The Pilsen community is located south of the UIC campus. UICNI's core area is bounded by 16th Street to the north, the curving Chicago River to the east and south, and Western Avenue to the west. Pilsen has served as a port of entry for many immigrant groups that have come to Chicago seeking work and a better life: Germans at the turn of the century, followed by immigrants from Ireland, Poland, Lithuania, Bohemia, and others. During the 1950s, Mexican families began to move into the neighborhood. This trend accelerated in the 1960s, when Latinos became the major ethnic group.
http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/gci/uicni/partnerships/pilsen.htm