Archive ID: 1981-120-38

Mr. and Mrs. Justino Cordero, wedding

Date Created: 1926

Donor: Justino and Caroline Cordero

Media Type: Photograph

Backstory:

In 1926, Justino Cordero married Caroline Kon in Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in South Chicago. Born in 1903, Justino had emigrated from Zacatecas, Mexico to Chicago in 1923. He was an early Mexican-American steelworker at South Works. In an oral history, Justino describes how he started out in the open hearths and ended up doing electrical work in the power division of the steel mill. He also owned a radio shop in South Chicago known as Cordero’s Universal Radio Service on 89th St. His wife Caroline was Polish at a time when whites discriminated heavily against Mexican-Americans. Although there was resistance to such marriages, Caroline learned Spanish and became heavily integrated into South Chicago’s Mexican-American community. Together, she and Justino had three children. The Corderos were extremely active in Mexican-American and other community organizations. Starting in the late 1920s, for example, Justino organized and coached sports teams, including the Yaquis and Maya baseball clubs, as a way to keep young people “out of trouble.” After he retired as a steelworker, he attended a local community college and received a college and master’s degree so he could work with children with disabilities. The Corderos donated a large number of photographs relating to South Chicago’s Mexican-American community.

Rights Policy:

Materials posted on this site have been donated to the Southeast Chicago Historical Society and Museum for public use. If there are any questions or concerns about materials posted, please contact us. Some of the materials on this site are protected under Creative Commons licensing. For information on use and reproduction, please see the following Rights Policy.

Questions?

Contact us with any inquiries.

Filters:

Family   Portraits   1920-1939 (Depression Era)   South Chicago   Mexican-American   Photograph   Benches   Brides   Dresses   Families   Flowers   Grooms   Hats   Suits   Weddings