Only in Chicago—and apparently only on Roscoe Street, recently dubbed one of Time Out’s coolest streets in the world—could an animal-shaped dent in a slab of sidewalk inspire a civic meltdown of merch, memes and municipal pride.
On January 10, 2024, the so-called “rat hole” became a landmark overnight—beloved precisely because it absolutely shouldn’t be. The thing had been lurking there for 20 to 30 years, according to researchers, minding its own business, until Chicago comedian Winslow Dumaine posted a photo of his “pilgrimage” to it. That was all it took to send X (Twitter forever in my heart) users—and, bewilderingly, the rest of the world—into a tizzy. But rodent experts say our concrete celebrity has been misunderstood from the start, and their explanation somehow makes the whole saga even stranger.
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Dumaine’s post racked up millions of views, setting off the city’s most enthusiastic novelty craze since the heyday of beloved reptilian celebrity Chance the Snapper. The Chicago Rat Hole spawned merch, was graced with an altar and—because Chicago is nothing if not committed—one couple even got married on its square of sidewalk, according to Block Club. The hole now has its own Wikipedia page, as all distinguished urban icons apparently do. And after months of neighbors complaining about crowds forming to photograph it, the City finally removed the concrete slab altogether in April 2024. It now resides in City Hall—on the 11th floor of the Streets and Sanitation offices.
But now, more than a year after its rise to fame, scientists would like to gently—but firmly—adjust our collective imagination. The rat hole, it turns out, wasn’t made by a rat at all. Dr. Michael Granatosky, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, appointed himself the detective of this particular mystery. In a scientific analysis published in the journal Biology Letters, he compared measurements of the indentation and concluded that it doesn’t match a rat. Not even close. The most likely culprit? A squirrel—thanks to the figure’s extra-long “fingers,” which effectively disqualify any self-respecting rat from this race to the spotlight.
Researchers may be unraveling a viral legend, but honestly, it’s unlikely Chicago will let the truth trample a perfectly good piece of lore. Origins aside—and accuracy be damned—the rat hole lives on for one very Chicago reason: We will turn absolutely anything into local pride if it gives us a story worth repeating.