On the evening of Thursday, October 28, 1976, about a half dozen individuals gathered in the basement of Mack’s Golden Pheasant restaurant in Elmhurst, IL for the initial meeting of what was to become our club under the name “Chicago Chapter AMGBA”.  The first Chicago club newsletter, under the name “MGB!” did not appear until July 1977, but a careful reading of that issue and several following issues shows that the club had moved forward from its initial meeting with its first rally in December 1976, just a few months after organizing, and a strong program of events unfolded thereafter.

By the end of 1977, the club was up to about 50 members and had held its first car show (August); monthly meetings had been moved in November to the Camelot Restaurant in Des Plaines, but would soon be relocated in March 1978 to The Atlantic Restaurant (aka “Atlantic Pub”) on the northwest side of Chicago.  This would remain the club meeting site for some time, but the Camelot also seems have been used as a staging point for rally's and other events over the next few years, as was Mack’s.

Club membership grew to about 75 by the end of 1978.  That year saw continued growth in club activities.  In July, the club was featured at a White Sox baseball game, where “Miss MGB” threw out the first ball while club members paraded their cars around the field.  In August, the club staged the first AMGBA national convention in Hillside, IL with an attendance of about 35 cars.  The October 1978 issue of MGB! contains a clipping from an undated Chicago Sun-Times “Auto Sport and Rally News” section that lists quite a few activities scheduled for the club covering the period of late 1977 through late 1978.

The momentum continued in 1979: by the end of the year, membership was at 122 and MGB! chronicles an active program of events throughout the year.  The club had some high points – such as hosting the first AMGBA Regional Convention (at the Playboy Club in Lake Geneva, WI) and especially also with supplying a few members to the filming crew of the “Blues Brothers” movie production company.

In late 1979, several club members all moved up to national level posts with the parent AMGBA organization, and the AMGBA national headquarters was moved to the Chicago area.  These individuals would all continue to contribute to the Chicago club for some time to come, but the stage was now set for a coming change to the Chicago club.

In May 1980 the first Natter ‘N’ Noggin was held at Hippo’s in Schaumburg.  The first event in Abingdon, IL occurred in September of 1980 as the AMGBA Regional Convention with about 40 cars in attendance.  The initial formula was a one-day event, with a morning car show and an afternoon gymkhana in downtown Abingdon (18 cars participated); the AMGBA would continue to host this event each year through 1985, when Abingdon would be the site of the AMGBA national Convention.  Meetings are moved in November 1980 to Steven’s Steak House in Elmhurst.

In February 1981 the meeting site was changed to The Mug Pub in Itasca, where it would remain for some time.  June 1981 also marked the first Land’s End Rally, with a turnout of 19 cars.  In late 1981, longtime member and MGB! editor Steve Glochowsky announced that he would no longer be involved with producing MGB!, due to the burden of his AMGBA duties, and the club moved into a new era.  The year 1982 ushered in a new newsletter format, a new leadership crew, and a new era for the club.  Membership was about 200.

But there were other new programs and events coming onto the calendar at a rapid pace, and some former events grew in popularity.  Club regalia was advertised for the first time in the July 1982 newsletter.  The 2^nd Annual Land’s End Rally drew 28 cars and remains today as the second oldest continuous event on the club calendar, second only to the Holiday Party.  In late 1982, club member Steve Alcantara drew the Chicago skyline logo still in use by the club on all of its graphic materials.

In 1986, the club took over control of the “Abingdon Regional Convention” from the AMGBA.  Over the next 2 decades, this event was built up to become one of the club’s most successful annual activities; the “Abingdon Weekend” became a major event of interest to MG owners throughout the Midwest as attendance grew to 50 or more cars each year for many years.  Also in 1986, club members took the lead in forming the organization now known as the “British Car Union” and guiding the organization to its first “British Car Festival” in 1987.

The years 1987 and 1988 had other important developments for the club.  In April 1987, the club held its first “Tune Up Party” in a commercial auto repair facility at Quality Tire in Lyons, IL.  Also in 1987, the club embarked on its first “Project Car” rebuilding effort, having secured a decrepit 1971 MGB.  The ”Project Car” program would over the years provide an opportunity for technical education to members as well as a fundraising opportunity.  This first car was refurbished with the intent of raffling it and the drawing was held at the Abingdon Weekend in 1987.  In later years, the club would refurbish three other cars; two of these were major fundraisers for the club and helped escalate the treasury balance to a level that allowed investment in tools, library materials, autocross timing equipment, and other such uses.  The fourth car would not appear until some 20 years after the first.

Club nametags first became available in 1988 in the format still used today.  The first club Awards Program was also initiated in 1988, with:  Safety Fast, Ambassador at Large, Maintaining the Breed, and New Member of the Year being the designated awards.  Club meetings and events were drawing larger and larger attendance:  22 cars at the Land’s End Rally, 40 cars at Abingdon, 20+ cars at the autumn brunch run, and 20 cars at the Tune-Up Party.  By mid-year, meetings were overflowing the room at Russell’s and the meeting was later moved to the Stone Cottage Pub in early 1989.

in late 1988, the club was incorporated under the name “Chicagoland MGB Club” as a non-profit Illinois corporation organized under the provisions of IRS code 501(c)(7).  This not only helped the club achieve a unique identity but also brought all the legal advantages of being a corporation.  The club Tool Library began in late 1988, with the purchase of an engine hoist funded by project car raffle receipts.

The club moved to the forefront of national MG activity in 1991 by staging the annual AMGBA convention in Oakbrook in July.  This event was the first ever among MG clubs to be promoted by a VCR tape distributed to other clubs, the first ever to have its own promotional T-Shirt, and the first ever to have a modern computerized registration process.  By year-end, membership was reported to be 260.

The year 1991 was important to the club.  In addition to conducting the national AMGBA convention that year, there were several other firsts, most notably the initial “Lucas Night Rally” in August and also the initial appearance of “Tales of the Mongrel”, which is arguably the longest running member contribution to the newsletter.  Membership was reported to be 260 at yearend.

For the next few years, the club prospered with a mixed program of continuing events and some newer activities.  The first “Fall Tune-Down” party occurred in 1993 while the long established Land’s End and Spring Chicken Rally continued to draw crowds.  A third “Project Car” made its debut in the spring of 1994.  In 1995, the club legally changed its name after an extended period of debate to the current “Chicagoland MG Club” from the earlier “Chicagoland MGB Club”.  This year also marked the first annual “Cruise to the Rock” on Thanksgiving Day and the club newsletter name becomes “The Driveline” in late 1995, having had no specific name since the old “Chicago Chapter Reporter” name was dropped back in the early 1980’s.

The year 1997 marked the inaugural year of the club’s “All British Car Swap Meet & Autojumble” which has grown to become the club’s major fundraiser over the years since then.  Also, the first Amtrak Road Trip was held in January of 1997.  The club archives were officially started in late 1997along with the first attempt at a club website.  This new technology would be a challenge at first but a new approach in 2001 has led to one of the most respected and popular MG club websites in the world.  The club website (www.ChicagolandMGClub.com) traffic on average has been getting 800+ web visitors per day and has served up more than 1.7 million page views for the year, about 6 page views per visit, occasionally running over 12,000 page views per day.

In the spring of 2007, the club entered into an affiliation agreement with NAMGAR, the national registry club for MGA owners and in mid-2008, the club newsletter took on a new look as available from contemporary printing techniques.

The club has always maintained its focus on a balanced program of technical, driving, and social events relating to MG automobiles. The 2022 calendar had 12 events with 141 different members participating 179 times, 143 total MG cars driven for season. Technical sessions have not been as prevalent as in the earlier years but still are a well-attended event when scheduled.  Gimmick rallies and driving tours draw much of the attention of members while gymkhanas and autocross activities are only recently resurging in popularity.

The club has conducted a monthly meeting on the third Monday of each month (except December) for over 40 years with no interruptions or changes and has published a monthly newsletter, almost without interruption, for almost as long.

 

*Credit Jim Evans