Eight Chicago places worth a second look

Every Chicagoan has a list of places they keep meaning to visit, usually right after the big museums and the lakefront. This is that second list: small collections, odd buildings and outdoor spots across the North, Northwest and South Sides, some free and some ticketed, some indoors for January and some best on a mild afternoon. Each one is open to the public today; how to visit comes from its own page.

The Button Museum, Logan Square

Inside the office of Busy Beaver Button Co. on West Armitage Avenue is what its founders call the world's only museum of pinback buttons. Siblings Christen and Joel Carter opened it in 2010, and the collection now holds more than 30,000 pins, sorted by subject and date: campaign buttons, advertising, sports, music and social causes, going back to before the pinback was patented in 1896. Admission is free on weekdays or by appointment. Lula Cafe, on Kedzie Boulevard in Logan Square, is a short drive or bus ride away for lunch from its market-driven menu.

International Museum of Surgical Science, Gold Coast

On North Lake Shore Drive, the Eleanor Robinson Countiss House holds more than 10,000 square feet of galleries on the history of surgery, run by the International College of Surgeons. Expect antique instruments, medical art and rotating exhibitions; current shows include one on surgical technology then and now. It is ticketed, open every day, and posts a list of free days for 2026. It can close in extreme weather, so check ahead in winter.

Graceland Cemetery, Uptown

Graceland, at 4001 N. Clark St., is an active cemetery and arboretum, designed by landscape architects including O.C. Simonds. Many of Chicago's best-known architects, merchants, inventors and athletes are buried here, along with Underground Railroad activists. The gates are open every day of the year, and the cemetery publishes a map of historic resting places, a self-guided audio tour and an arboretum tree tour, as well as guided tours. Afterward, Margie's Candies has a shop on Montrose Avenue in Ravenswood, a short ride west, scooping sundaes and selling hand-dipped chocolates.

Frederick C. Robie House, Hyde Park

Frank Lloyd Wright designed this house at 5757 S. Woodlawn Ave., built from 1908 to 1910. The Frank Lloyd Wright Trust presents it as the fullest expression of Wright's Prairie style, and it is part of a World Heritage listing. Entry is by guided tour only, Thursday through Monday, and advance tickets are strongly recommended. Medici on 57th, a Hyde Park restaurant and bakery since 1962, is a short walk north.

Garden of the Phoenix, Jackson Park

At the north end of Wooded Island in Jackson Park is a Japanese garden that traces its story to 1893, when Japan built the Phoenix Pavilion for the World's Columbian Exposition and later gave it to the city. The pavilion burned in 1946, and the garden has been restored several times since. At its center stands SKYLANDING, a 12-petal lotus by Yoko Ono dedicated in 2016, rising where the pavilion's wings once stood. The Garden of the Phoenix Foundation cares for it with the Chicago Park District.

Obama Presidential Center, Jackson Park

A short walk from Wooded Island, the Obama Presidential Center's 19-acre campus is free and open daily. Beyond the ticketed museum, most of the campus's 28 art installations can be seen without a ticket, and the campus includes a Chicago Public Library branch. Illinois residents get free museum admission on Tuesdays.

Pullman National Historical Park, Far South Side

Pullman was built as a planned industrial community, and the National Park Service now tells its story, including who found opportunity there and who was held back by race, gender or economic status. Start at the visitor center on East 111th Street, then walk the former industrial grounds, including the Hotel Florence, and visit the Pullman Exhibit Hall and the National A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum. There is no entrance fee.

National Museum of Mexican Art, Pilsen

At 1852 W. 19th St., this museum is always free and open Tuesday through Sunday. Its 40th annual Día de Muertos exhibition, Where Memory Lives, is on view this fall. Vivir la Tierra runs through February 7, 2027, and ¡TINTA ARDIENTE! through February 21, 2027, alongside the permanent collection's stories of Mexican identity.

Before you go

Several of these places keep short or seasonal hours, and some need timed tickets. Check each one's own page, listed in the sources, before heading out.