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Timeline

1970

February 18th, 1970

Chicago Seven are cleared of conspiracy

April 10th, 1970

Beatles break-up

April 22nd, 1970

First Earth Day

May 4th, 1970

Kent State shootings

Photo credit: John Mazurek

July 27th, 1970

Sly Stone in Grant Park riot

Photo credit: John Mazurek

Sun-Times Media file photo

December 13th, 1970

Bears play their last game at Wrigley Field

Sun-Times Media file photo

1971

February 23rd, 1971

Anna Langford became the first woman elected to Chicago City Council

Sun-Times Media file photo

May 18th, 1971

Blackhawks lose Stanley Cup finals to Montreal Canadiens

Sun-Times Media file photo

1972

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library

May 5th, 1972

Shakman Agreement is negotiated

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library

June 17th, 1972

Watergate Scandal begins

Sun-Times Media file photo

October 30th, 1972

Illinois Central commuter train collision

Sun-Times Media file photo

Sun-Times Media file photo

December 8th, 1972

United Airlines flight 553 crashes near Midway

Sun-Times Media file photo

1973

1973

First Postal Service "LOVE" stamp by artist Robert Indiana

January 22nd, 1973

Abortion legalized in US

1974

January, 1974

Steppenwolf Theater Company is founded

Photo credit: Steppenwolf Theatre

March 14th, 1974

Chicagoans demonstrate for the impeachment of President Nixon

Sun-Times Media file photo

August 9th, 1974

US President Richard Nixon resigns

Photo credit: Bob Matia

September 27th, 1974

The Four Seasons by Marc Chagall is dedicated

1975

1976

October 21st, 1976

Saul Bellow wins the Nobel Peace Prize

December 20th, 1976

Mayor Richard J. Daley passes away

Sun-Times Media file photo

1977

August 16th, 1977

Elvis Presley dies

September 12th, 1977

South African anti-apartheid leader Steve Biko tortured to death

1978

March 4th, 1978

Final issue of the Chicago Daily News is printed

June, 1978

Crain's Chicago founded

June 22nd, 1978

Nazi group threatens to march on Skokie

Sun-Times Media file photo

August 1st, 1978

First ChicagoFest at Navy Pier

Photo credit: Chicago History Museum

October 16th, 1978

John Paul II becomes Pope

November 18th, 1978

Jonestown Massacre

December 22nd, 1978

John Wayne Gacy is charged with murder

Sun-Times Media file photo

1979

April 3rd, 1979

Jane Byrne, Chicago's first woman mayor, is elected

Photo credit: Bob Matia

May 4th, 1979

Margaret Thatcher first woman Prime Minister of Great Britain

May 25th, 1979

American Airlines flight 191 crashes at O'Hare

Sun-Times Media file photo

July 1st, 1979

Sony introduces Walkman

August 14th, 1979

Rosemont Horizon disaster

Sun-Times Media file photo

August 27th, 1979

First Jazz Fest

1980

April, 1980

First ArtChicago Expo

May, 1980

Rubik's Cube introduced to world market

May 22nd, 1980

Pac-Man video game released

June 20th, 1980

Blues Brothers is released

Photo credit: Sharron Fox

July 4th, 1980

First Taste of Chicago

Photo credit: Chicago History Museum

December 8th, 1980

John Lennon assassinated

1981

March 30th, 1981

Assassination Attempt on U.S. President Reagan

April 20th, 1981

Joan Miró's Chicago is dedicated

June 16th, 1981

Tribune buys Cubs franchise

July 7th, 1981

Sandra Day O'Connor first woman appointed to the US Supreme Court

August 1st, 1981

MTV comes to Chicago TVs

August 12th, 1981

IBM Personal Computers are introduced

August 30th, 1981

First Arlington Million

Photo credit: Arlington Park

September 26th, 1981

Chicago Sting Win the NASL Championship

Sun-Times Media file photo

1982

October, 1982

Chicago Tylenol murders

November 13th, 1982

Vietnam War Memorial opened in Washington, DC

November 30th, 1982

Michael Jackson released Thriller

1983

June 18th, 1983

Sally Ride Becomes the First American woman in space

July 1st, 1983

333 Wacker Drive is completed

Photo: Barbara Karant/ courtesy of KPF

October 13th, 1983

Chicago Goes Cellular

November 1st, 1983

Virginia McCaskey became the owner of the Bears and was dubbed "The First Lady of Sports"

1984

1985

May 16th, 1985

Hole in the ozone layer discovered

May 24th, 1985

Deep Tunnel opens

1986

April 26th, 1986

Chernobyl nuclear accident

October 5th, 1986

Iran-Contra scandal unfolds

1987

January 30th, 1987

First group of women firefighters graduated from the Chicago Fire Academy

October 19th, 1987

New York Stock Exchange suffers huge drop on "Black Monday"

1988