It was originally a wooden plank road that ran from the south branch of the Chicago River west to Blue Island Avenue.

It continued to be a "gateway" neighborhood for immigrants and others, including Greeks, Bohemians, Russians, Germans, Italians, Poles, African Americans and Mexicans.

The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 started only a few blocks away, but it burned north and east, sparing Maxwell Street and the rest of the Near West Side.

During the period when it was predominantly African American, and especially in the decades after World War II, the area became famous for its street musicians, mostly playing the blues, but also gospel and other styles.

A subsidized housing development called the Barbara Jean Wright Courts Apartments chopped off Maxwell's western end at Morgan Street (1000 west).

From clothes, to produce, to cars, appliances, tools, and virtually anything anyone might want, Maxwell Street offered discount items to consumers and was an economic hub for poor people looking to get ahead.

This microcosm of commerce recognized the availability and influx of Asian and world imports and markets (Taiwan, Japan, China, Mexico) priced dramatically lower than American produced goods.

Wholesalers lined Roosevelt Road with goods from all over the world; savvy vendors would buy from them to resell on the market at a profit, usually at a 100% markup.

This milieu of culture and ethnicity was a distinctly American phenomenon; Maxwell Street has been called the Ellis Island of the Midwest.

"Spot-holders" (allegedly of mob influence) roamed the streets and interacted with vendors to maintain regular vending sites for which unobtrusive cash payments were accepted.

Cheat You Fair includes the last recorded interview by Bo Diddley and is considered by many to be the definitive work on Maxwell Street.

It was popularized by blues giants such as Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Bo Diddley and Howlin' Wolf and evolved into rock & roll.

These merchants encouraged blues players to set up near their storefronts and provided them with electric extension cords to run the new high-tech instruments.

Shoppers lured by the chance to hear blues music could be grabbed and hauled into the store where they were sold a suit of clothes, shoes, etc.

[citation needed] The extension cord ran from the last remaining building in use, the Maxworks Cooperative headquarters, 300 feet (91 m) east, at 716 Maxwell Street.

It had been rumored that the university never officially announced its plans in the 1980s, but circulated speculation that it would exercise eminent domain, which was backed by state legislation.

This strategy may have saved the school millions of dollars, not only because people slowly moved out and did not have to be compensated, but also because real estate prices continued to drop in the area through the 1980s and early 1990s, because of the rumors.

This effort was spearheaded by the Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition, a nonprofit group based in Chicago.