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Tina Akouris

Tina E. Akouris is an editor on the Tribune's audience team. She has worked in Chicago media covering high school, college sports and auto racing, with a stint as a radio producer/writer along the way. She is a proud graduate of Proviso West and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign — and an even prouder mother of twin sons.

En el sentido de las agujas del reloj desde arriba a la izquierda: la Iglesia Bautista Antioch en Venecia, el mejor puerto deportivo de Chicago, la librería Second Reading en Alton y la Casa Gillett en Jacksonville son sitios del ferrocarril subterráneo en Illinois. Las fotografías se realizaron utilizando un filtro tipográfico de iPhone. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Mapa: Lugares históricos del Ferrocarril Subterráneo de Illinois, además de lo que debe saber antes de ir

April 15, 2024 at 3:44 p.m.

Si prestaste atención en clase de historia, recordarás que el Ferrocarril Subterráneo no era un ferrocarril en absoluto. Era más bien una red fluida de lugares donde los buscadores de...

Rocky Fork New Bethel A.M.E. Church, in Godfrey, IL, is an Underground Railroad site, seen on June 22, 2023. Photographed with an iPhone using the Tin Type filter. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

El Ferrocarril Subterráneo de Illinois: Glosario de términos

April 15, 2024 at 3:44 p.m.

Al compartir las historias de Illinois y los lugares del Ferrocarril Subterráneo, estamos poniendo el foco en las personas que actuaron para abolir la esclavitud en Estados Unidos, aquellos que...

Clockwise from top left: The Antioch Baptist Church in Venice, Chicago's Finest Marina in Chicago, the Second Reading Book Shop in Alton and The Gillett House in Jacksonville are all Underground Railroad sites in Illinois. Photographs were made using an iPhone tintype filter.

Illinois’ Underground Railroad: Tribune series shines light on freedom seekers’ journeys through state

March 12, 2024 at 11:55 a.m.

The Chicago Tribune Underground Railroad series puts a spotlight on Illinois journeys of freedom seekers.

Map: Illinois Underground Railroad historical sites, plus what to know before you go

October 20, 2025 at 12:58 p.m.

Many traces of the Underground Railroad still remain in Illinois. Here’s a map of known sites across the state and what visitors can expect.

Illinois’ Underground Railroad: A glossary of terms to know

March 12, 2024 at 11:57 a.m.

A glossary of terms to know about people and places associated with the Illinois Underground Railroad.

Tina Akouris' mother, Calley, shows her grandson Nicholas how to sew a button on a coat in 2017.

Tina E. Akouris: My angry mother, hardened by a war-torn childhood, taught me how to be compassionate

June 3, 2023 at 1:55 p.m.

My mom was not a nice person. I never knew who I was going to get. But I learned a few invaluable things from her. My mother was rude, angry,...

Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, left, and U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, center right, help unveil an Illinois State Historical Society marker at the site of the former Ton Farm, now known as Chicago's Finest Marina, 557 E. 134th Place, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2022, in Chicago. Slaves who escaped the South between the 1830s and the Civil War and traveled north to Chicago, Detroit, and Canada, sought and received refuge at the site from Dutch immigrant farmers Jan and Aagje Ton, which became recognized as part of the Underground Railroad network. In 2019 the Ton Farm was accepted into the National Park Service Network to Freedom program.

Looking for Freedom Seekers: Do you have ancestors who traveled on the Underground Railroad? We want to hear from you.

April 27, 2023 at 11:53 a.m.

Juneteenth. Black History Month. Social unrest. The Chicago Tribune has been a source of information for 175-plus years since 1847. Now the Tribune is hoping to document Underground Railroad sites...

Virginia McCaskey looks up at Bears Chairman George McCaskey before Brian Urlacher was awarded with a ring of excellence during halftime between the Bears and the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field on Sept. 17, 2018.

Title IX turns 50: Meet 50 women in Illinois who have impacted sports on — and off — the field of play

March 6, 2024 at 3:54 p.m.

Fifty years ago, President Richard Nixon signed into law the Education Amendments Act, which included a section barring discrimination based on sex in any education program or activity that receives...

With a heart-stopping view of Chicago beneath him, Dan Goodwin completes his 100-story journey to the top of the John Hancock Center on Nov. 11, 1981.

Flashback: When ‘Spider Dan’ climbed the Sears Tower, Chicagoans cheered. Hapless authorities shook their heads.

June 21, 2022 at 10:42 p.m.

One onlooker was hungover and didn't have anything better to do. Another cruised over on roller skates to see what all the fuss was about. What they saw in the...

Mayor Ed Kelly, right, greets leaders of Prep Bowl rivals Fenger and Leo before the match at Soldier Field on Nov. 30, 1940, in Chicago. From left are Ray Florek and Dick Barwegan, Fenger co-captains, and Skip Carroll, Leo captain.

Flashback: If a football squad wanted bragging rights in Chicago, the Prep Bowl was what mattered

June 21, 2022 at 10:43 p.m.

There was a time when a football game at Soldier Field that drew as many as 120,000 people featured players too young to vote. It was a time when the...

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