Little Italy in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Deverra Beverly's Quilt

Dorothy Burge, Chicago, IL, 2024

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, March 21, 2026

1. Deverra Beverly's Quilt Marker

Inscription. Dorothy Burge is a fabric and multimedia artist and community activist. A lifelong Chicagoan, Burge lived in several public housing projects as a child, including LeClair Courts and the Washington Park scattered sites.

Burge is descended from a long line of quilters who hailed from Mississippi. While she showed no interest in this art form as a child, she grew to treasure the quilts that were created by family elders and began creating fiber art in the 1990s.

To create this quilt, Burge gathered Deverra Beverly's closest friends and family to share photos and stories. Burge took inspiration from their powerful memories, thoughtfully quilting together the life of Commissioner Beverly.

Dorothy Burge es artista textil y multi-media, además de activista comunitaria. Residente de Chicago de toda la vida. Burge creció en viviendas públicas como LeClair Courts y otros proyectos dispersos en Washington Park.

Burge desciende de una larga estirpe de confeccionistas de colchas de Mississippi. Aunque de niña no mostró interés alguno por esta disciplina artistica, llegó a atesorar las colchas que creaban sus familiares y
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en la década de 1990 se inició en el arte textil.

Para diseñar esta colcha, Burge pidió a las amistades y los familiares más cercanos de Deverra Beverly compartir fotografias e historias, conmovedores recuerdos que le sirvieron de inspiración para plasmar en la colcha la vida de la comisionada Beverly.

Erected 2026.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical year for this entry is 2024.

Location. 41° 52.161′ N, 87° 39.593′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in Little Italy. It is on West Taylor Street east of South Ada Street, on the right when traveling west. The marker is in front of the National Public Housing Museum, near a display case with the quilt it describes. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 919 South Ada Street, Chicago IL 60607, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself

Deverra Beverly's Quilt Marker in front of the quilt itself image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, March 21, 2026

2. Deverra Beverly's Quilt Marker in front of the quilt itself

in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Deverra Beverly (a few steps from this marker); The Demolition of the Jane Addams Homes (a few steps from this marker); Jane Addams Homes (within shouting distance of this marker); Joseph Lovings (within shouting distance of this marker); Still Here: Zhegagoynak, A Monument and Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Benedict Kabakow (within shouting distance of this marker); Jane Addams Homes Garden (within shouting distance of this marker); Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chicago.

More about this marker. A display case near this sign includes the quilt and a marker with a brief description of Deverra Beverly's life.

Three red signs like these were installed outside the south side of the National Public Housing Museum sometime in the first three months of 2026.

Regarding Deverra Beverly's Quilt. Deverra Beverly was president of the

Quilt for Deverra Beverly (1934-2013) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, December 6, 2025

3. Quilt for Deverra Beverly (1934-2013)

Addams-Brooks-Loomis-Abbott (ABLA) public housing project on the Near West Side for decades and served on the Chicago Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. The Jane Addams Homes (the A in ABLA) were a 32-building project in Chicago's Little Italy neighborhood that opened in 1938 as Chicago's first public housing project. In 2002, 31 of the Jane Addams Homes' 32 buildings (with close to 1,000 residential units) were demolished, to be replaced by mixed-income developments. The one building that was saved sat vacant for more than 20 years until opening April 2025 as the National Public Housing Museum.

Also see . . . New National Museum Of Public Housing Captures How Housing Changed Our Country. A March 2025 article from Block Club Chicago (Submitted on March 23, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

National Public Housing Museum image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, March 21, 2026

4. National Public Housing Museum

The Deverra Beverly's Quilt Marker, in the distance on the far left, is one of three erected on the south side of the National Public Housing Museum.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 22, 2026. It was originally submitted on March 23, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 13 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 23, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 3. submitted on December 8, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 4. submitted on March 23, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.