WRIGLEYVILLE — They may not have lived to see this moment, but they're still here.
As Wrigley Field became the epicenter of the world's most raucous party late Wednesday night, the brick walls facing Sheffield and Waveland avenues were used as an impromptu memorial site for all the Cubs fans who didn't live long enough to see the curse broken.
People are writing the names of loved ones who didn't live long enough to see this all along the Sheffield wall at #Wrigley #FlyTheW #Cubs pic.twitter.com/VRkdaI6HzT
— Alex Nitkin (@AlexNitkin) November 3, 2016
Hundreds of names were written in chalk, spanning the bleacher walls facing Waveland and Sheffield.
RELATED: Cubs World Series Victory Parade And Rally Is Friday
When people ran out of space, they stood on each other's shoulders or climbed ladders to reach the top edges of the brick facade.
The brick wall facing Sheffield Avenue became an impromptu memorial site for all the Cubs fans who didn't live long enough to see the curse broken. [DNAinfo/Kelly Bauer]
Dozens of people gathered along the wall Thursday morning, trying to find whatever small space they could to write their name or a note.
"Go Cubs! Fly the W!" wrote Charlie Greenburg, 8, of Wrigleyville. His mom and brother wrote on the wall Wednesday, so he and his nanny, Jessie Santiago, came by to add their notes Thursday.
Greenburg's a Cubs fan because he lives in Chicago, he said matter-of-factly. He was falling asleep during Game 7, but when the Cubs won he woke up and cheered.
"We just wanted an activity to do and he wanted to come and write on the wall," Santiago said.
Nearby, James Adams, 47, of River North, and his neighbor, Sonny Saranow, 31, fit their messages on the mortar between bricks.
"We saw the wall. We got excited. We got excited! We want to be a part of history, too," he said. "I just wrote my name and how much I love the Cubs, which is an arrow going that way," he pointed to the left, "and an arrow going that way," he pointed to the right, "as far as they can go."
People walking by left nubs of chalk for others to use, putting it on the ground near the wall or passing it on to strangers. They talked about the messages they had left — "Is it supposed to be a memorial wall?" one woman asked a stranger. "It is for me," the other woman said — and helped each other take photos of the notes.
Children, unable to reach high, left messages on the ground. One man stood on a woman's back to reach a free space over the rest of the messages.
"Now, it's like legendary, right?" Adams said of the wall. "Everybody wants to be a part of it."
Adams and Saranow watched Game 7 with fans in the Near North Side. When the Cubs won, they said, you could hear cheers throughout the city.
"We could hear people screaming," Adams said. "You could hear this roar of the city, people just like, 'Aaaaah!' It was like one big stadium. It was insane."
And for all the departed friends and loved ones whose memories were physically etched into the Cubs legacy, fans chimed in from all over the world to offer a few more names.
I'm all the way in Abu Dhabi. Can someone PLEASE write Henry and Therma Kelly?!?! https://t.co/CPvoo8v9ov
— Certified Cubs Fan (@cindasmommy) November 3, 2016
I'd like to virtually add Mark Baker to the wall. https://t.co/KXDw8qhIHZ
— Fran Fried (@franoramaworld) November 3, 2016
Please write my grandpa Leon on there. He waited 75 years...not long enough. https://t.co/KqubWGqgHc
— janashortal (@janashortal) November 3, 2016
@jeff_gluck2 @AlexNitkin so touching. Lafayette Alexander was cheering from Heaven too. Lifetime baseball & Cubs fan. Lost him in 2005.
— Steph (@Steph_in_city) November 3, 2016
@AlexNitkin Joey Fosko. Died three years ago at 46. Would've loved to see this.
— Greg Stark (@Greg__Stark) November 3, 2016
@AlexNitkin And Tim Osburn? Died just two years back, would've lost his mind tonight <3
— Paige! Os! Burn! (@PaigeOsburn) November 3, 2016
The brick wall facing Sheffield Avenue became an impromptu memorial site for all the Cubs fans who didn't live long enough to see the curse broken. [DNAinfo/David Matthews]
The brick wall facing Sheffield Avenue became an impromptu memorial site for all the Cubs fans who didn't live long enough to see the curse broken. [DNAinfo/David Matthews]
By Thursday night, messages had spread to the entire stadium facade, including this note at the ticket counter. [DNAinfo/Patty Wetli]
RELATED
Chicago Calls In Sick Or Late After 'Best Baseball Game In History'
Wrigley Field Walls Become Memorial For Departed Cubs Fans
1969 Cubs, Steve Bartman, That Billy Goat ... You're All Off The Hook
'Parks And Recreation' Predicted The Cubs Would Win The World Series
Why Did Joe Maddon Do That? Read The Postgame Press Conference
That Sweet Nike 'Someday' TV Spot After Cubs Win Was Made In West Town Park
What Will Cubs Ticker Tape Parade Be Like? Check Out This Video From 1932
Famous Cubs Fans On Twitter: 'The Billy Goat Is Dead'
'All The Way' By Eddie Vedder: Lyrics And A Roundup Of Performances
South Side Bar Responds To Cubs' World Series Win With Typical Snark
Cubs Get White House Invite From White Sox Fan-In-Chief
The Cubs and Wrigley Field are 95 percent owned by an entity controlled by a trust established for the benefit of the family of Joe Ricketts, owner and CEO of DNAinfo.com. Joe Ricketts has no direct involvement in the management of the iconic team.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: