Bring Your Family See and Greet The President of the United States and Mrs. Nixon Loop Parade [Chicago Political Handbill]

Unused handbill from Nixon’s cancelled 1972 trip to Chicago.

The Democratic stronghold of Chicago was one of many stopovers on the national stage for Richard Nixon during his 1972 re-election campaign. A visit and parade featuring the First Lady were scheduled for October 31st, but the morning prior, two commuter trains collided just south of downtown. It was the worst train crash in the city’s history, resulting in 45 deaths and over 300 injuries.

Nixon cancelled the trip out of respect for the victims. Had the event gone on, this pristine handbill would have been distributed to pedestrians or plastered on utility poles around the area. A simple map in the lower center shows the planned motorcade route along LaSalle Street, from the Board of Trade Building to the Chicago River.

Sources: CBS News; New York Times;