Crews clean out beloved Bookman's Corner in East Lakeview two weeks after owner's passing
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Book lovers on the north lakefront are mourning the loss of a favorite bookstore two weeks after its owner passed away.
CBS 2 on Tuesday captured crews cleaning out Bookman's Corner, at 2959 N. Clark St., at the southeast corner of the intersection with Wellington Avenue in East Lakeview.
The workmen said they were hired to toss out everything inside following the death of owner John Chandler.
Chandler passed away on Tuesday, Feb. 14, at the age of 87.
In a December 2016 profile, 14 East Magazine noted that Chandler had been a bookseller since 1975, when he opened a stall at a Detroit flea market. He opened another store under the Southport Avenue Brown Line station in 1979, and Bookman's Corner opened at its Clark and Wellington location in 1984, the magazine reported.
When Bookman's Corner opened at Clark and Wellington, one of Chicago's premier off-Loop stage theaters – the Ivanhoe – was located kitty corner in the castle that now houses a Binny's, and crowds were dancing to lively bouzouki music just down Clark Street at Deni's Den.
But while the neighborhood changed – Deni's Den was later supplanted by an outpost of the Buca di Beppo chain and the building was later torn down – Chandler and Bookman's Corner remained. The bookstore served readers with an appetite for books, rare, medium, and well done – as a sign in the window pointed out.
Last week, CBS 2's Noel Brennan talked with Jack Stanley – a regular customer at Bookman's Corner for many years.
"John's bookstore, Bookman's Corner," Stanley said. "It was unlike any bookstore you ever saw, because it was organized chaos."
Stanley browsed for books and stuck around for the conversation with Chandler.
"As the years went by, we got a lot closer, and we just enjoyed each other's company," he said. "It was really fun."
Another longtime customer, Miles Thompson, said Bookman's Corner was "probably my favorite bookstore in the world."
"The majority of the books I own come from there," Thompson said. "I loved it because it was so affordable."
There was no word Tuesday on any future plans for the space. But as for the books, some neighbors on Tuesday were waiting to hear what's next.
"My space is so small. I don't have room a lot of space for books," one woman said upon seeing all the books that had been cleared out, "but seeing this, like, I can make room!"
CBS 2 also reached out to Chandler's family to find out what is going to happen to all the books. We have not heard back..
