Barrington.
John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune

A woman walks a dog in circles at a park on the corner of Oak Street and East Lake Shore Drive on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

A woman’s glasses fog up while covered up in layers as the frigid temperatures continue in Chicago, Jan. 29, 2019.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

A young boy trudges through the snow with shopping bags following several inches of snowfall in Chicago on Jan. 28, 2019.
Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune

Downtown Chicago and Lake Michigan are seen in late afternoon as sub-zero temperatures blanket the city on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019.
Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune

Lake Michigan waves splash against a breakwater at sunrise at 31st Street Beach in Chicago on Jan. 29, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A man walks on West Irving Park Road in the Six Corners intersection in Chicago’s Portage Park neighborhood on a cold and snowy Monday morning, Jan. 28, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

A pedestrian jogs along the lakefront near Monroe Harbor on Jan. 27, 2019, in Chicago.
Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune

Bundled-up residents walk in Chicago’s Chinatown on Jan. 26, 2019, past red lanterns decorating the neighborhood for the approaching Lunar New Year.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

Justin Leverenz reads the instructions for hand warmers before participating in the 18th annual Polar Plunge at Oak Street Beach in Chicago on Jan. 26, 2019. The air temperature was about 8 degrees during the event.
Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune

Snow and ice cover Cloud Gate as the sculpture is surrounded by very few visitors on a day with below zero temperatures, Jan. 30, 2019, in Chicago.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Don Milliken, of Palatine, clears snow from his neighbors’ sidewalks and driveways along Winston Drive in Hoffman Estates on Jan. 28, 2019. Milliken, a former Floridian, makes the most of the winter by pitching in and teaching scuba lessons at the Park District.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

Commuters make their way in the snow in Berwyn on Jan. 28, 2019.
Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune

George Arroyo, self-proclaimed mayor of a homeless encampment, stands by his tent along the Dan Ryan Expressway between Roosevelt Road and Taylor Street during a cold weekend in Chicago, Jan 26, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A dog plays in the snow near Montrose Harbor in Chicago on a cold and snowy morning Jan. 28, 2019.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Metra carman Diego Lopez helps bring a train car into the Western Avenue yard on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago. Workers here perform routine and emergency maintenance on a daily basis, including cleaning cars, replacing brakes, and refueling trains.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A pedestrian waits to cross North Cicero Avenue in the Six Corners area of the Portage Park neighborhood in Chicago as snow continues to fall early on Jan. 28, 2019.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

Commuters await their train at the CTA’s Pink Line Damen station following several inches of snowfall in Chicago on Jan. 28, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Pedestrians cross Lake Street bridge while sheets of ice cover the Chicago River Monday Jan. 28, 2019, in Chicago.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

The outbound Kennedy Expressway, left, and Edens Expressway, right, in Chicago on a cold and snowy morning Jan. 28, 2019.
Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune

Rick Krumbacher, a newspaper editor from Harbert, Mich., takes pictures of the Michigan City Lighthouse and Pier in Michigan City, Ind., on Jan. 31, 2019. The temperature read -13 degrees.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Crews and police work the scene of a broken water pipe that covered the road in ice near the 5500 block of North Nagle Avenue on Jan. 30, 2019, in Chicago.
Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune

A person walks between tents while people sleep near a wooded area adjacent to the Dan Ryan Expressway on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

A pedestrian walks by a dress in window near the 2600 block of South Avers Avenue in the Little Village neighborhood of Chicago on Jan. 28, 2019.
Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune

Kathy Bakutis walks with her dog Chen on the Centennial Trail along the Des Plaines River as the temperature falls in Romeoville on Jan. 25, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

The sunrise reveals a frigid Chicago lakefront near Montrose Harbor with temperatures around minus 20 degrees early Jan. 30, 2019.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

A man walks through Pioneer Plaza in the 400 block of North Michigan Avenue on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

A man clears snow near Western Avenue following several inches of snowfall in Chicago on Jan. 28, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune

A man carries a propane tank he brought to donate to people sleeping in a wooded area near the Dan Ryan Expressway on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune

A man works at clearing snow in the Amtrak rail yard near Roosevelt Road during a cold weekend in Chicago, Jan 26, 2019.
Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune

Blankets hang from trees blocking the wind at a homeless encampment located along the Dan Ryan Expressway between Roosevelt Road and Taylor Street during a cold weekend in Chicago, Jan 26, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Crews work the scene of a broken water pipe that covered in the road in ice near the 5500 block of North Nagle Avenue on Jan. 30, 2019, in Chicago.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

Ice begins to form on Lake Michigan as cold weather envelops the city, as seen from the 360 Chicago observation deck in Chicago on Jan. 25, 2019.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

A pigeon warms itself up from a memorial flame at Daley Plaza as the frigid temperatures continue in Chicago, Jan. 29, 2019.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

With temperatures around minus 20 degrees, early morning commuters board a late-arriving Union Pacific-Northwest Line Metra train early Jan. 30, 2019, in Palatine.
Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune

Thousands of birds find a refuge on the Des Plaines River in Romeoville as the temperature falls on Jan. 25, 2019.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

Steam cascades from buildings as the deep cold temperatures envelop the city, Jan. 25, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

Richard Vargas of the Salvation Army and a woman from a local church pray with David Jefferson, 30, near Lower Lower Wacker Drive on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago. Vargas visited several locations around the city to ask anyone sleeping outside to seek shelter.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

Traffic moves slowly through newly fallen snow on North Cicero Avenue in the Portage Park neighborhood of Chicago early on Jan. 28, 2019.
Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune

Kelly Nichol tosses a snowball for her 11-month-old dog Mason at the dog park at Horner Park on Jan. 28, 2019, in Chicago. In addition to the pink coat, Nichol said she puts a special cream on Mason’s paws to protect him from the cold.
Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune

Jim Brownlee clears snow that fell overnight in Flossmoor early on Jan. 28, 2019.
Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune

A bicyclist rides a Divvy along Milwaukee Avenue in negative temperatures on Jan. 30, 2019, in West Town.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

Below zero temperatures doesn’t stop a woman from exercising along the lakefront at Diversey Harbor on Jan. 25, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune

A man walks by the Picasso statue in the Loop as temperatures begin to fall below zero Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Cowboy nudges the coffee cup of Donna Ewing at the Hoofed Animal Rescue & Protection Society on Jan. 25, 2019, in Barrington. Cowboy wears a blanket so he can endure the frigid temperatures.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

People walks toward the icy Chicago River near Merchandise Mart on Jan. 31, 2019.
Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune

Mimi Hristova of the Salvation Army helps Tia Williams collect her things near Lower Wacker Drive before going to a warming center for the night at the Salvation Army’s Freedom Center on the 800 block of North Christiana Avenue Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune

Ice forms on Lake Michigan as cold weather envelops the city, as seen from 360 Chicago Observation Deck in Chicago, Jan. 25, 2019.
John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune

A woman poses for a photograph at Oak Street Beach on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago.
Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune

Richard Vargas of the Salvation Army gives a woman food who was sleeping in a tent near a wooded area adjacent to the Dan Ryan Expressway Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago. Vargas visited several locations around the city to ask anyone sleeping outside to seek shelter.
Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune

A man rides the CTA Blue Line in below-zero temperatures on Jan. 30, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A man holds a dog as they enter a building at North Clinton Street at West Kinzie Street in Chicago on a frigid morning, Jan. 25. 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

Pedestrians walk on West Wacker Drive in Chicago on a cold and frigid morning, Jan. 25. 2019.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

A woman and man walk along Promontory Point Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019, in Chicago.
Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune

Pedestrians walk on West Wacker Drive in Chicago on a cold and frigid morning on Jan. 25. 2019.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

Droves of visitors ignore the cold weather warnings and converge at 31St. Beach to photograph themselves and others along the steaming lake and frozen trees, in Chicago Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

A jogger runs along the lakefront with temperatures in the single digits near North Avenue beach in Chicago as the sun rises on Jan. 29, 2019.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

Participants run through Lake Michigan during the 18th annual Polar Plunge at Oak Street Beach in Chicago on Jan. 26, 2019. The air temperature was about 8 degrees during the event.
Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune

During a second morning of deep sub-zero cold ice forms on the Chicago River, in downtown Chicago on Jan. 31, 2019.
John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune

Ice covers tree branches at Promontory Point on Jan. 30, 2019.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

Miriam Hurtarte walks 3-year-old Sophie past a sign for Jonathan Burr Elementary School in the Wicker Park neighborhood on Jan. 24, 2019, in Chicago.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune

Metra trains go in and out of the Western Avenue station in subzero temperatures on Jan. 29, 2019, in Chicago. This is the busiest station with over 300 trains passing through on weekdays.
Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune

Metra Electric line commuters waiting for a train at the Flossmoor station listen to an announcement early Jan. 30, 2019, that the agency was suspending all service on the line due to problems related to extreme cold.
Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune

A man shovels snow off the sidewalk after an overnight storm Jan. 28, 2019, in the Albany Park neighborhood of Chicago.
Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune

A lone woman waits for a train at the Washington CTA “L” stop in negative temperatures, Jan. 30, 2019.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

A pedestrian and a CTA “L” train cross the icy Chicago River on the Lake Street bridge on Jan. 31, 2019.
Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune

The Chicago skyline seen from North Avenue Beach as the sun rises on a cold and chilly morning Jan. 30, 2019.

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Terrence A. James / Chicago Tribune

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Pedestrians contend with snow and cold weather at Clinton Street and Jackson Boulevard in Chicago on Jan. 28, 2019.

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2019: The lowest temperature ever recorded in Illinois was observed Jan. 31, 2019, when Mount Carroll (northwest of Chicago) checked in at minus 38 degrees.

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Today in Chicago History: Thousands mourn Mahalia Jackson

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