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Chicago Mysteries with Geoffrey Baer

Was The Girl in Glass really a victim of parental neglect? Stylized picture of the The Leaning Tower of Niles Stylized map of Indigenous trails and villages near Niles and Evanston Stylized image of the grave for George Pullman at Graceland Cemetery Stylized picture an alligator's head peeking out of the water

Did a UFO fly over O’Hare Airport? How did the alligator later named “Chance the Snapper” suddenly appear in Chicago’s Humboldt Lagoon? Is Hull House haunted? Why don’t Chicagoans put ketchup on their hot dogs? What do you think Malört tastes like? We asked our audience. WTTW award-winning host/writer/producer Geoffrey Baer sets out to solve these and other puzzlers in Chicago Mysteries.

Geoffrey Baer

Solve Chicago's Mysteries

Stylized picture of The Girl in Glass sculpture

Was The Girl in Glass really a victim of parental neglect?

 Stylized photo of Hull House

Is Hull House haunted?

 Stylized image of old handwritten document with the word 'Chicagou' underlined

Where does Chicago get its name?

 Stylized picture an alligator's head peeking out of the water

How did an alligator get in a Chicago lagoon?

 Stylized picture of a granite block warning to not dig

Why is the world's first nuclear reactor buried in a forest preserve?

 Stylized mugshot of Adolph Luetgert

Did Chicago's "Sausage King" really murder his wife?

 Stylized image of the grave for George Pullman at Graceland Cemetery

Is George Pullman buried under steel and concrete in Graceland Cemetery?

 Stylized picture of the Dialogo sculpture

Is there a hidden message in this University of Chicago sculpture?

 Stylized picture of a sandstone obelisk monument

Why is Chicago's oldest monument so hard to find?

 Stylized drawing of three men lowering a rum barrel with ropes

Was Walter Newberry buried in a rum barrel?

 Stylized image of Gate C17 sign at O'Hare Airport

Was a UFO once spotted at O'Hare Airport?

 Stylized picture of the The Leaning Tower of Niles

Why is there a leaning tower in Niles?

 Stylized picture of the Foolkiller being raised from the Chicago River

What was the sunken vessel at the bottom of the Chicago River?

 Stylized photo of a Chicago style hot dog

Why don't Chicagoans put ketchup on their hot dogs?

 Stylized typed text from Bullets for Dead Hoods

Who authored an encyclopedia manuscript on Chicago mobsters?

 Stylized map of Indigenous trails and villages near Niles and Evanston

Why do diagonal streets cut through Chicago's grid?

 Stylized image of the mausoleum in Lincoln Park

Why is there a lone mausoleum in Lincoln Park?

 Stylized photo of 'Garlow' homes in Chatham

What is the story behind the tiny homes with big yards in Chatham?
Stylized Tylenol bottle on its side with Tylenol box in the background

The Tylenol Murders Remain One of Chicago’s Most Haunting Mysteries

In 1982, seven deaths forever changed Americans’ sense of consumer safety. After someone poisoned Tylenol capsules with lethal doses of cyanide and placed them on store shelves where unsuspecting customers purchased them, Chicago – and the rest of the country – was rattled with a newfound realization that the products in their medicine cabinets may not be as safe as previously thought.

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Geoffrey Baer and Monica Eng taking a selfie at Guaranteed Rate Field

Geoffrey's Journal

Go behind the scenes of Chicago Mysteries with Geoffrey Baer.

Read more... Stylized blue image of Geoffrey Baer underground, holding magnifying glass and looking around

Watch the Full Show

Unlock the mysteries in the full show with Geoffrey Baer as your guide.

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Lead support for Chicago Mysteries is provided by The Negaunee Foundation.

Major support is provided by Matt and Joyce Walsh, Shirley Z. and Peter C. Welsh, BMO, and other generous sponsors.