A lot of people have asked me how I got this page got started. Well, one day I was surfing through Facebook and saw a lot of business pages. But then, I noticed something odd. A couple of them had businesses that were tributes to them and they were no longer in business. So, on August 20, 2011, I started my first Facebook page. It was a record store across the street from Bogan High School which I attended. It was called A Tribute to Kroozin’ Music II on W 79th St in Ashburn Chicago. That one took off really fast, because a lot of people I went to school with, and lived in my old neighborhood remembered it fondly. I still administer that one. After that, I created a couple more, based on memories of growing in three different neighborhoods on the South Side of Chicago. They were South Shore, Roseland and, Ashburn, Then, I noticed that they were a few groups and pages that were devoted to Chicago history. Mostly, it showed old buildings that were eventually torn down, unique architecture, important dates, etc, etc. One of the groups, which I am longer there, showed Marshall Fields, Wieboldt’s, Lytton’s, Woolworth’s and the rest of the businesses along on State St. So, one day, I had a brainstorm, what if I created a page with businesses that originated in Chicago, plus from other cities that opened here as well over the years, closed and disappeared forever. On May 19,2012, I decided to create Chicago Extinct Businesses. I chose the word extinct because the other two I had in mind, were defunct and kaput. But, extinct sounded right for me, so I chose that one. It started slowly at first, and in over a year, people noticed and commented on it. I started sharing it on my other pages, other Facebook groups that I administer and to other groups, I belonged to. It picked up a little momentum, but in August 2014, someone from DNAinfo.com contacted me and ask me if he wanted to write an article based on my page. I said yes and then I mentioned I had 20 pages at the time. I have 25 now. So, on September 15, 2014, DNAinfo.com published the article, and my Chicago Extinct Businesses zoomed into popularity. I gained roughly 3000 likes in one day and has been climbing ever since. My other pages have grown significantly also, but not as fast as that one. Pretty soon, more articles were written about me. I have been interviewed on the radio a few times, and that was pretty awesome. I haven’t been on television yet, but you never know, it could happen someday. My life has changed since all of this happened and it’s been wonderful. So, I will continue to bring joy, happiness, and cherished memories to everyone with my Facebook pages. I’m having a lot of fun with them every day. I want to give a big thank you to Justin Breen from DNAinfo.com who discovered me, to everyone who lives or has lived in the Chicagoland area, for your support, questions. encouragement, requests, and comments. Chicago is a great city and the people are wonderful. The city closed most of the businesses that we grew up with, but our memories are still with us for the rest of our lives. THANK YOU AGAIN, EVERYONE! Pete Kastanes-Admin of Vanished Chicagoland Facebook Page. Update: DNAinfo Chicago became an extinct business on November 2, 2017, and became Block Club Chicago.