Chicago ( or ) is the largest
cityA city is a relatively large and permanent settlement, particularly a large urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on technical definitions distinguishing a city from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status...
in the
U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
of
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
, and with more than 2.8 million people, the
3rd largest city in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Located on the southwestern shores of
Lake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. The second largest of the Great Lakes by volume The third largest of the Great Lakes by surface area , it is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin,...
, Chicago is the
third-most densely populated major city in the U.S., and anchor to the world's 26th largest metropolitan area with over 9.5 million people across three
statesA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
.
After a series of wars with the local
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
, Chicago was founded in 1833, near a
portageThe Chicago Portage connects the watersheds and the navigable waterways of the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes. It crosses the continental divide that separates the Great Lakes and Atlantic Ocean watersheds from the Gulf of Mexico watershed.The St...
between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed. The city became a major transportation and telecommunications hub in
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
. Today, the city retains its status as a major hub, both for industry and infrastructure, with its
O'Hare International AirportO'Hare International Airport , also known simply as O'Hare Airport or O'Hare Field or O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop. It serves as the primary and largest hub for United Airlines and as a hub for...
as the
second busiest airportWorld's busiest airport The definition of busiest has been specified by the Nandi International Airport and Air Pacific. The ACI defines and measures the following 3 types of airport traffic:...
in the world. In modern times, the city has taken on additional dimension as a center for business and finance, and is listed as one of the world's top ten
Global Financial CentersThe Global Financial Centres Index is a ranking of the competitiveness of financial centres based on 26,629 financial centre assessments from an online questionnaire together with over 60 indices...
. Chicago is a stronghold of the
Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
, and has been home to influential politicians, including the current President of the United States,
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office, as well as the first president born in Hawaii...
. The World Cities Study Group at
Loughborough UniversityLoughborough University is a campus university located in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, in the East Midlands of England.It has been a university since 1966, but the institution dates back to 1909, when the then Loughborough Technical Institute began with a focus on skills and...
rated Chicago as an
alpha world cityA global city is a city deemed to be an important node point in the global economic system. The concept comes from geography and urban studies and rests on the idea that globalization can be understood as largely created, facilitated and enacted in strategic geographic locales according to a...
.
, the city attracted 32.8 million domestic visitors and about 1.15 million foreign visitors. Making use of its abundant resources, Chicago has a heritage for hosting major international, national, regional, and local events that include commerce, culture, entertainment, politics, and sports.
Globally recognized,
[Chicago notoriety comes from being the subject or being referenced in novels, plays, movies, songs, various types of journals (e.g., sports, entertainment, business, trade, and academic), and the news media.] Chicago has numerous nicknames, which reflect the impressions and opinions about historical and contemporary Chicago. The best known include: "Chi-town"; the "Windy City" with reference to Chicago politicians and residents boasting about their city; "Second City," due to the city generally being the second most prestigious in the nation in terms of culture, entertainment, and finance; and because for much of the twentieth century Chicago's population was the second largest of any city in the United States, and the "City of Big Shoulders", referring to its numerous skyscrapers (whose steel frame designs were largely pioneered in Chicago), described as being husky and brawling.
Early history
During the mid 18th century the area was inhabited by a
native AmericanNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
tribe known as the
PotawatomiThe Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family...
s, who had taken the place of the
MiamiThe Miami are a Native American tribe originally found in Indiana, southwest Michigan and Ohio, and now living also in Oklahoma.-Name:The name 'Miami' derives from the tribe's name for themselves in their own Algonquian language, Myaamia , which appears to have come from an older term meaning...
and
Sauk and FoxThe Sac and Fox Nation is the modern political entity encompassing the historical Sac and Meskawki nations of Native Americans. There are three federally recognized Sac and Fox tribes: the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa, the Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska,...
peoples. The first known non-indigenous permanent settler in Chicago, Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, who was a man of mixed African and European heritage born in
Saint-DomingueSaint-Domingue was a French colony on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola from 1659 to 1804, when it became the independent nation of Haiti.Saint-Domingue is the French version of the Spanish name Santo Domingo. The Arawak, Carib and Tainos people occupied the island before the arrival of the...
(modern day
HaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Creole- and French-speaking Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago...
), arrived in the 1770s, married a Potawatomi woman, and founded the area’s first
trading postA trading post is a place where the trading of goods takes place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, is known as a trade route....
. In 1795, following the
Northwest Indian WarThe Northwest Indian War , also known as Little Turtle's War and by various other names, was a war fought between the United States and a large confederation of Indians for control of the Northwest Territory, which ended with a decisive U.S. victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794...
, an area that was to be part of Chicago was turned over by some
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
in the
Treaty of GreenvilleThe Treaty of Greenville was signed at Fort Greenville , on August 2, 1795, between a coalition of Native Americans known as the Western Confederacy and the United States following the Native American loss at the Battle of Fallen Timbers. It put an end to the Northwest Indian War...
to the United States for a military post. In 1803 the United States Army built
Fort DearbornFort Dearborn, named in honor of Henry Dearborn, was a United States fort built on the Chicago River in 1803 by troops under Captain John Whistler. It was on the site of the present-day city of Chicago...
, which was destroyed in the 1812
Fort Dearborn massacreThe Fort Dearborn massacre occurred on August 15, 1812, near Fort Dearborn, Illinois Territory during the War of 1812. The massacre followed the evacuation of the fort as ordered by the U.S. General William Hull...
. The Ottawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi later ceded additional land to the United States in the 1804
Treaty of St. LouisThe Treaty of St. Louis is one of many treaties signed between the United States and various Native American tribes.-1804 - Sauk and Fox :...
. The Potawatomi were eventually forcibly removed from their land following the
Treaty of ChicagoThe Treaty of Chicago may refer to either of two treaties made and signed in Chicago, Illinois between the United States and the Ottawa, Ojibwe , and Potawatomi Native American peoples.-1821 Treaty of Chicago:...
in 1833. On August 12, 1833, the Town of Chicago was organized with a population of around 200. Within seven years it grew to a population of over 4,000. The City of Chicago was incorporated on March 4, 1837. The name "Chicago" is a
FrenchFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
rendering of the Native American word
shikaakwa, meaning “wild onion”, from the Miami-Illinois language.
Infrastructure and regional development
The city began its step toward national primacy as an important transportation hub between the eastern and western United States. Chicago’s first railway,
Galena and Chicago Union RailroadThe Galena and Chicago Union Railroad was a railroad running west from Chicago to Clinton, Iowa and Freeport, Illinois, never reaching Galena, Illinois...
, opened in 1838, which also marked the opening of the
Illinois and Michigan CanalThe Illinois and Michigan Canal ran 96 miles from the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago on the Chicago River to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, on the Illinois River. It was finished in 1848 when Chicago Mayor James Hutchinson Woodworth presided over its opening; and it allowed boat transportation from...
. The canal allowed steamboats and sailing ships on the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in eastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth. They are sometimes referred to as the "Third...
to connect to the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
. A flourishing economy brought residents from rural communities and
immigrantsAmerican immigration refers to the movement of non-residents to the United States...
abroad. Manufacturing and retail sectors became dominant among Midwestern cities, influencing the American economy, particularly in meatpacking, with the advent of the
refrigerated rail carA refrigerator car is a refrigerated boxcar or van , a piece of railroad rolling stock designed to carry perishable freight at specific temperatures. Refrigerator cars differ from simple insulated boxcars and ventilated boxcars , neither of which are fitted with cooling apparatus...
and the regional centrality of the city's
Union Stock YardsThe Union Stock Yard & Transit Co., or The Yards, was the name of the meatpacking district in Chicago for over a century starting in 1865. The district was operated by a group of railroad companies that acquired swampland to a centralized processing area...
.
In February 1856, the Chesbrough plan for the building of Chicago's and the United States' first comprehensive
sewerageA sanitary sewer is a type of underground carriage system, , for transporting sewage from houses or industry to treatment or disposal...
system was approved by the Common Council. The project
raised much of central ChicagoDuring the 1850s and 1860s engineers carried out a piecemeal raising of the level of central Chicago. Streets, sidewalks and buildings were either built up or else physically raised up on jacks...
to a new grade. Untreated sewage and industrial waste now flowed into the
Chicago RiverThe Chicago River is a river that runs 156 miles and flows through Chicago, including the downtown. Though not especially long, the river is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards...
, thence into
Lake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. The second largest of the Great Lakes by volume The third largest of the Great Lakes by surface area , it is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin,...
,
pollutingPollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms . Pollution can take the form of chemical substances, or energy, such as noise, heat, or light...
the primary source of fresh water for the city. The city responded by tunneling two miles (3 km) out into Lake Michigan to newly built
water cribWater cribs are offshore structures that collect water from close to the bottom of a lake to supply a pumping station onshore. The name crib is derived from the function of the structure—to surround and protect the intake shaft...
s. In 1900, the problem of sewage was largely resolved when Chicago reversed the flow of the river, a process that began with the construction and improvement of the
Illinois and Michigan CanalThe Illinois and Michigan Canal ran 96 miles from the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago on the Chicago River to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, on the Illinois River. It was finished in 1848 when Chicago Mayor James Hutchinson Woodworth presided over its opening; and it allowed boat transportation from...
and completed with the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship CanalThe Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is the only shipping link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system, by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines Rivers. The canal also carries Chicago's treated sewage into the Des Plaines River...
leading to the
Illinois RiverThe Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the U.S. state of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . The river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water...
which joins the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
.
After the
Great Chicago Fire of 1871The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8th, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about four square miles in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
destroyed a third of the city, including the entire
central business districtA central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city...
, Chicago experienced rapid rebuilding and growth. During its rebuilding period, Chicago constructed the world's
first skyscraperThe Home Insurance Building was built in 1884 in Chicago, Illinois, USA and demolished in 1931 to make way for the Field Building . It was the first building to use structural steel in its frame, but the majority of its structure was composed of cast and wrought iron...
in 1885, using
steel-skeletonSteel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
construction.
Labor conflictsLabor history of the United States describes the history of organized labor, as well as the more general history of working people in the United States. Pressures dictating the nature and power of organized labor have included the evolution and power of the corporation, efforts by employers and...
and unrest followed, including the
Haymarket affairThe Haymarket affair was a disturbance that took place on Tuesday May 4, 1886, at the Haymarket Square in Chicago, and began as a rally in support of striking workers. An unknown person threw a bomb at police as they dispersed the public meeting...
on May 4, 1886. Concern for social problems among Chicago’s lower classes led
Jane Addams Jane Addams was a founder of the U.S. Settlement House movement, and the first women to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.-Biography:...
to be a co-founder of
Hull HouseHull House, the most well known settlement house in the United States, was co-founded in 1889 by Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr. Located in the Near West Side of , Hull House immediately opened its doors to the recently arrived European immigrants. By 1911, Hull House had grown to 13 buildings...
in 1889. Programs developed there became a model for the new field of social work. The city also invested in many large, well-landscaped
municipal parksThe Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
, which also included public sanitation facilities.
In 1893, Chicago hosted the
World's Columbian ExpositionThe World's Columbian Exposition — also known as The Chicago World's Fair — was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World. Chicago bested New York City, Washington, D.C. and St. Louis, Missouri, for the honor of...
on former marshland at the present location of
Jackson ParkJackson Park is a 500 acre park on Chicago's South Side, located at 6401 South Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community area. It extends into the South Shore and Hyde Park community areas, bordering Lake Michigan and several South Side neighborhoods...
. The Exposition drew 27.5 million visitors, and is considered the most influential world's fair in history. The
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
was founded in 1892 on the same South Side location. The term "midway" for a fair or carnival referred originally to the
Midway PlaisanceThe Midway Plaisance, also known locally as the Midway, is a mile-long linear park on the South Side of the city of Chicago, Illinois between 59th and 60th Streets, joining Washington Park at its west end and Jackson Park at its east end. It divides the Hyde Park community area to the north from...
, a strip of park land that still runs through the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
campus and connects
WashingtonWashington Park is a 372 acre park between Cottage Grove Avenue and Martin Luther King Drive, located at 5531 S. Martin Luther King Dr. in the Washington Park community area on the South Side of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States...
and Jackson Parks.
20th century
The 1920s brought notoriety to Chicago as
gangsters-Background Information:The social scene of the 1920's not only encourage prohibition, but it also sparked new waves of gang-related crime such as, bootlegging and bank robbery. Criminals in the 1920s could become very powerful if they were successful bootleggers or bank robbers. The Great...
, including the notorious
Al CaponeAlphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a crime syndicate dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging of liquor and other illegal activities during the Prohibition Era of the 1920s and 1930s....
, battled each other and law enforcement on the city streets during the
ProhibitionIn the history of the United States, Prohibition, also known as The Noble Experiment, is the period from 1919 to 1933, during which the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol for consumption were banned nationally as mandated in the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States...
era. Chicago had over 1,000 gangs in the 1920s. The 1920s also saw a major expansion in industry. The availability of jobs attracted
African AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa. In the United States, the terms are generally used for Americans with at least partial Sub-Saharan African ancestry...
s from the South. Arriving in the tens of thousands during the
Great MigrationThe Great Migration was the movement of 1.3 million African-Americans out of the Southern United States to the North, Midwest and West from 1910 to 1930. Precise estimates of the number of migrants depend on the time frame. African Americans migrated to escape racism and seek employment...
, the newcomers had an immense cultural impact. It was during this wave that Chicago became a center for
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, with King Oliver leading the way. In 1933, Chicago Mayor
Anton CermakAnton Joseph Cermak was the mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1931 until his assassination by Giuseppe Zangara in 1933.-Early life and career:...
was fatally wounded in Miami during a failed
assassinationAn Assassination is the targeted killing of a public figure.Assassinations may be prompted by ideological, political, or military reasons. Additionally, assassins may be motivated by financial gain, revenge, personal public recognition, or mental illness....
attempt on
PresidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin Delano Roosevelt , the only U.S. President elected to more than two terms, was a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
.
On December 2, 1942, physicist
Enrico FermiEnrico Fermi was an Italian physicist most noted for his work on the development of the first nuclear reactor, and for his contributions to the development of quantum theory, nuclear and particle physics, and statistical mechanics...
conducted the world’s first controlled
nuclear reactionIn nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, a nuclear reaction is the process in which two nuclei or nuclear particles collide to produce products different from the initial particles...
at the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
as part of the top-secret
Manhattan ProjectThe Manhattan Project was the codename for a project conducted during World War II to develop the first atomic bomb. The project was led by the United States, and included scientists from Denmark, The United Kingdom and Canada...
.
Mayor
Richard J. DaleyRichard Joseph Daley served for 21 years as the undisputed Democratic boss of Chicago and is considered by historians to be the "last of the big city bosses." He played a major role in the history of the Democratic Party, especially with his support of John F...
was elected in 1955, in the era of
machine politicsA political machine is a disciplined political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters , who receive rewards for their efforts...
. Starting in the 1960s, many residents, as in most American cities, left the city for the
suburbSuburbs are defined in various different ways around the world. They can be the residential areas of a large city, or separate residential communities within commuting distance of a city. Some suburbs have a degree of political autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city...
s. Structural changes in industry caused heavy losses of jobs for lower skilled workers. In 1966
James BevelJames L. Bevel was an American minister and leader of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement who, as the Director of Direct Action and Director of Nonviolent Education of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference initiated, strategized, directed, and developed SCLC's three major successes of the era:...
,
Martin Luther King, Jr.Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States and he is frequently referenced as a human rights icon today. King is recognized as a martyr...
, and
Albert RabyAlbert Anderson Raby was a teacher at Chicago's Hess Upper Grade Center whose efforts on behalf of housing and school desegregation played a key role in leading Martin Luther King, Jr. to shift the fight for civil rights from the South.Raby had been born into poverty in Chicago, dropping out of...
led the Chicago Open Housing Movement, which culminated in agreements between Mayor Richard J. Daley and the movement leaders. Two years later, the city hosted the tumultuous
1968 Democratic National ConventionThe 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968...
, which featured physical confrontations both inside and outside the convention hall, including full-scale
riotA riot is a form of civil disorder characterized by disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of violence against people or property. While individuals may attempt to lead or control a riot, riots are typically chaotic and exhibit herd behavior.Riots often occur in reaction to a...
s, or in some cases
police riotThe term police riot is used to categorize a confrontation between police and civilians, where police used wrongful, disproportionate, unlawful, and/or illegitimate force against those civilians; in plain language, the act of police attacking innocent civilians. The term can also describe a riot...
s, in city streets. Major construction projects, including
Sears TowerWillis Tower, formerly named Sears Tower, is a 108-story skyscraper in Chicago, Illinois. At the time of its completion in 1973 it was the tallest building in the world, surpassing the World Trade Center towers in New York...
(which in 1974 became the
world’s tallest building),
University of Illinois at ChicagoThe University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago. It is the second member of the University of Illinois system and is the largest university in the Chicago area, serving approximately 25,000 students within 15 colleges, including the...
,
McCormick PlaceMcCormick Place is a large convention center made up of four interconnected buildings sited on and near the shore of Lake Michigan, about 4 km south of downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. McCormick Place hosts numerous trade shows, including the Chicago Auto Show, held every February.-History:As...
, and
O'Hare AirportO'Hare International Airport , also known simply as O'Hare Airport or O'Hare Field or O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop. It serves as the primary and largest hub for United Airlines and as a hub for...
, were undertaken during Richard J. Daley's tenure. When he died,
Michael Anthony BilandicMichael Anthony Bilandic was an Illinois politician who served as the mayor of Chicago, Illinois and as Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court. He was a member of the Democratic Party....
was mayor for three years. His loss in a primary election has been attributed to the city’s inability to properly plow city streets during a heavy snowstorm. In 1979,
Jane ByrneJane Margaret Byrne was the first and only female Mayor of Chicago. She served from April 16, 1979, to April 29, 1983. Chicago is the largest city in the United States to have had a female mayor as of 2009.-Early political career:...
, the city’s first female mayor, was elected. She popularized the city as a
movie locationA filming location is a place where some or all of a film or television series is produced, in addition to or instead of using sets constructed on a movie studio backlot or soundstage...
and
touristTourism in the United States is a large industry that serves millions of international and domestic tourists yearly. Tourists visit the US to see natural wonders, cities, historic landmarks and entertainment venues. Americans seek similar attractions, as well as recreation and vacation areas...
destination.
In 1983
Harold WashingtonHarold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Background and early career :...
became the first
African AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa. In the United States, the terms are generally used for Americans with at least partial Sub-Saharan African ancestry...
to be elected to the office of mayor, in one of the closest mayoral elections in Chicago. After Washington won the Democratic primary, racial motivations caused a few Democratic alderman and ward committeemen to back the Republican candidate
Bernard EptonBernard Epton was an American politician who served in the Illinois House of Representatives. In 1983 he lost a close and contentious election for Mayor of Chicago; he would have become the city's first Jewish mayor, and its first Republican mayor since 1931.Epton served in the U.S. Army Air Force...
, who ran on the slogan
Before it’s too late, a thinly veiled
appeal to fearAn appeal to fear is a fallacy in which a person attempts to create support for his or her idea by using deception and propaganda in attempts to increase fear and prejudice toward a competitor...
.
Washington’s term in office saw new attention given to poor and minority neighborhoods. His administration reduced the longtime dominance of city contracts and employment by ethnic whites. Washington died in office of a heart attack in 1987, shortly after being elected to a second term. Current mayor
Richard M. DaleyRichard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party and current Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007...
, son of the late Richard J. Daley, was elected in 1989. He has led many progressive changes to the city, including improving parks; creating incentives for sustainable development, including green roofs; and major new developments. Since the 1990s, the city has undergone a revitalization in which some lower class areas have been transformed to higher priced and middle-class neighborhoods.
21st century
In 2003, Meigs Field, an airport close to downtown, was demolished without advanced warning by the order of mayor
Richard DaleyRichard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party and current Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007...
, who wanted the land for redevelopment. Private aircraft using the airport were stranded when the sole runway was destroyed. They were later permitted to depart from a taxiway.
Chicago was one of the four finalists to host the 2016 Olympic Games, but the city was eliminated on the first round of voting on October 2, 2009.
Topography
Chicago is located in northeastern Illinois at the southwestern tip of
Lake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. The second largest of the Great Lakes by volume The third largest of the Great Lakes by surface area , it is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin,...
. It sits on a
continental divideA continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea...
at the site of the
Chicago PortageThe Chicago Portage connects the watersheds and the navigable waterways of the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes. It crosses the continental divide that separates the Great Lakes and Atlantic Ocean watersheds from the Gulf of Mexico watershed.The St...
, connecting the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
and the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in eastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth. They are sometimes referred to as the "Third...
watershedsA drainage basin is an extent of land where water from rain or snow melt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea or ocean...
. The city lies beside Lake Michigan, and two rivers—the
Chicago RiverThe Chicago River is a river that runs 156 miles and flows through Chicago, including the downtown. Though not especially long, the river is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards...
in downtown and the
Calumet RiverThe Calumet River refers to a system of heavily industrialized rivers and canals in the region between the neighborhood of South Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, and the city of Gary, Indiana.-Background:...
in the industrial far South Side—flow entirely or partially through Chicago. The
Chicago Sanitary and Ship CanalThe Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is the only shipping link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system, by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines Rivers. The canal also carries Chicago's treated sewage into the Des Plaines River...
connects the Chicago River with the
Des Plaines RiverThe Des Plaines River is a river that flows southward for 150 miles through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the U.S. Midwest, eventually meeting the Kankakee River west of Channahon to form the Illinois River, a tributary of the Mississippi River...
, which runs to the west of the city. Chicago's history and economy are closely tied to its proximity to Lake Michigan. While the Chicago River historically handled much of the region's waterborne cargo, today's huge
lake freighterLake freighters, or Lakers, are cargo vessels that ply the Great Lakes. The most well-known is the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, the latest major vessel to be wrecked on the Lakes. These vessels are traditionally called boats, not ships. In the mid-20th century, 300 lakers worked the Lakes but by the early...
s use the city's
Lake Calumet HarborThe Port of Chicago consists of several major port facilities within the city of Chicago, Illinois operated by the Illinois International Port District . The central element of the Port District, Calumet Harbor, is maintained by the U.S...
on the South Side. The lake also provides another positive effect, moderating Chicago's climate; making waterfront neighborhoods slightly warmer in winter and cooler in summer.
When Chicago was founded in the 1830s, most of the early building began around the mouth of the Chicago River, as can be seen on a map of the city's original 58 blocks. The overall
gradeGrading in civil engineering and construction is the work of ensuring a level base for a construction work such as a foundation or the base course for a road or a railway...
of the city's central, built-up areas, is relatively consistent with the natural flatness of its overall natural geography, generally exhibiting only slight differentiation otherwise. The average land elevation is above
sea levelMean sea level is the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation.- Measurement :...
. The lowest points are along the lake shore at , while the highest point, at , is a
landfillA landfill, also known as a dump , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
located in the
HegewischHegewisch , one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, Illinois, is located on the city's far south side...
community area on the city's far south side.
Lake Shore DriveLake Shore Drive is a mostly freeway-standard expressway running parallel with and alongside the shoreline of Lake Michigan through Chicago, Illinois, USA. Except for the portion north of Foster Avenue , Lake Shore Drive is designated as part of U.S...
runs adjacent to a large portion of Chicago's lakefront. Parks along the lakeshore include:
Lincoln ParkLincoln Park is an urban park in Chicago, Illinois.Lincoln Park may also refer to:-Parks:United States*Lincoln Park , California *Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California...
,
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
,
Burnham ParkBurnham Park is a public park in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The 6-mi long, park is composed of Chicago Park District property that connects Grant Park to Jackson Park along the Lake Michigan lakefront. It was named for urban planner and architect Daniel Burnham in 1927...
and
Jackson ParkJackson Park is a 500 acre park on Chicago's South Side, located at 6401 South Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community area. It extends into the South Shore and Hyde Park community areas, bordering Lake Michigan and several South Side neighborhoods...
; 29 public beaches are also found along the shore. Near downtown, landfills extend into the Lake, providing space for the
Jardine Water Purification PlantThe Jardine Water Purification Plant, formerly the Central District Filtration Plant, is the largest capacity water filtration plant in the world, located at 1000 E. Ohio Street north of Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois...
,
Navy PierNavy Pier is a long pier on the Chicago shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of the Near North Side community area. The pier was built in 1916 at a cost of $4.5 million, equivalent to $ today. It was a part of the Plan of Chicago developed by architect and...
,
Northerly IslandNortherly Island is a man-made peninsula along Chicago's lakefront. . The site of the Adler Planetarium, Northerly Island connects to the mainland through a narrow isthmus along Solidarity Drive dominated by Neoclassical sculptures of Kościuszko, Havliček and Copernicus...
, the
Museum CampusMuseum Campus Chicago is a 57-acre lakefront park in Chicago that surrounds three of the city's most notable museums, all dedicated to the natural sciences: the Adler Planetarium, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Field Museum of Natural History....
,
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
and large portions of the
McCormick PlaceMcCormick Place is a large convention center made up of four interconnected buildings sited on and near the shore of Lake Michigan, about 4 km south of downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. McCormick Place hosts numerous trade shows, including the Chicago Auto Show, held every February.-History:As...
Convention Center. Most of the city's high-rise commercial and residential buildings can be found within a few blocks of the lake.
Chicagoland is an informal name for the Chicago metro area, used primarily by copywriters, advertising agencies, and traffic reporters. There is no precise definition for the term "Chicagoland", but it generally means the city and its suburbs together. The
Chicago Tribune, which coined the term, includes the city of Chicago, the rest of
Cook CountyCook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. According to 2008 US Census Bureau estimates, the county has 5,294,664 residents, which is larger than the populations of 29 individual U.S. states, the...
, eight nearby Illinois counties:
LakeLake County is the farthest north-east county in the U.S. state of Illinois. A 2006 census estimated the population was 713,076. Its county seat is Waukegan, Illinois. According to the 2000 United States Census, Lake County is the 31st richest county by per-capita income. The county is part of...
,
McHenryMcHenry County is located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 260,077. As of 2008, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population to be 318,641. Its county seat is Woodstock, Illinois. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is the sixth largest county,...
,
DuPageDuPage County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Its county seat is the city of Wheaton. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area...
,
KaneKane County is located in the U.S. state of Illinois. In 2000, the population of the county was 404,119. In 2007, its population was estimated at 501,021. This county is part of the Chicago Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Geneva, Illinois, and its largest city is Aurora.- Geography :According...
,
KendallKendall County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 54,544. According to Census Bureau statistics released in March 2009, Kendall County's estimated population of 103,460 as of July 2008 made it the fastest growing county in the United States between...
,
GrundyGrundy County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 37,535. Its county seat is Morris. The center of population of Illinois is located in Grundy County, in the village of Mazon. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Illinois' State...
,
WillWill County is a county located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population was 502,266. In 2007, the estimated population was 673,586, making it one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. The...
and
KankakeeKankakee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 103,833. Its county seat is Kankakee, Illinois....
, and three counties in
IndianaIndiana is a U.S. state, the 19
th admitted to the Union. It is located in the Great Lakes region, and with approximately 6.3 million residents, is ranked 16
th in population and 17
th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38
th in land area, and is the...
:
LakeLake County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. In 2000, its population was 484,564, making it Indiana's second-most populous county. The county seat is Crown Point. This county is part of Northwest Indiana and the Chicago metropolitan area....
,
PorterPorter County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 146,798 and records show that the population has increased to more than 160,000 as of 2007. Much of the population growth has to do with the expansion of the Chicago Metropolitan Area eastward into...
, and
LaPorteLaPorte County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 110,106. The county seat is the City of La Porte. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and "Michiana." It is also included in the Michigan City, Indiana-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan...
. The Illinois Department of Tourism defines Chicagoland as Cook County
without the city of Chicago, and only Lake, DuPage, Kane and Will counties. The
Chicagoland Chamber of CommerceThe Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit organization promoting business in the Chicagoland region of the United States. The Chamber is a voice at local, state and national levels for approximately 2,600 member companies and their 1.3 million employees...
defines it as all of Cook and DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties.
Climate
The city lies within the
humid continental climateThe humid continental climate is a climate found over large areas of landmasses in the temperate regions of the mid-latitudes where there is a zone of conflict between polar and tropical air masses. The humid continental climate is marked by variable weather patterns and a large seasonal...
zone, and experiences four distinct
seasonA season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather.Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the plane of revolution...
s. Summers are warm and humid with average high temperatures of 80-85°F (27-29°C) and lows of 61-65 °F (16-19°C). Winters are cold, snowy and windy with temperatures below freezing. Spring and fall are mild with low humidity.
According to the
National Weather ServiceThe National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
, Chicago's highest official temperature reading of was recorded on June 1, 1934. The lowest temperature of was recorded on January 20, 1985. Along with long, hot dry spells in the summer, Chicago can suffer extreme winter cold spells. In the entire month of January 1977, the temperature did not rise above . The average temperature that month was around .
Architecture
The outcome of the Great Chicago Fire led to the largest building boom in the history of the nation. Perhaps the most outstanding of these events was the relocation of many of the nation's most prominent architects to the city from
New EnglandNew England is a region of the United States. It is located at the northeastern corner of the US, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, Canada and the state of New York, consisting of the modern U.S...
, for construction of the 1893 World Columbian Exposition.
In 1885, the first
steel-framed high-rise buildingSteel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
rose in Chicago, ushering in the
skyscraperA skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building. There is no official definition or height above which a building may clearly be classified as a skyscraper...
era. Today, Chicago's skyline is among the world's tallest and most dense. Downtown's historic buildings include the
Chicago Board of Trade BuildingThe Chicago Board of Trade Building is a skyscraper located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It stands at 141 W. Jackson Boulevard at the foot of the LaSalle Street canyon, in the Loop community area in Cook County. Built in 1930 and first designated a Chicago Landmark on May 4, 1977, the...
in the
LoopThe Loop or The Chicago Loop are the terms used to designate the historical center of downtown Chicago. Most accurately, the term refers to an area bounded by a public transit circuit along Lake Street on the north, Wabash Avenue on the east, Van Buren Street on the south, and Wells Street on the...
, with others along the lakefront and the Chicago River. Once first on the
list of largest buildings in the world and still listed twentieth, the
Merchandise MartWhen opened in 1930, the Merchandise Mart or the Mart, located in Chicago, Illinois, was the largest building in the world with of floor space. Previously owned by the Marshall Field family, the Mart centralized Chicago's wholesale goods business by consolidating vendors and trade under a single...
(this building has its own zip code) stands near the junction of the north and south river branches. Presently, the four tallest in the city are Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower),
Trump International Hotel and TowerThe Trump International Hotel and Tower, also known as Trump Tower Chicago and locally as the Trump Tower, is a skyscraper condo-hotel in downtown . The building, named after real estate developer Donald Trump, was designed by architect Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill...
, the
Aon CenterThe Aon Center is a modern skyscraper in Chicago designed by architect firms Edward Durell Stone and The Perkins and Will partnership, and completed in 1973 as the Standard Oil Building...
(previously the Standard Oil Building), and the
John Hancock CenterJohn Hancock Center at 875 North Michigan Avenue in the Gold Coast area of Chicago, Illinois, is a 100-story, 1,127-foot tall skyscraper, constructed under the supervision of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, with chief designer Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan. When completed in...
. The city's architecture includes high-rise office and residential towers, mid-rise buildings, low-rise structures and single-family homes, including
bungalowA bungalow is a type of single-story house that originated in India. The word derives from the Gujarati બંગલો baṅgalo, which in turn derives from the Hindi बंगला baṅglā, meaning "Bengali" and used elliptically for a "house in the Bengal style"...
s.
IndustrializedAn industry is the manufacturing of a good or service within a category. Although industry is a broad term for any kind of economic production, in economics and urban planning industry is a synonym for the secondary sector, which is a type of economic activity involved in the manufacturing of raw...
areas, such as the
IndianaIndiana is a U.S. state, the 19
th admitted to the Union. It is located in the Great Lakes region, and with approximately 6.3 million residents, is ranked 16
th in population and 17
th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38
th in land area, and is the...
border, south of Midway Airport, and the banks of the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship CanalThe Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is the only shipping link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system, by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines Rivers. The canal also carries Chicago's treated sewage into the Des Plaines River...
are clustered. Future skyline plans include, amongst others, the
supertall Chicago Spire.
Multiple kinds and scales of houses, townhouses, condominiums and apartment buildings can be found in Chicago. Large swaths of Chicago's residential areas away from the lake in the "bungalow belt" are characterized by
bungalowA bungalow is a type of single-story house that originated in India. The word derives from the Gujarati બંગલો baṅgalo, which in turn derives from the Hindi बंगला baṅglā, meaning "Bengali" and used elliptically for a "house in the Bengal style"...
s built from the early 20th century through the end of World War II. Chicago is also a prominent center of the
Polish Cathedral styleThe Polish Cathedral style of North-American Catholic church is a genre of church architecture found throughout the Great Lakes and Middle Atlantic regions as well as in parts of New England in North America...
of
church architectureChurch architecture or ecclesiastical architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of Christian churches. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by imitating other architectural styles as well as responding to changing beliefs,...
. One of Chicago's suburbs is
Oak ParkOak Park, Illinois is a suburb bordering the west side of the city of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is the twenty-fifth largest city in Illinois. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago thanks to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' Blue and Green lines, CTA...
, home to the late architect
Frank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 projects, which resulted in more than 500 completed works....
.
Public art and monuments
Chicago is well known for its wealth of
public artThe term public art properly refers to works of art in any media that has been planned and executed with the specific intention of being sited or staged in the physical public domain, usually outside and accessible to all...
, including works by such artistic heavyweights as
Marc ChagallMarc Chagall ; [shuh-GAHL] , was a Russian-French artist, associated with several key art movements and was one of the most successful artists of the twentieth century. He forged a unique career in virtually every artistic medium, including paintings, book illustrations, stained glass, stage sets,...
,
Pablo PicassoPablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso was a Spanish painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. Commonly known simply as Picasso, he is one of the most recognized figures in 20th-century art...
,
Joan MiróJoan Miró i Ferrà was a Spanish Catalan painter, sculptor, and ceramist born in Barcelona.Earning international acclaim, his work has been interpreted as Surrealism, a sandbox for the subconscious mind, a re-creation of the childlike, and a manifestation of Catalan pride...
and
Magdalena AbakanowiczMagdalena Abakanowicz is a Polish sculptor. She is notable for her use of textiles as a sculptural medium and is regarded as being one of the most important and influential female artists of the 20th century. She has been a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań, Poland from 1965 to 1990...
that are all to be found outdoors. Several of these have been financed through the
B. F. Ferguson fundBenjamin Franklin Ferguson was an American lumber merchant and philanthropist whose 1905 $1 million charitable trust gift funded seventeen of the most notable public monuments and sculptures in , United States...
.
City sculptures additionally honor the many people and topics reflecting the rich
history of Chicago-Early days:At the beginning of Caucasian race recorded history, the Chicago area was inhabited by a number of Algonquian peoples, including the Mascoutens and Miamis. Trade links and seasonal hunting migrations linked these peoples with their neighbours, the Potawatomis to the east, Fox to the...
. There are monuments to:
There are also to erect a 1:1-scale replica of Wacław Szymanowski's
Art NouveauArt Nouveau is an international movement and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that peaked in popularity at the turn of the 20th century . The name 'Art nouveau' is French for 'new art'...
statue of
Frédéric ChopinFrédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He was one of the great masters of Romantic music....
found in
WarsawWarsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River roughly from both the Baltic Sea coast and the Carpathian Mountains. Its population as of 2009 was estimated at 1,709,781, and the Warsaw metropolitan area at approximately 2,785,000...
's Royal Baths along Chicago's lakefront in addition to a different sculpture commemorating the artist in
Chopin ParkChopin Park is an park located at 3420 North Long in the Portage Park community area of Chicago, Illinois. The park stretches from Roscoe Street on the south to Cornelia Avenue to the north between Linder and Long Avenues. The historic fieldhouse was designed by Albert A. Schwartz contains an...
for the 200th anniversary of
Frédéric ChopinFrédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He was one of the great masters of Romantic music....
's birth.
Neighborhoods
Chicago is partitioned into four main sections: Downtown (which contains the Loop), the North Side, the
South SideThe South Side is a major part of the City of Chicago, which is located in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Much of it has evolved from the city's incorporation of independent townships, such as Hyde Park Township which voted along with several other townships to be annexed in the June 29,...
, and the West Side. In the late 1920s, sociologists at the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
subdivided the city into 77 distinct
community areasThe City of Chicago is divided into seventy-seven community areas. These areas are well-defined and static, in contrast to the more popularly known neighborhoods...
. The boundaries of these areas are more clearly defined than those of the
over 210 neighborhoodsChicago contains some of the most culturally rich communities in the United States. Each neighborhood maintains a strong identity and because of this, two different neighborhoods could seem like different parts of the world...
throughout the city, allowing for better year-by-year comparisons.
Downtown is the center of Chicago's cultural, commercial and financial institutions, and home to Grant Park and many of the city's skyscrapers. Many of the city's financial institutions are located within a section of downtown called "The Loop", which is an eight block by five block square of city streets that are encircled by elevated rail tracks.
The North Side is the most densely populated residential section of the city and many high-rises are located on this side of the city along the lakefront.
Lincoln ParkLincoln Park is an urban park in Chicago, Illinois.Lincoln Park may also refer to:-Parks:United States*Lincoln Park , California *Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California...
is a park stretching for along the waterfront and is also home to the
Lincoln Park ZooLincoln Park Zoo is a free zoo located in Lincoln Park neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, when the Lincoln Park Commissioners were given a gift of a pair of swans. In 1874, the swans were joined by a bear cub, the first animal purchased for the zoo...
. The
River NorthThe River North Gallery District in Chicago is in the Near North Side, Chicago. It hosts the largest concentration of art galleries in the United States outside of Manhattan. A common definition puts the District in the area north of the Merchandise Mart, south of Chicago Avenue, east of Orleans...
neighborhood features the nation's largest concentration of contemporary art galleries outside of
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
. As a
PoloniaPolonia, which is the name for Poland in Latin and in many other languages, refers in modern Polish language to the Polish diaspora, and to people of Polish origin who live outside Poland....
center, due to the city having the largest population of Poles of any city in the world outside of
WarsawWarsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River roughly from both the Baltic Sea coast and the Carpathian Mountains. Its population as of 2009 was estimated at 1,709,781, and the Warsaw metropolitan area at approximately 2,785,000...
, Chicago celebrates every
Labor DayLabor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September .The holiday originated in Canada out of labor disputes first in Hamilton, then in Toronto, Canada in the 1870s, which resulted in a Trade Union Act which legalized and protected union activity in 1872 in Canada...
weekend at the
Taste of PoloniaThe Taste of Polonia is a Chicago festival held at the Copernicus Cultural and Civic Center in the Jefferson Park community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States every Labor Day weekend since 1979. It is the Copernicus Foundation's major fundraiser and a four-day celebration of...
Festival in the
Jefferson ParkJefferson Park is one of Chicago's 77 well-defined community areas as well as a neighborhood located on the city's Northwest Side. The territorial discrepancy between the two stems from the fact that the neighborhood of Jefferson Park occupies a larger swath of territory than the community area by...
area.
The South Side is home to one of the city's largest parades, the annual African American Bud Billiken Day parade, and the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
. Parkland stretches along the waterfront of the South Side. Two of the city's largest parks are also located here:
Jackson ParkJackson Park is a 500 acre park on Chicago's South Side, located at 6401 South Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community area. It extends into the South Shore and Hyde Park community areas, bordering Lake Michigan and several South Side neighborhoods...
, bordering the waterfront, hosted the
World's Columbian ExpositionThe World's Columbian Exposition — also known as The Chicago World's Fair — was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World. Chicago bested New York City, Washington, D.C. and St. Louis, Missouri, for the honor of...
in 1893 and is the site of the
Museum of Science and IndustryThe Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
. Slightly farther west is
Washington ParkWashington Park is a 372 acre park between Cottage Grove Avenue and Martin Luther King Drive, located at 5531 S. Martin Luther King Dr. in the Washington Park community area on the South Side of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States...
, which was considered as the primary site of the Olympic Stadium for the
2016 Summer OlympicsThe 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, are a major international multi-sport event to be celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee...
, for which Chicago unsuccessfully bid. The two parks are connected by a strip of parkland called
Midway PlaisanceThe Midway Plaisance, also known locally as the Midway, is a mile-long linear park on the South Side of the city of Chicago, Illinois between 59th and 60th Streets, joining Washington Park at its west end and Jackson Park at its east end. It divides the Hyde Park community area to the north from...
. Also, the U.S. automaker,
Ford Motor CompanyThe Ford Motor Company is an American multinational corporation based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury brands, Ford also owns Volvo Cars of Sweden, and a small stake...
, has an assembly plant located on the South Side.
The West Side holds the
Garfield Park ConservatoryThe Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago, Illinois is one of the largest and most impressive conservatories in the United States. Often referred to as "landscape art under glass," the Garfield Park Conservatory occupies approximately 4.5 acres inside and out and contains a number of...
, one of the largest collections of tropical plants of any U.S. city. Cultural attractions include Humboldt Park's Puerto Rican Day Parade festival,Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and the National Museum of Mexican Art in Pilsen. The Near West Side holds the television production company of Harpo Studios.
Culture and contemporary life
The city's waterfront allure and nightlife has attracted residents and tourists alike. Over one-third of the city population is concentrated in the lakefront neighborhoods (from
Rogers ParkRogers Park is the northernmost of Chicago community areas in the far North Side of Chicago, Illinois, and is also the name of the Chicago neighborhood that constitutes most of the community area...
in the north to
South ShoreSouth Shore is one of 77 well-defined community areas of the City of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. A predominately black neighborhood located along Chicago's southern lakefront, it has become more diverse in recent years. It is a relatively stable and gentrifying neighborhood that has...
in the south). The North Side has a large
gay and lesbian communityThe gay community, or LGBT community, is a loosely defined grouping of LGBT and LGBT-supportive people, organizations and subultures, united by a common culture and civil rights movements. The term "gay community" may also refer to gay men only, or gay men and lesbians only. Generally these...
. Two North Side neighborhoods in particular, Lakeview and the Andersonville area of the Edgewater neighborhood, are home to many
LGBTLGBT is an initialism referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. In use since the 1990s, the term “LGBT” is an adaptation of the initialism “LGB” which itself started replacing the phrase “gay community” which many within LGBT communities felt did not represent...
businesses and organizations. The area surrounding the North Side intersections of
HalstedHalsted Street is a major north-south street in the American city of Chicago, Illinois.-Location:In Chicago's grid system, Halsted street marks 800 West, one mile west of State Street, from Grace Street in Lakeview south to the city limits at the Little Calumet River in West Pullman...
,
BelmontBelmont Avenue is a major east-west street on the North Side of Chicago. Belmont is a central commercial street in Lakeview and, west of the North Branch of the Chicago River, Avondale...
, and
ClarkChicago's Clark Street is a north-south street in Chicago running near the shore of Lake Michigan from 7600 North, the city limits with Evanston, to 2200 South in the city street numbering system...
is a gay district known as "
BoystownBoystown is the popular name of a district within Chicago, Illinois. Situated within the neighborhood of Lakeview, it was the first officially recognized gay village in the United States, as well as the cultural center of one of the largest lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender communities in the nation...
". The city has many upscale dining establishments as well as many ethnic restaurant districts. These include the Mexican villages such as Pilsen on 18th street and "La Villita" on 26th street,The
Puerto RicanA Puerto Rican is a person who was born or raised in Puerto Rico.Puerto Ricans born and raised in the United States are also referred to as Puerto Ricans, although they are not native Puerto Ricans, but descendants of Puerto Ricans...
enclave"Paseo Boricua" in the
Humboldt ParkHumboldt Park may refer to*Humboldt Park, Chicago, a Chicago neighborhood*Humboldt Park , a park in that neighborhood*Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, a Frederick Law Olmsted designed park formerly known as Humboldt Park...
neighborhood, "Greektown" on South Halsted, "Little Italy" on Taylor Street, just west of Halsted, "Chinatown" on the near South Side, Polish fare reigns at Belmont-Central, "Little Seoul" on and around Lawrence Avenue, a cluster of Vietnamese restaurants on Argyle Street and South Asian (Indian/Pakistani) on Devon Avenue.
Entertainment and performing arts
Chicago’s
theatreTheatre is a branch of the performing arts. While any performance may be considered theatre, as a performing art, it focuses almost exclusively on live performers creating a self contained drama. A performance qualifies as dramatic by creating a representational illusion...
community spawned modern
improvisational theatreImprovisational theatre is a form of theatre in which the improvisational actors/ improvisers use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously. Improvisers typically use audience suggestions to guide the performance as they create dialogue, setting, and plot extemporaneously...
. Two renowned comedy troupes emerged—
The Second CityThe Second City is a long-running improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
and
I.O.iO, or iO Chicago, is a theater located at 3541 N. Clark St., in Chicago, Illinois, in the neighborhood known as "Wrigleyville" . The theater both has performances of, and teaches improvisational comedy. It was founded in the 1980s by Del Close and Charna Halpern...
(formerly known as ImprovOlympic). Renowned Chicago theater companies include the
Steppenwolf Theatre CompanySteppenwolf Theatre Company is a Tony Award-winning Chicago theatre company founded in 1974 by Gary Sinise, Terry Kinney and Jeff Perry in the basement of a church in Highland Park, Illinois. Its name comes from the Hermann Hesse novel...
(on the city's north side), the
Goodman TheatreThe Goodman Theatre is a theater located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit organization. The building occupies the site of landmark Harris and Selwyn Theaters property....
, and the
Victory Gardens TheaterVictory Gardens Theater is a theater in Chicago, Illinois dedicated to the development and production of new plays and playwrights. The theater was founded in 1974 when seven Chicago artists, Warren Casey, Cordis Heard, Roberta Maguire, Mac McGuinnes, Cecil O'Neal, June Pyskaček, and David Rasche...
. Chicago offers Broadway-style entertainment at theaters such as Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre, Bank of America Theatre,
Cadillac Palace TheatreThe Cadillac Palace Theatre is a Chicago theatre owned by the Nederlander Organization and operated by Broadway In Chicago. It is located at 151 West Randolph Street in the Chicago Loop area downtown.-History:...
, Auditorium Building of Roosevelt University, and Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower Place.
Polish languagePolish is a West Slavic language and the official language of Poland. Its written standard is the Polish alphabet which corresponds basically to the Latin alphabet with a few additions...
productions for
Chicago's large Polish speaking populationPoles in Chicago, also known as Chicago Polonia, refers to both immigrant Poles and Americans of Polish heritage living in Chicago, Illinois. They are a part of worldwide Polonia, the proper term for the Polish Diaspora outside of the Republic of Poland. Poles in Chicago have contributed to the...
can be seen at the historic
Gateway TheatreThe Gateway Theatre, now part of the Copernicus Cultural and Civic Center in the Jefferson Park community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States, is the sole surviving atmospheric-style theatre in the Chicago area...
in
Jefferson ParkJefferson Park is one of Chicago's 77 well-defined community areas as well as a neighborhood located on the city's Northwest Side. The territorial discrepancy between the two stems from the fact that the neighborhood of Jefferson Park occupies a larger swath of territory than the community area by...
. Since 1968, the
Joseph Jefferson AwardsThe Joseph Jefferson Awards are given annually by a volunteer non-profit committee to acknowledge excellence in theatre in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are given in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson...
are given annually to acknowledge excellence in theater in the Chicago area.
Classical music offerings include the
Chicago Symphony OrchestraThe Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
, recognized as one of the finest orchestras in the world, which performs at
Symphony CenterSymphony Center is a music complex in Chicago, Illinois and is home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Sinfonietta. Symphony Center includes Orchestra Hall, which dates from 1904; Buntrock Hall, a rehearsal and performance space; a public multi-story rotunda; Rhapsody restaurant; and...
. Also performing regularly at
Symphony CenterSymphony Center is a music complex in Chicago, Illinois and is home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Sinfonietta. Symphony Center includes Orchestra Hall, which dates from 1904; Buntrock Hall, a rehearsal and performance space; a public multi-story rotunda; Rhapsody restaurant; and...
is the
Chicago SinfoniettaThe Chicago Sinfonietta is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. The stated mission of the orchestra is to "serve as a national model for inclusiveness and innovation in classical music" and to "help America become a true cultural democracy, in which everyone can share fully in its...
, a more diverse and multicultural counterpart to the CSO. In the summer, many outdoor concerts are given in
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
and
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
.
Ravinia ParkRavinia Park is a private park in Highland Park, Illinois with a variety of outdoor and indoor performing arts facilities, and it is best known as the site of the Ravinia Festival, the oldest outdoor music festival in the United States, with a series of outdoor concerts and performances held every...
, located north of Chicago, is also a favorite destination for many Chicagoans, with performances occasionally given in Chicago locations such as the
Harris TheaterJoan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Harris & Harris Theater or most commonly Harris Theater is a 1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern edge of Millennium Park on Randolph Street in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, USA...
. The
Civic Opera HouseThe Civic Opera House is an opera house located at 20 North Wacker Drive in Chicago. It is part of a building which contains a 45-story office tower and two 22-story wings. This structure opened on November 4, 1929 and has an Art Deco interior...
is home to the
Lyric Opera of ChicagoLyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1952, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicolà Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria Callas's American debut in Norma...
.
The
Joffrey BalletThe Joffrey Ballet is a dance company founded in 1956. From 1995 to 2004, the company was known as The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. It is considered one of the foremost ballet companies in the world. The company regularly performs classical ballets such as Romeo & Juliet and The Nutcracker, while...
and
Chicago Festival BalletChicago Festival Ballet is a professional ballet company performing a repertoire of classical, romantic and neoclassical works in venues around the United States. Chicago Festival Ballet is also known as Von Heidecke’s Chicago Festival Ballet...
perform in various venues, including the
Harris TheaterJoan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Harris & Harris Theater or most commonly Harris Theater is a 1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern edge of Millennium Park on Randolph Street in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, USA...
in
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
. Chicago is home to several other modern and jazz dance troupes, such as the
Hubbard Street Dance ChicagoHubbard Street Dance Chicago is an American dance company based in Chicago. HSDC performs in downtown Chicago and its metropolitan area and tours nationally and internationally throughout the year....
.
Other live music genre which are part of the city's cultural heritage include
Chicago bluesThe Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois by taking the basic acoustic guitar and harmonica-based Delta blues and adding electrically amplified guitar, amplified bass guitar, drums, piano, and sometimes saxophone, and making the harmonica louder with a...
,
Chicago soulChicago soul is a style of soul music that arose during the 1960s in Chicago. Along with Detroit, the home of Motown, and Memphis, with its hard-edged, gritty performers , Chicago and the Chicago soul style helped spur the album-oriented soul revolution of the early 1970s.The sound of Chicago...
,
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, and
gospelGospel music is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
. The city is the birthplace of
house musicHouse is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American and Latino American communities, first in Chicago, then in New York City, New Jersey, Detroit and Miami...
and is the site of an influential
hip-hop sceneThe hip hop scene in Chicago, Illinois has produced a group of artists and styles.-Gritty/Grimy:Chicago hip hop or Chicago rap music, has no uniform sound or standard style similar to East Coast hip hop. Chicago hip hop often varies between Alternative hip hop, Hipster rap, Gangsta rap, and...
. In the 1980s, the city was a center for industrial,
punkPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and new wave. This influence continued into the
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s...
of the 1990s. The city has been an epicenter for
raveRave or rave party is a term first used in the 1980s and 90s to describe dance parties with fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties DJs and other performers play Electronic Dance Music...
culture since the 1980s. A flourishing independent rock music culture brought forth Chicago indie. The city has also been spawning a critically acclaimed underground metal scene with various bands gaining national attention in the metal and hard rock world. Annual festivals feature various acts such as
LollapaloozaLollapalooza is an annual music festival featuring alternative rock, hip hop, and punk rock bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. It has also provided a platform for non-profit and political groups...
, the
Intonation Music FestivalThe Intonation Music Festival was a yearly summer music festival held at in Chicago, Illinois.- 2005 :The festival was held on July 16 - July 17, 2005...
and Pitchfork Music Festival.
Tourism
Chicago attracted an approximate combined 35 million people in 2007 from around the nation and abroad. Upscale shopping along the
Magnificent MileThe Magnificent Mile is the portion of Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois extending from the Chicago River to Oak Street in the Near North Side community area. The district is located adjacent to downtown; it is also one block east of Rush Street, which is known for its nightlife...
and
State StreetState Street is a large south-north thoroughfare in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It begins on the Near North Side at North Avenue. For much of its course, it lies between Wabash Avenue on the east and Dearborn Street/Lafayette Avenue on the west...
, thousands of restaurants, as well as Chicago's eminent architecture, continue to draw tourists. The city is the United States' third-largest convention destination. Most conventions are held at
McCormick PlaceMcCormick Place is a large convention center made up of four interconnected buildings sited on and near the shore of Lake Michigan, about 4 km south of downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. McCormick Place hosts numerous trade shows, including the Chicago Auto Show, held every February.-History:As...
, just south of
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
. The historic
Chicago Cultural CenterThe Chicago Cultural Center is a Chicago Landmark building that houses the city's official reception venue where the Mayor has welcomed Presidents and royalty, diplomats and community leaders. The building is a testament to the foresight of Chicago's turn of the century cultural leadership...
(1897), originally serving as the Chicago Public Library, now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries and exhibit halls. The ceiling of its Preston Bradley Hall includes a
Tiffany glassTiffany glass is the generic name used here to describe the many and varied types of glass developed and produced from 1848 to 1933 at the Tiffany Studios, by Louis Comfort Tiffany. However, it is his head designer until 1909, Clara Driscoll, who is the person now recognized as the real creator of...
dome.
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
sits on a deck built over a portion of the former
Illinois Central RailroadThe Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois with New Orleans, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama. A line also connected Chicago with Sioux City, Iowa...
yard. The park includes the reflective
Cloud GateCloud Gate, a public sculpture by Indian-born British artist Anish Kapoor, is the centerpiece of the AT&T Plaza in Millennium Park within the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. The sculpture and AT&T Plaza are located on top of Park Grill, between the Chase Promenade and McCormick Tribune...
sculpture (known locally as "The Bean"). An outdoor Millennium Park restaurant transforms into an
ice rinkAn ice rink is a frozen body of water where people can ice skate or play winter sports. Some of its uses include playing ice hockey, figure skating exhibitions and contests, and ice shows.-Natural ice rink:...
in the winter. Two tall glass sculptures make up the
Crown FountainCrown Fountain is an interactive work of public art and video sculpture featured in Chicago's Millennium Park, which is located in the Loop community area. Designed by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa, it opened in July 2004. The fountain is composed of a black granite reflecting pool placed between a...
. The fountain's two towers display visual effects from LED images of Chicagoans' faces, along with water spouting from their lips.
Frank GehryFrank Owen Gehry, CC is a Canadian Pritzker Prize-winning architect based in Los Angeles.His buildings, including his private residence, have become tourist attractions...
's detailed, stainless steel band shell, the
Jay Pritzker PavilionJay Pritzker Pavilion, Pritzker Pavilion, or Pritzker Music Pavilion is a band shell in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The pavilion was designed by Frank Gehry, named for Pritzker family member Jay Pritzker, and was constructed between...
, hosts the classical
Grant Park Music FestivalGrant Park Music Festival is an annual classical music concert series held in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is claimed to be the nation's only free, outdoor classical music series. It is currently housed in the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook...
concert series. Behind the pavilion's stage is the
Harris Theater for Music and DanceJoan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Harris & Harris Theater or most commonly Harris Theater is a 1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern edge of Millennium Park on Randolph Street in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, USA...
, an indoor venue for mid-sized performing arts companies, including the
Chicago Opera TheaterThe Chicago Opera Theater is an opera company that was founded as the Chicago Opera Studio in 1974 by Alan Stone to give vocal students performance experience, although it has grown into a professional opera company...
and Music of the Baroque.
In 1998, the city officially opened the
Museum CampusMuseum Campus Chicago is a 57-acre lakefront park in Chicago that surrounds three of the city's most notable museums, all dedicated to the natural sciences: the Adler Planetarium, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Field Museum of Natural History....
, a lakefront park, surrounding three of the city's main museums: the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, the
Field Museum of Natural HistoryThe Field Museum of Natural History is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It sits on Lake Shore Drive next to Lake Michigan, part of a scenic complex known as the Museum Campus Chicago...
, and the
Shedd AquariumThe John G. Shedd Aquarium is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago, Illinois in the United States that opened on May 30 1930. The aquarium contains over 25,000 fish, and was for some time the largest indoor aquarium in the world with of water. The Shedd Aquarium was the first inland aquarium with...
. The Museum Campus joins the southern section of
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
, which includes the renowned
Art Institute of ChicagoThe School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, The Art Institute of Chicago. Providing degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels, SAIC...
.
Buckingham FountainBuckingham Fountain is a Chicago landmark in Grant Park which was dedicated in 1927. The fountain itself represents Lake Michigan, while each sea horse symbolizes a state bordering the lake.-History:...
anchors the downtown park along the lakefront. The
Oriental InstituteThe Oriental Institute , established in 1919, is the University of Chicago's archeology museum and research center for ancient Near Eastern studies....
, part of the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
, has an extensive collection of
ancient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. The civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and...
ian and
Near EastNear East today is an ambiguous term that covers different countries for archeologists and historians, on one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
ern archaeological artifacts. Other museums and galleries in Chicago include the Chicago History Museum, the DuSable Museum of African American History, the
Museum of Contemporary ArtThe Museum of Contemporary Art, often abbreviated to MCA, is a contemporary art museum near Water Tower Place in downtown Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The museum, which was established in 1967, is one of the world's largest contemporary art venues...
, the
Peggy Notebaert Nature MuseumThe Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum is a nature museum located in Chicago, Illinois. The museum, which opened in October 1999, is located at the intersection of Fullerton Parkway and Cannon Drive in Lincoln Park. It is operated by the Chicago Academy of Sciences, which had previously been located at...
, the
Polish Museum of AmericaThe Polish Museum of America is located in West Town, in what had been the historical Polish Downtown neighborhood of Chicago. It is home to a plethora of Polish artifacts, artwork, and embroidered folk costumes among its growing collection...
, the
Museum of Broadcast CommunicationsThe Museum of Broadcast Communications is located in Chicago, Illinois. Its mission is "to collect, preserve, and present historic and contemporary radio and television content as well as educate, inform, and entertain through our archives, public programs, screenings, exhibits, publications and...
and the
Museum of Science and IndustryThe Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
.
Parks
When Chicago incorporated in 1837, it chose the motto "Urbs in Horto", a
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
phrase which translates into
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...
as "City in a Garden". Today the
Chicago Park DistrictThe Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
consists of 552 parks with over 7,300 acres (30 km²) of municipal parkland as well as 33 sand beaches, nine museums, two world-class conservatories, 16 historic lagoons and 10 bird and wildlife gardens.
Lincoln ParkLincoln Park is an urban park in Chicago, Illinois.Lincoln Park may also refer to:-Parks:United States*Lincoln Park , California *Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California...
, the largest of the city parks, covers 1200 acres and has over 20 million visitors each year, making it second only to
Central ParkCentral Park is a large public, urban park that occupies over a square mile in the heart of Manhattan in New York City. It is host to approximately twenty-five million visitors each year...
in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
in number of visitors. With accommodations for more than 5,000 boats, Chicago has the nation's largest municipal harbor system; even larger than systems in cities such as
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
,
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
, or Miami. The system is operated by the
Chicago Park DistrictThe Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
which also operates the city's parks. In addition to ongoing beautification and renewal projects for existing parks, a number of new parks have been added in recent years such as
Ping Tom Memorial ParkPing Tom Memorial Park is a public urban park in Chicago's, Chinatown owned and operated by the Chicago Park District . Located on the south bank of the Chicago River, the park is divided into three sections by a Santa Fe rail track and 18th Street. Currently, only development in the area south of...
, DuSable Park and most notably
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
. The wealth of greenspace afforded by Chicago's parks is further augmented by the
Cook County Forest PreservesThe Cook County Forest Preserves are a network of open spaces, containing forest, prairie, wetland, streams, and lakes, that are set aside as natural areas. Cook County contains Chicago, Illinois, and is the center of a densely-populated urban metropolitan area in northeastern Illinois...
, a network of open spaces containing
forestA forest is an area with a high density of trees. There are many definitions of a forest, based on the various criteria. These plant communities presently cover approximately 9.4% of the Earth's surface in many different regions and function as habitats for organisms, hydrologic flow modulators,...
,
prairiePrairies are considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type...
,
wetlandA wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally. Such areas may also be covered partially or completely by shallow pools of water. Wetlands include swamps, marshes, and bogs, among others. The water found in wetlands can be saltwater, freshwater,...
,
streamA stream is a flowing body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, kill, lick, rill, river syke, bayou, rivulet, or run...
s, and
lakeA lake is a terrain feature , a body of liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the bottom of basin and moves slowly if it moves at all. Another definition is, a body of fresh or salt water of considerable size that is surrounded by land...
s that are set aside as natural areas which lie along the city's periphery, home to both the
Chicago Botanic GardenLocated at 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, Illinois, USA, the Chicago Botanic Garden is a living plant museum situated on nine islands featuring 23 display gardens surrounded by lakes, as well as a prairie and woodlands. The Garden is open every day of the year, except December 25th...
and
Brookfield ZooThe Brookfield Zoo is a zoo located in the Chicago suburb of Brookfield, Illinois. The zoo covers an area of 216 acres and houses around 450 species of animals....
.
Cuisine
Chicago lays claim to a large number of regional specialties, all of which reflect the city's ethnic and
working classWorking class is a term used in academic sociology and in ordinary conversation to describe, depending on context and speaker, those employed in lower tier jobs as measured by skill, education, and compensation....
roots. Included among these are its nationally renowned
deep-dish pizzaChicago-style pizza is a deep-dish pizza style developed in Chicago. Chicago-style pizza has a buttery crust up to three inches tall at the edge, slightly higher than the large amounts of cheese and chunky tomato sauce, acting as a large bowl. The term also refers to "stuffed" pizza, another...
, although locally the Chicago-style thin crust is also popular; featuring a thinner than normal crust. There are very few pizzerias that specialize in true Chicago-style deep dish, the most prominent being
Gino's EastGino's East is a Chicago-based restaurant chain, notable for its deep-dish pizza , and for its interior walls, which thousands of patrons have covered in graffiti and etchings.-Cuisine:...
,
Pizzeria Uno and DueUno Chicago Grill, formerly known as Pizzeria Uno or more informally as Uno's, is the title for a franchised pizzeria restaurant chain under the parent company Uno Restaurant Holdings Corporation. The first Uno's was established in 1943 by former University of Texas football star Ike Sewell and his...
,
Giordano'sGiordano's is a pizzeria that specializes in Chicago-style pizza. The company started in 1974 after the owners, brothers Efren and Joseph Boglio, Italian immigrants, were discouraged at the lack of authentic pizza available in the Chicago area...
and
Lou Malnati'sLou Malnati's Pizzeria is a family-owned Chicago-style pizza restaurant chain headquartered in Lincolnwood, Illinois. It was founded by the son of Rudy Malnati, who was instrumental in developing the recipe for Chicago-style pizza, and it has become one of the Chicago area's best-known local...
. The number of "authentic" Chicago pizzerias specializing in the thin crust version is much higher, with many being "Mom and Pop" style shops. Among the largest chains in Chicago area are
Home Run InnHome Run Inn is a pizzeria chain based in the Chicago, Illinois, metropolitan area of the United States. It has seven locations, including two in Chicago, Addison, IL, Bolingbrook, IL, Westmont, IL, Bellwood, IL, Melrose Park, IL and Darien, IL...
,
Rosati'sRosati's Pizza is the second largest chain of restaurants in the Chicago metropolitan area, boasting nearly 150 locations nationwide. The chain centers its business around the thin crust variety of Chicago-style pizza...
and
Aurelio'sAurelio's Pizza is an Illinois restaurant chain which centers its business around the thin crust variety of Chicago-style pizza. Aurelio's locations are mostly franchised, with only the two original stores in Homewood, Illinois and Richton Park, Illinois being owned by the Aurelio family...
. The
Chicago-style hot dogA Chicago-style hot dog is a steamed, boiled or grilled – but never broiled – all-beef hot dog on a poppy seed bun, originating from the city of Chicago, Illinois...
, typically a
Vienna BeefVienna Beef is a manufacturer of hot dog used in the the classic Chicago style hot dog, as well as Polish sausage and Italian beef, delicacies of independent Chicago-style hot dog and beef stands...
dog loaded with an array of fixings that often includes Chicago's own neon green pickle
relishA relish is a cooked pickled, chopped vegetable or fruit food item which is typically used as a condiment.-Description and ingredients:The item generally consists of discernible vegetable or fruit pieces in a sauce, although the sauce is subordinate in character to the vegetable or fruit pieces. ...
, yellow mustard, pickled
sport peppersChili pepper is the vegetable of the plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Botanically speaking, the fruit of capsicums are berries...
, tomato wedges, dill pickle spear and topped off with celery salt. Ketchup on a Chicago hot dog is frowned upon. There are two other distinctly Chicago sandwiches, the
Italian beefAn Italian beef is a sandwich of thin slices of seasoned roast beef, dripping with meat juices, on a dense, long Italian-style roll, believed to have originated in Chicago, where its history dates back at least to the 1930s...
sandwich, which is thinly sliced beef slowly simmered in an
au jusAu jus is French for "with [its own] juice"; jus is the juice itself.In American cuisine, the term is mostly used to refer to a light sauce for beef recipes, which may be served with the food or placed on the side for dipping. In French cuisine, jus is a natural way to enhance the flavour of...
served on an Italian roll with sweet peppers or spicy
giardinieraGiardiniera is an Italian or Italian-American relish of pickled vegetables in vinegar or oil. Giardiniera is available as either mild or hot. Hot giardiniera is often referred to as "Hot G"....
, and the
Maxwell Street PolishA Maxwell Street Polish consists of a grilled or fried sausage topped with grilled onions and yellow mustard and optional sport peppers, on a bun. The sausage, a cross between Polish kielbasa and a natural-casing hot dog, is typically spicier than either and usually made from beef and pork...
, which is a
kielbasaKiełbasa is the Polish word for sausage. The word has become a commonly used North American term for Eastern European styles of sausage, including Ukrainian sausage, which is called kovbasa or kubasa.-Etymology:...
—typically from either the
Vienna BeefVienna Beef is a manufacturer of hot dog used in the the classic Chicago style hot dog, as well as Polish sausage and Italian beef, delicacies of independent Chicago-style hot dog and beef stands...
Company or the Bobak Sausage Company—on a hot dog roll, topped with grilled onions, yellow mustard and the optional sport peppers. Two other ethnic local creations are the Puerto Rican
jibaritoThe jibarito , a specialty of Aguada and Chicago, is a sandwich made with flattened, fried green plantains instead of bread....
, a sandwich made with flattened, fried green plantains instead of bread and
GreekThe Greeks , also known as Hellenes, are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions, who can also be found in diaspora communities around the world....
saganakiSaganaki is a Greek appetizer of fried cheese.The cheese used is usually Kefalograviera, Kasseri, Kefalotyri, or sheep's milk Feta cheese...
, an appetizer of fried cheese.
McDonald'sMcDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving nearly 47 million customers daily. At one time it was the largest global restaurant chain, but it has since been surpassed by multi-brand operator Yum! and sandwich chain Subway.In addition to its...
even adds its own downtown flavor, with their Rock-n-Roll McDonald's.
The grand tour of Chicago cuisine culminates annually in
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
at the
Taste of ChicagoThe Taste of Chicago is the world's largest food festival, held annually for 10 days in Chicago starting Friday before the 4th of July and ending the Sunday after . The event is the largest festival in Chicago...
which runs from the final week of June through
Fourth of JulyIn the United States, Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
weekend. Chicago features a number of celebrity chefs, a list which includes
Charlie TrotterCharlie Trotter is a Chicago chef and restaurateur.-Biography:A graduate of New Trier High School, Trotter started cooking professionally in 1982 after earning a degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison...
,
Rick TramontoRick Tramonto is a Chicago chef and cookbook author. He is executive chef and partner in Tru, a contemporary fine-dining restaurant from Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises.-Biography:...
,
Jean JohoJean Joho is a renowned chef and restaurateur. He currently heads the restaurant Everest in Chicago.Born in Alsace, France, he began his formal training at the age of 13 at L'Auberge de L'lll under master chef Paul Haeberlin. Joho continued to perfect his skill in kitchens throughout Europe. Later,...
,
Grant AchatzGrant Achatz is an American chef and restaurateur who is considered to be on the cutting edge of the movement of menu item construction often referred to as molecular gastronomy or progressive cuisine...
, and
Rick BaylessRick Bayless is an American chef who specializes in traditional Mexican cuisine with modern interpretations. He is, perhaps, best known for his PBS series Mexico: One Plate at a Time....
.
Chicago features a wide selection of
vegetarian cuisineVegetarian cuisine refers to food that meets vegetarian standards by excluding meat and animal tissue products. For lacto-ovo vegetarianism , eggs and dairy products such as milk and cheese are permitted...
, with 22 fully vegetarian restaurants and many vegetarian-friendly establishments within the city.
Sports
Chicago was named the
Best Sports City in the United States by
The Sporting NewsSporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
in 1993 and 2006. The city is home to two
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
(MLB) teams: the
Chicago CubsThe Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago , the Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the...
of the
National LeagueThe National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league...
(NL), who play in
Wrigley FieldWrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
on the city's North Side, and the
Chicago White SoxThe Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
of the
American LeagueThe American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, that eventually aspired to major league...
(AL), who play in
U.S. Cellular FieldU.S. Cellular Field is a baseball ballpark in Chicago, Illinois. Owned by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, it is the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League. The park opened for the 1991 season, after the White Sox had spent 81 years at old Comiskey Park...
on the city's South Side. Chicago is the only city in
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
that has had more than one MLB franchise every year since the AL began in 1900. The
Chicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the NFC North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, one of the last two remaining charter members of the
National Football LeagueThe National Football League is the largest professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing its name to the National Football League in 1922. The league currently consists of...
(NFL), have won nine
NFL Championships, including
Super Bowl XXSuper Bowl XX was an American football game played on January 26, 1986 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1985 regular season...
. The other remaining charter franchise, the Chicago Cardinals, also started out in the city, but are now known as the
Arizona CardinalsThe Arizona Cardinals are a professional American Football team based in Glendale, Arizona. The Cardinals are members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Cardinals were founded in 1898, and are the oldest continuously run professional...
. The Bears play their home games at
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
on Chicago's lakefront.
The
Chicago BullsThe Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
of the
National Basketball AssociationThe National Basketball Association is a professional basketball league, composed of thirty teams in North America . It is an active member of USA Basketball , which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation as the National Governing Body for basketball in the United States...
(NBA) are one of the most recognized
basketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of 5 players try to score points against one another by placing a ball through a
10 foot high hoop under organized rules...
teams in the world. During the 1990s with
Michael JordanMichael Jeffrey Jordan is a retired American professional basketball player and active businessman. His biography on the National Basketball Association website states, "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time." Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed...
leading them, the Bulls took six NBA championships in eight seasons (only failing to do so in the two years of Jordan's absence). The
Chicago BlackhawksThe Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won three Stanley Cup Championships and thirteen division titles since their founding in 1926...
of the
National Hockey LeagueThe National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league as a joint venture for its self perpetuating membership of 30 franchised member clubs located in the United States and Canada...
(NHL), who began play in 1926, have won three
Stanley CupThe Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club cup trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion. It has been referred to as The Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
s. The Blackhawks also hosted the
2009 NHL Winter ClassicThe 2009 NHL Winter Classic, also known as the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic 2009, was a specially-staged National Hockey League regular-season game played outdoors on January 1, 2009 at 12:36 p.m. CST at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois...
at Wrigley Field. Both the Bulls and Blackhawks play at the
United CenterThe United Center is an indoor sports arena located in the Near West Side community area of Chicago. It is named after its corporate sponsor, United Airlines. The United Center is home to both the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League and the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball...
on the Near West Side.
The
Chicago FireThe Chicago Fire is an American professional soccer club based in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview, Illinois that participates in Major League Soccer. The team was founded on October 8, 1997, on the 126th anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. In 1998, their inaugural league season, the...
are members of
Major League SoccerMajor League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by United States Soccer Federation . The league comprises 15 teams, 14 in the U.S. and one in Canada...
. The Fire have won one league and four
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open CupThe Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is an American soccer competition open to all United States Soccer Federation affiliated teams, from amateur adult club teams to the professional clubs of Major League Soccer....
s, since their inaugural season in 1998. In 2006, the club moved to its current home,
Toyota ParkToyota Park is a multi-purpose stadium located at 71st Street and Harlem Avenue in Bridgeview, Illinois. It is the home stadium of the Chicago Fire, members of Major League Soccer . Toyota Park was developed at a cost of around $100 million...
in suburban
BridgeviewBridgeview is a village in Cook County, Illinois in the United States. It is located approximately from the Chicago Loop. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 15,335...
, after playing its first eight seasons downtown at Soldier Field and at
Cardinal StadiumBenedetti-Wehrli Stadium is a stadium in Naperville, Illinois. It is primary used for American football and soccer. The stadium hosted the 2000 NCAA track and field outdoor championships. The stadium opened in 1999 for North Central College and was used by the Chicago Fire in 2002 and 2003, when it...
in
NapervilleNaperville is a city in DuPage and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, within the Chicago metropolitan area. In 2006, Money magazine listed Naperville as #2 on its annual list of America's best small cities to live in...
. The club is now the third professional soccer team to call Chicago home, or associate its name with Chicago, the first two being the former
Chicago StingThe Chicago Sting was an American professional soccer team based in Chicago, Illinois. The Sting played in the North American Soccer League from 1975 to 1984 and in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1984 to 1988. They were North American Champions in 1981 and 1984.The Sting were founded in 1975...
of the
North American Soccer LeagueNorth American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
(and later of the
Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL)The Major Indoor Soccer League was the top professional indoor soccer league in the USA. The league was a member of both the United States Soccer Federation and FIFA. The MISL had replaced the NPSL which folded in 2001. According to MISL.net, the league has ceased operations as of May 31, 2008...
), and the former
Chicago PowerThe Chicago Power were an indoor soccer club based in Chicago, Illinois that competed in the American Indoor Soccer Association and National Professional Soccer League.After the 1995/96 season, the team became the Edmonton Drillers.-Year-by-year:...
of the National Professional Soccer League II. The
Chicago Red StarsThe Chicago Red Stars is an American professional soccer club that is based in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview, Illinois that participates in Women's Professional Soccer...
of
Women's Professional SoccerWomen's Professional Soccer is the top level professional women's soccer league in the United States that began play on March 29, 2009. The league replaced the Women's United Soccer Association , which folded after the 2003 season...
also play in Toyota Park. The
Chicago BanditsThe Chicago Bandits are a women's softball team based in Elgin, Illinois. Since the 2005 season, they have played as a member of National Pro Fastpitch. The Bandits won the 2008 NPF championship, defeating the Washington Glory in the final game of the championship series...
of
National Pro FastpitchNational Pro Fastpitch , formerly the Women's Pro Softball League , is the only professional women's softball league in the United States. The WPSL was founded in 1997 and folded in 2001...
play at Judson Field in Elgin and the
Chicago WolvesThe Chicago Wolves are a professional hockey team playing in the American Hockey League. The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois. The Wolves are owned by Don Levin and Buddy Meyers, who are a pair of Chicago business owners.Originally a member of...
of the
American Hockey LeagueThe American Hockey League is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League . 28 of the 30 NHL teams have exclusive affiliation agreements with one of the AHL's 29 active clubs...
play at the
Allstate ArenaThe Allstate Arena is a sports arena in Rosemont, Illinois, which is home to the Chicago Wolves hockey club, DePaul University men's basketball, Chicago Sky basketball organization and was the home of the defunct Chicago Rush Arena football team...
. The former
Chicago RushThe Chicago Rush was an arena football team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They were members of the Central Division of the American Conference in the former Arena Football League . The team was founded in 2001, and was co-owned by Mike Ditka, the a Hall of Fame player and coach...
of the suspended
Arena Football LeagueThe Arena Football League was founded in 1987 as an indoor American football by Jim Foster. It was played indoors on a smaller field than American football, resulting in a faster-paced and higher-scoring game...
, also played at the Allstate Arena. The
Chicago SkyThe Chicago Sky are a Women's National Basketball Association team based in Chicago, Illinois. They began league play in 2006. Their home court is the UIC Pavilion. Sky games are broadcast on WTTW or WCIU and WVON-AM 1690...
of the
Women's National Basketball AssociationThe Women's National Basketball Association is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. It currently is composed of thirteen teams. The league was founded in 1996 as the women's counterpart to the NBA...
began play in 2006. The Sky's home arena is the
UIC PavilionThe UIC Pavilion is a 6,958-seat multi-purpose arena, located at 525 S. Racine Street on the West Side in Chicago, Illinois, USA, which opened in 1982 with a Loverboy concert. It is home to the University of Illinois at Chicago Flames basketball team and the original home of the Chicago Sky WNBA...
. Also calling the UIC Pavilion home are the
Windy City RollersThe Windy City Rollers are an all-female flat-track Roller Derby league located in Chicago, the city where roller derby first emerged as a sport in 1935. The Windy City Rollers, founded by Juanna Rumbel and Sister Sledgehammer , are the first flat-track Roller Derby league established in Chicago...
of the
Women's Flat Track Derby AssociationFounded in April 2004 as the United Leagues Coalition and renamed in November 2005, the Women's Flat Track Derby Association is an association of women's flat track roller derby leagues in the United States. The organization is registered in Raleigh, North Carolina as a 501 business league...
, Chicago's premiere roller derby league. The Chicago Slaughter of the Continental Indoor Football League began in 2006 and play at the
Sears CentreThe Sears Centre is an 11,000-seat multi-purpose family entertainment, cultural and sports center in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago. The venue opened on October 26, 2006, with performances by Duran Duran and Bob Dylan; it was estimated to attract over 750,000 visitors...
. The
Chicago StormThe Chicago Storm is a team in the Xtreme Soccer League that began play in the 2004-2005 season as a member of the Major Indoor Soccer League....
played from 2004 to 2007 in the MISL, when they moved to the
Xtreme Soccer LeagueThe Xtreme Soccer League is an indoor soccer league that began play in December 2008. Four teams from the former Major Indoor Soccer League are participating in the first XSL season. These teams are the Chicago Storm, Detroit Ignition, Milwaukee Wave, and New Jersey Ironmen...
after the MISL folded. The Chicago Storm also play at the Sears Centre.
The
Chicago MachineThe Chicago Machine is a professional lacrosse team based in Bridgeview, Illinois. Since the 2006 season, they have played in Major League Lacrosse. They will play the season opener and closer at Soldier Field in Chicago for the 2009 season....
, a
Major League LacrosseMajor League Lacrosse is a professional men's field lacrosse league that is made up of five teams in the United States and one team in Canada. The league currently has all six teams in one conference.- History :...
team, has been playing since 2006. Their home field is Toyota Park, but they are playing their 2009 season opener and closer at
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
.
The
Chicago MarathonThe Bank of America Chicago Marathon is a major marathon held yearly in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Alongside the Boston, New York, London and Berlin Marathons, it is one of the five World Marathon Majors. The October 11, 2009 running will be the 32nd Anniversary running of...
has been held each year since 1977 except for in 1987, when a half marathon was run in its place. This event is one of five
World Marathon MajorsThe World Marathon Majors is a championship-style competition that started in 2006. It comprises five annual races in Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York City. Two other races are also included in the series: the IAAF World Championships Marathon and the Olympic Games Marathon...
.
In 1994, the United States hosted a successful
FIFA World CupThe 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in the United States from 17 June to 17 July 1994. The United States was chosen as hosts by FIFA in July 1988...
with games played at
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
.
Chicago was selected on April 14, 2007, to represent the United States internationally in the bidding for the
2016 Summer OlympicsThe 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, are a major international multi-sport event to be celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee...
. Chicago also hosted the
1959 Pan American GamesThe 3rd Pan American Games opened on August 27, 1959 in sunny 90°F heat before 40,000 people in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The first Pan American Games were held outside Latin America. They were originally scheduled for Cleveland, Ohio, but the U.S. Congress’s decision to cut $5,000,000 in...
and the 2006 Gay Games. Chicago was selected to host the 1904 Olympics, but they were transferred to
St. LouisSt. Louis is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. With an estimated population of 354,361 in 2008, it is the principal municipality of Greater St. Louis, population 2,866,517, the largest urban area in Missouri and sixteenth largest in the United States...
to coincide with the World's Fair. On June 4, 2008, the
International Olympic CommitteeThe International Olympic Committee is an organization based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas on 23 June 1894. Its membership consists of the 205 National Olympic Committees....
selected Chicago as one of four candidate cities for the 2016 games. On October 2, 2009,
Rio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America. The city was the capital of Brazil for nearly two centuries, from 1763 to 1822 during the Portuguese colonial era, and...
was selected to host the 2016 Olympics.
Starting just off
Navy PierNavy Pier is a long pier on the Chicago shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of the Near North Side community area. The pier was built in 1916 at a cost of $4.5 million, equivalent to $ today. It was a part of the Plan of Chicago developed by architect and...
is
Chicago Yacht ClubThe Chicago Yacht Club is located in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago Yacht Club is best known for organizing the Chicago to Mackinac Race each July. It also hosts dozens of other races and regattas throughout the season.- History :...
's
Race to MackinacThe Chicago to Mackinac Sailboat Race is run by the Chicago Yacht Club. It is one of the longest fresh-water races in the world, with hundreds of boats entering the race each year. It starts off the mouth of the Chicago River in Chicago, crosses Lake Michigan, barely enters Lake Huron, and finishes...
, a offshore sailboat race held each July that is the longest annual freshwater sailing distance race in the world. 2010 marks the 102nd running of the "Mac".
At the collegiate level, Chicago and suburban
EvanstonEvanston, Illinois is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois directly north of the City of Chicago, east of Skokie, and south of Wilmette, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan. Evanston is concurrently a city...
have two national athletic conferences, the
Big East ConferenceThe Big East Conference is a collegiate athletics conference consisting of sixteen universities in the northeastern, southeastern and midwestern United States. The conference's 17 members participate in 23 NCAA sports...
with
DePaul UniversityDePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest who valued philanthropy, Saint Vincent de Paul...
, and the
Big Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its eleven member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Iowa and Minnesota in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
with
Northwestern UniversityIn the study of political science the executive branch of government has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the democratic idea of the separation of powers .In many...
and
legislativeA legislature is a type of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law...
branches. The
Mayor of ChicagoThe Mayor of Chicago is the chief executive of Chicago, Illinois, the third largest city in the United States. He or she is charged with directing city departments and agencies, and with the advice and consent of the Chicago City Council, appoints department and agency leaders.-Appointment...
is the
chief executiveA chief executive officer or chief executive is one of the highest-ranking corporate officers or administrators in charge of total management...
, elected by general election for a term of four years, with no term limits. The mayor appoints commissioners and other officials who oversee the various departments. In addition to the mayor, Chicago's two other citywide elected officials are the clerk and the treasurer.
The
City CouncilThe Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of fifty aldermen elected from fifty wards to serve four-year terms...
is the legislative branch and is made up of 50 aldermen, one elected from each
wardIn the United States, a ward is an optional division of a city or town, especially an electoral district, for administrative and representative purposes...
in the city. The council enacts local ordinances and approves the city budget. Government priorities and activities are established in a budget ordinance usually adopted each November. The council takes official action through the passage of ordinances and resolutions.
During much of the last half of the 19th century, Chicago's politics were dominated by a growing
Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
organization dominated by ethnic ward-heelers. During the 1880s and 1890s, Chicago had a powerful radical tradition with large and highly organized
socialistSocialism refers to various theories of economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on...
,
anarchistAnarchism is a political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which consider the state, as compulsory government, to be unnecessary, harmful, and/or undesirable, and favors the absence of the state ....
and labor organizations. For much of the 20th century, Chicago has been among the largest and most reliable Democratic strongholds in the United States, with Chicago's Democratic vote the state of Illinois has been "solid blue" in
presidential electionsElections for President and Vice President of the United States are indirect elections in which voters cast ballots for a slate of electors of the U.S. Electoral College, who in turn directly elect the President and Vice President. They occur quadrennially on Election Day, the Tuesday between...
since 1992. The citizens of Chicago have not elected a
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
mayor since 1927, when
William ThompsonWilliam Hale Thompson was mayor of Chicago from 1915 to 1923 and again from 1927 to 1931. Known as "Big Bill", Thompson was the last Republican to serve as Mayor of Chicago, and ranks among the most corrupt mayors in American history .Thompson was born in Boston, Massachusetts, but his family...
was voted into office. The strength of the party in the city is partly a consequence of Illinois state politics, where the Republicans have come to represent the rural and farm concerns while the Democrats support urban issues such as Chicago's public school funding. Although Chicago includes less than 25% of the state's population, eight of Illinois' nineteen
U.S. RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the "House," is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, the upper house being the United States Senate. The composition and powers of the House and the Senate are established in Article One of the Constitution...
have part of the city in their
districtsIllinois has nineteen congressional districts. It once had as many as twenty-six. Before statehood, it was represented by a non-voting delegate....
.
Former Chicago Mayor
Richard J. DaleyRichard Joseph Daley served for 21 years as the undisputed Democratic boss of Chicago and is considered by historians to be the "last of the big city bosses." He played a major role in the history of the Democratic Party, especially with his support of John F...
's mastery of
machine politicsA political machine is a disciplined political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters , who receive rewards for their efforts...
preserved the Chicago Democratic Machine long after the demise of similar machines in other large U.S. cities. During much of that time, the city administration found opposition mainly from a liberal "independent" faction of the Democratic Party. The independents finally gained control of city government in 1983 with the election of
Harold WashingtonHarold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Background and early career :...
. Since 1989, Chicago has been under the leadership of
Richard M. DaleyRichard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party and current Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007...
, the son of Richard J. Daley. Because of the dominance of the Democratic Party in Chicago, the Democratic
primaryA primary election , also referred to simply as a primary, is an election in which voters in a jurisdiction select candidates for a subsequent election...
vote held in the spring is generally more significant than the general elections in November.
Crime
Murders in the city peaked first in 1974, with 970 murders when the city's population was over three million people (resulting in a murder rate of around 29 per 100,000), and again in 1992 with 943 murders, resulting in a murder rate of 34 per 100,000. Chicago, along with other major US cities, experienced a significant reduction in violent crime rates through the 1990s, eventually recording 448
homicideHomicide refers to the act of a human killing a human being. A common form of homicide, for example, would be murder. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English...
s in 2004, the lowest total since 1965 (15.65 per 100,000.) Chicago's homicide tally remained steady throughout 2005, 2006, and 2007 with 449, 452, and 435 respectively.
In 2008, murders rebounded to 510 to lead the country, breaking 500 for the first time since 2003
. As of late September 2009 the murder count was down about 10% for the year.
Education
There are 666 public schools, 394 private schools, 83 colleges, and 88 libraries in the Chicago proper.
Chicago Public SchoolsChicago Public Schools, commonly abbreviated as CPS by local residents and politicians, is a large school district that manages 666 public elementary and high schools in Chicago, Illinois. Chicago Public Schools is currently the third largest school district in the United States, with more than...
(CPS) is the governing body of the
school district-United States:In the United States, public schools are either school districts, which are independent special-purpose governments, or dependent school systems, which are under the control of state or local government. A school district is a legally separate body corporate and politic...
that contains over 600 public elementary and high schools citywide, including several selective-admission magnet schools. The district, with an enrollment exceeding 400,000 students (2005 stat.), ranks as the third largest in the U.S. Chicago's
private schoolPrivate schools, also known as independent schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students tuition, rather than relying on public funds...
s are largely run by religious groups, with the two largest systems being the
CatholicThe word Catholic is derived from the Greek adjective , meaning "universal". In the context of Christian ecclesiology, it has a rich history and several usages. For some, the term "Catholic Church" refers to the church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, made up of the Latin Rite and the 22...
and
Lutheran schoolLutheran schools and education were a priority for Lutherans who emigrated to the United States and Australia from Germany and Scandinavia. One of the first things they did was to create schools for their children. This strong educational tradition was handed down from Martin Luther himself. The...
s. The
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of ChicagoThe Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. The Archdiocese of Chicago is one of the largest dioceses in the nation by population and comprises Cook and Lake counties, covering of Illinois...
operates the city's
Catholic schoolCatholic schools are education ministries of the Catholic Church. Currently, the Church operates the world's largest non-governmental school system...
s, including the Jesuit preparatory schools. Some of the more prominent Catholic schools are: Brother Rice High School,
Loyola AcademyLoyola Academy is a private, co-educational college preparatory high school, located in Wilmette, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago. Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, it is one of 47 Jesuit high schools in the United States and is a member of the Jesuit Secondary Education...
, St. Ignatius College Preparatory School,
St. Scholastica AcademySt. Scholastica Academy is a private, Roman Catholic, Benedictine all-girls high school in Chicago, Illinois. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago....
,
Mount Carmel High SchoolMount Carmel High School is an all boys, Catholic high school in the city of Chicago, Illinois. Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, the school is operated by the Carmelite order of priests and brothers, some of whom live in the nearby Saint Cyril Priory...
,
Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High SchoolMother McAuley Liberal Arts High School is an all-girl, Catholic high school located in the Mount Greenwood neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois at 3737 West 99th Street. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago...
, Marist High School,
St. Patrick High SchoolSt. Patrick High School is an all male college preparatory Catholic high school located in the Portage Park neighborhood on the northwest side of Chicago, Illinois. Opened in 1861, it is among the oldest continuously open high schools in the Chicago area...
and
Resurrection High SchoolResurrection High School is a private, Roman Catholic, all-girls high school in Chicago, Illinois. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago.-Background:...
. In addition to Chicago's network of 32 Lutheran schools, there are also several private schools run by other denominations and faiths, such as the
Ida Crown Jewish AcademyThe Ida Crown Jewish Academy is an Orthodox Jewish high school in West Rogers Park, Chicago, Illinois overseen by the Associated Talmud Torahs. Its current Dean is Rabbi Dr. Leonard A. Matanky. Ida Crown places emphasis on both Judaic and Secular studies, and holds its students to high academic...
in
West RidgeWest Ridge is one of 77 well-defined Chicago community areas. It is a middle class neighborhood located on the far North Side of the City of Chicago. It is located in the 50th Ward...
and the
Fasman Yeshiva High SchoolFasman Yeshiva High School, also known as Skokie Yeshiva, or simply "the Yeshiva" to its students and to members of the Chicago Jewish community, is the all-boys high school division of Hebrew Theological College in Skokie, Illinois. As of 2006, the school has about 140 students enrolled in grades...
in
SkokieSkokie is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a Chicago suburb, on the northwest border of the city, that, per the 2000 census, had a population of 63,348.-Geography:...
, a nearby suburb. Additionally, a number of private schools are run in a completely secular educational environment, such as the Latin School of Chicago, the
University of Chicago Laboratory SchoolsThe University of Chicago Laboratory Schools is a private, co-educational day school in Chicago, Illinois.- History :...
in Hyde Park, the
Francis W. Parker SchoolFrancis W. Parker School is an independent day school serving students from junior kindergarten through grade twelve of high school. Located in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood, the school is based on the progressive educational philosophies of John Dewey and Colonel Francis Wayland Parker,...
, the Chicago City Day School in Lake View, and the
Morgan Park AcademyMorgan Park Academy is a private, independent, Pre-Kindergarten-12th grade day school located in the Morgan Park neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. Morgan Park Academy was formerly known as Mt...
. Chicago is also home of the private Chicago Academy for the Arts, a high school focused on six different categories of the arts, such as Media Arts, Visual Arts, Music, Dance, Musical Theatre and Theatre.
Colleges and universities
Since the 1850s, Chicago has been a world center of higher education and research with several universities that are in the city proper or in the immediate environs. These institutions consistently rank among the top "National Universities" in the United States, as determined by
U.S. News & World ReportU.S. News & World Report is an American newsmagazine published in Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek, it was for many years a leading news weekly, although it focused more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
. They include: the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
, which also ranks among the world's top ten;
Northwestern University
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{{about|the U.S. city}}
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Chicago ({{Audio-IPA|Chicago-en-US-pronunciation.ogg|/ʃɨˈkɑːɡoʊ/}} or {{IPA-en|ʃɨˈkɔːɡoʊ|}}) is the largest
cityA city is a relatively large and permanent settlement, particularly a large urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on technical definitions distinguishing a city from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status...
in the
U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
of
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
, and with more than 2.8 million people, the
3rd largest city in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Located on the southwestern shores of
Lake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. The second largest of the Great Lakes by volume The third largest of the Great Lakes by surface area , it is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin,...
, Chicago is the
third-most densely populated major city in the U.S., and anchor to the world's 26th largest metropolitan area with over 9.5 million people across three
statesA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
.
After a series of wars with the local
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
, Chicago was founded in 1833, near a
portageThe Chicago Portage connects the watersheds and the navigable waterways of the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes. It crosses the continental divide that separates the Great Lakes and Atlantic Ocean watersheds from the Gulf of Mexico watershed.The St...
between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed. The city became a major transportation and telecommunications hub in
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
. Today, the city retains its status as a major hub, both for industry and infrastructure, with its
O'Hare International AirportO'Hare International Airport , also known simply as O'Hare Airport or O'Hare Field or O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop. It serves as the primary and largest hub for United Airlines and as a hub for...
as the
second busiest airportWorld's busiest airport The definition of busiest has been specified by the Nandi International Airport and Air Pacific. The ACI defines and measures the following 3 types of airport traffic:...
in the world. In modern times, the city has taken on additional dimension as a center for business and finance, and is listed as one of the world's top ten
Global Financial CentersThe Global Financial Centres Index is a ranking of the competitiveness of financial centres based on 26,629 financial centre assessments from an online questionnaire together with over 60 indices...
. Chicago is a stronghold of the
Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
, and has been home to influential politicians, including the current President of the United States,
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office, as well as the first president born in Hawaii...
. The World Cities Study Group at
Loughborough UniversityLoughborough University is a campus university located in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, in the East Midlands of England.It has been a university since 1966, but the institution dates back to 1909, when the then Loughborough Technical Institute began with a focus on skills and...
rated Chicago as an
alpha world cityA global city is a city deemed to be an important node point in the global economic system. The concept comes from geography and urban studies and rests on the idea that globalization can be understood as largely created, facilitated and enacted in strategic geographic locales according to a...
.
{{As of|2007|alt=In 2007}}, the city attracted 32.8 million domestic visitors and about 1.15 million foreign visitors. Making use of its abundant resources, Chicago has a heritage for hosting major international, national, regional, and local events that include commerce, culture, entertainment, politics, and sports.
Globally recognized,
[Chicago notoriety comes from being the subject or being referenced in novels, plays, movies, songs, various types of journals (e.g., sports, entertainment, business, trade, and academic), and the news media.] Chicago has numerous nicknames, which reflect the impressions and opinions about historical and contemporary Chicago. The best known include: "Chi-town"; the "Windy City" with reference to Chicago politicians and residents boasting about their city; "Second City,"{{#tag:ref|A.J.Liebling coined the "Second City" phrase and applied it to Chicago|group="nb"}} due to the city generally being the second most prestigious in the nation in terms of culture, entertainment, and finance;{{#tag:ref|"Chicago came to be known as America's Second City - second that is, to New York - because it appeared so intent on becoming number one"|group="nb"}} and because for much of the twentieth century Chicago's population was the second largest of any city in the United States, and the "City of Big Shoulders", referring to its numerous skyscrapers (whose steel frame designs were largely pioneered in Chicago), described as being husky and brawling.
Early history
{{see also|Origin of the name "Windy City"}}
During the mid 18th century the area was inhabited by a
native AmericanNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
tribe known as the
PotawatomiThe Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family...
s, who had taken the place of the
MiamiThe Miami are a Native American tribe originally found in Indiana, southwest Michigan and Ohio, and now living also in Oklahoma.-Name:The name 'Miami' derives from the tribe's name for themselves in their own Algonquian language, Myaamia , which appears to have come from an older term meaning...
and
Sauk and FoxThe Sac and Fox Nation is the modern political entity encompassing the historical Sac and Meskawki nations of Native Americans. There are three federally recognized Sac and Fox tribes: the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa, the Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska,...
peoples. The first known non-indigenous permanent settler in Chicago, Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, who was a man of mixed African and European heritage born in
Saint-DomingueSaint-Domingue was a French colony on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola from 1659 to 1804, when it became the independent nation of Haiti.Saint-Domingue is the French version of the Spanish name Santo Domingo. The Arawak, Carib and Tainos people occupied the island before the arrival of the...
(modern day
HaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Creole- and French-speaking Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago...
), arrived in the 1770s, married a Potawatomi woman, and founded the area’s first
trading postA trading post is a place where the trading of goods takes place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, is known as a trade route....
. In 1795, following the
Northwest Indian WarThe Northwest Indian War , also known as Little Turtle's War and by various other names, was a war fought between the United States and a large confederation of Indians for control of the Northwest Territory, which ended with a decisive U.S. victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794...
, an area that was to be part of Chicago was turned over by some
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
in the
Treaty of GreenvilleThe Treaty of Greenville was signed at Fort Greenville , on August 2, 1795, between a coalition of Native Americans known as the Western Confederacy and the United States following the Native American loss at the Battle of Fallen Timbers. It put an end to the Northwest Indian War...
to the United States for a military post. In 1803 the United States Army built
Fort DearbornFort Dearborn, named in honor of Henry Dearborn, was a United States fort built on the Chicago River in 1803 by troops under Captain John Whistler. It was on the site of the present-day city of Chicago...
, which was destroyed in the 1812
Fort Dearborn massacreThe Fort Dearborn massacre occurred on August 15, 1812, near Fort Dearborn, Illinois Territory during the War of 1812. The massacre followed the evacuation of the fort as ordered by the U.S. General William Hull...
. The Ottawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi later ceded additional land to the United States in the 1804
Treaty of St. LouisThe Treaty of St. Louis is one of many treaties signed between the United States and various Native American tribes.-1804 - Sauk and Fox :...
. The Potawatomi were eventually forcibly removed from their land following the
Treaty of ChicagoThe Treaty of Chicago may refer to either of two treaties made and signed in Chicago, Illinois between the United States and the Ottawa, Ojibwe , and Potawatomi Native American peoples.-1821 Treaty of Chicago:...
in 1833. On August 12, 1833, the Town of Chicago was organized with a population of around 200. Within seven years it grew to a population of over 4,000. The City of Chicago was incorporated on March 4, 1837. The name "Chicago" is a
FrenchFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
rendering of the Native American word
shikaakwa, meaning “wild onion”, from the Miami-Illinois language.
Infrastructure and regional development
The city began its step toward national primacy as an important transportation hub between the eastern and western United States. Chicago’s first railway,
Galena and Chicago Union RailroadThe Galena and Chicago Union Railroad was a railroad running west from Chicago to Clinton, Iowa and Freeport, Illinois, never reaching Galena, Illinois...
, opened in 1838, which also marked the opening of the
Illinois and Michigan CanalThe Illinois and Michigan Canal ran 96 miles from the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago on the Chicago River to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, on the Illinois River. It was finished in 1848 when Chicago Mayor James Hutchinson Woodworth presided over its opening; and it allowed boat transportation from...
. The canal allowed steamboats and sailing ships on the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in eastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth. They are sometimes referred to as the "Third...
to connect to the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
. A flourishing economy brought residents from rural communities and
immigrantsAmerican immigration refers to the movement of non-residents to the United States...
abroad. Manufacturing and retail sectors became dominant among Midwestern cities, influencing the American economy, particularly in meatpacking, with the advent of the
refrigerated rail carA refrigerator car is a refrigerated boxcar or van , a piece of railroad rolling stock designed to carry perishable freight at specific temperatures. Refrigerator cars differ from simple insulated boxcars and ventilated boxcars , neither of which are fitted with cooling apparatus...
and the regional centrality of the city's
Union Stock YardsThe Union Stock Yard & Transit Co., or The Yards, was the name of the meatpacking district in Chicago for over a century starting in 1865. The district was operated by a group of railroad companies that acquired swampland to a centralized processing area...
.
In February 1856, the Chesbrough plan for the building of Chicago's and the United States' first comprehensive
sewerageA sanitary sewer is a type of underground carriage system, , for transporting sewage from houses or industry to treatment or disposal...
system was approved by the Common Council. The project
raised much of central ChicagoDuring the 1850s and 1860s engineers carried out a piecemeal raising of the level of central Chicago. Streets, sidewalks and buildings were either built up or else physically raised up on jacks...
to a new grade. Untreated sewage and industrial waste now flowed into the
Chicago RiverThe Chicago River is a river that runs 156 miles and flows through Chicago, including the downtown. Though not especially long, the river is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards...
, thence into
Lake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. The second largest of the Great Lakes by volume The third largest of the Great Lakes by surface area , it is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin,...
,
pollutingPollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms . Pollution can take the form of chemical substances, or energy, such as noise, heat, or light...
the primary source of fresh water for the city. The city responded by tunneling two miles (3 km) out into Lake Michigan to newly built
water cribWater cribs are offshore structures that collect water from close to the bottom of a lake to supply a pumping station onshore. The name crib is derived from the function of the structure—to surround and protect the intake shaft...
s. In 1900, the problem of sewage was largely resolved when Chicago reversed the flow of the river, a process that began with the construction and improvement of the
Illinois and Michigan CanalThe Illinois and Michigan Canal ran 96 miles from the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago on the Chicago River to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, on the Illinois River. It was finished in 1848 when Chicago Mayor James Hutchinson Woodworth presided over its opening; and it allowed boat transportation from...
and completed with the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship CanalThe Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is the only shipping link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system, by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines Rivers. The canal also carries Chicago's treated sewage into the Des Plaines River...
leading to the
Illinois RiverThe Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the U.S. state of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . The river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water...
which joins the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
.
After the
Great Chicago Fire of 1871The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8th, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about four square miles in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
destroyed a third of the city, including the entire
central business districtA central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city...
, Chicago experienced rapid rebuilding and growth. During its rebuilding period, Chicago constructed the world's
first skyscraperThe Home Insurance Building was built in 1884 in Chicago, Illinois, USA and demolished in 1931 to make way for the Field Building . It was the first building to use structural steel in its frame, but the majority of its structure was composed of cast and wrought iron...
in 1885, using
steel-skeletonSteel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
construction.
Labor conflictsLabor history of the United States describes the history of organized labor, as well as the more general history of working people in the United States. Pressures dictating the nature and power of organized labor have included the evolution and power of the corporation, efforts by employers and...
and unrest followed, including the
Haymarket affairThe Haymarket affair was a disturbance that took place on Tuesday May 4, 1886, at the Haymarket Square in Chicago, and began as a rally in support of striking workers. An unknown person threw a bomb at police as they dispersed the public meeting...
on May 4, 1886. Concern for social problems among Chicago’s lower classes led
Jane Addams Jane Addams was a founder of the U.S. Settlement House movement, and the first women to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.-Biography:...
to be a co-founder of
Hull HouseHull House, the most well known settlement house in the United States, was co-founded in 1889 by Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr. Located in the Near West Side of , Hull House immediately opened its doors to the recently arrived European immigrants. By 1911, Hull House had grown to 13 buildings...
in 1889. Programs developed there became a model for the new field of social work. The city also invested in many large, well-landscaped
municipal parksThe Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
, which also included public sanitation facilities.
In 1893, Chicago hosted the
World's Columbian ExpositionThe World's Columbian Exposition — also known as The Chicago World's Fair — was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World. Chicago bested New York City, Washington, D.C. and St. Louis, Missouri, for the honor of...
on former marshland at the present location of
Jackson ParkJackson Park is a 500 acre park on Chicago's South Side, located at 6401 South Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community area. It extends into the South Shore and Hyde Park community areas, bordering Lake Michigan and several South Side neighborhoods...
. The Exposition drew 27.5 million visitors, and is considered the most influential world's fair in history. The
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
was founded in 1892 on the same South Side location. The term "midway" for a fair or carnival referred originally to the
Midway PlaisanceThe Midway Plaisance, also known locally as the Midway, is a mile-long linear park on the South Side of the city of Chicago, Illinois between 59th and 60th Streets, joining Washington Park at its west end and Jackson Park at its east end. It divides the Hyde Park community area to the north from...
, a strip of park land that still runs through the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
campus and connects
WashingtonWashington Park is a 372 acre park between Cottage Grove Avenue and Martin Luther King Drive, located at 5531 S. Martin Luther King Dr. in the Washington Park community area on the South Side of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States...
and Jackson Parks.
20th century
The 1920s brought notoriety to Chicago as
gangsters-Background Information:The social scene of the 1920's not only encourage prohibition, but it also sparked new waves of gang-related crime such as, bootlegging and bank robbery. Criminals in the 1920s could become very powerful if they were successful bootleggers or bank robbers. The Great...
, including the notorious
Al CaponeAlphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a crime syndicate dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging of liquor and other illegal activities during the Prohibition Era of the 1920s and 1930s....
, battled each other and law enforcement on the city streets during the
ProhibitionIn the history of the United States, Prohibition, also known as The Noble Experiment, is the period from 1919 to 1933, during which the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol for consumption were banned nationally as mandated in the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States...
era. Chicago had over 1,000 gangs in the 1920s. The 1920s also saw a major expansion in industry. The availability of jobs attracted
African AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa. In the United States, the terms are generally used for Americans with at least partial Sub-Saharan African ancestry...
s from the South. Arriving in the tens of thousands during the
Great MigrationThe Great Migration was the movement of 1.3 million African-Americans out of the Southern United States to the North, Midwest and West from 1910 to 1930. Precise estimates of the number of migrants depend on the time frame. African Americans migrated to escape racism and seek employment...
, the newcomers had an immense cultural impact. It was during this wave that Chicago became a center for
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, with King Oliver leading the way. In 1933, Chicago Mayor
Anton CermakAnton Joseph Cermak was the mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1931 until his assassination by Giuseppe Zangara in 1933.-Early life and career:...
was fatally wounded in Miami during a failed
assassinationAn Assassination is the targeted killing of a public figure.Assassinations may be prompted by ideological, political, or military reasons. Additionally, assassins may be motivated by financial gain, revenge, personal public recognition, or mental illness....
attempt on
PresidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin Delano Roosevelt , the only U.S. President elected to more than two terms, was a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
.
On December 2, 1942, physicist
Enrico FermiEnrico Fermi was an Italian physicist most noted for his work on the development of the first nuclear reactor, and for his contributions to the development of quantum theory, nuclear and particle physics, and statistical mechanics...
conducted the world’s first controlled
nuclear reactionIn nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, a nuclear reaction is the process in which two nuclei or nuclear particles collide to produce products different from the initial particles...
at the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
as part of the top-secret
Manhattan ProjectThe Manhattan Project was the codename for a project conducted during World War II to develop the first atomic bomb. The project was led by the United States, and included scientists from Denmark, The United Kingdom and Canada...
.
Mayor
Richard J. DaleyRichard Joseph Daley served for 21 years as the undisputed Democratic boss of Chicago and is considered by historians to be the "last of the big city bosses." He played a major role in the history of the Democratic Party, especially with his support of John F...
was elected in 1955, in the era of
machine politicsA political machine is a disciplined political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters , who receive rewards for their efforts...
. Starting in the 1960s, many residents, as in most American cities, left the city for the
suburbSuburbs are defined in various different ways around the world. They can be the residential areas of a large city, or separate residential communities within commuting distance of a city. Some suburbs have a degree of political autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city...
s. Structural changes in industry caused heavy losses of jobs for lower skilled workers. In 1966
James BevelJames L. Bevel was an American minister and leader of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement who, as the Director of Direct Action and Director of Nonviolent Education of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference initiated, strategized, directed, and developed SCLC's three major successes of the era:...
,
Martin Luther King, Jr.Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States and he is frequently referenced as a human rights icon today. King is recognized as a martyr...
, and
Albert RabyAlbert Anderson Raby was a teacher at Chicago's Hess Upper Grade Center whose efforts on behalf of housing and school desegregation played a key role in leading Martin Luther King, Jr. to shift the fight for civil rights from the South.Raby had been born into poverty in Chicago, dropping out of...
led the Chicago Open Housing Movement, which culminated in agreements between Mayor Richard J. Daley and the movement leaders. Two years later, the city hosted the tumultuous
1968 Democratic National ConventionThe 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968...
, which featured physical confrontations both inside and outside the convention hall, including full-scale
riotA riot is a form of civil disorder characterized by disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of violence against people or property. While individuals may attempt to lead or control a riot, riots are typically chaotic and exhibit herd behavior.Riots often occur in reaction to a...
s, or in some cases
police riotThe term police riot is used to categorize a confrontation between police and civilians, where police used wrongful, disproportionate, unlawful, and/or illegitimate force against those civilians; in plain language, the act of police attacking innocent civilians. The term can also describe a riot...
s, in city streets. Major construction projects, including
Sears TowerWillis Tower, formerly named Sears Tower, is a 108-story skyscraper in Chicago, Illinois. At the time of its completion in 1973 it was the tallest building in the world, surpassing the World Trade Center towers in New York...
(which in 1974 became the
world’s tallest building),
University of Illinois at ChicagoThe University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago. It is the second member of the University of Illinois system and is the largest university in the Chicago area, serving approximately 25,000 students within 15 colleges, including the...
,
McCormick PlaceMcCormick Place is a large convention center made up of four interconnected buildings sited on and near the shore of Lake Michigan, about 4 km south of downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. McCormick Place hosts numerous trade shows, including the Chicago Auto Show, held every February.-History:As...
, and
O'Hare AirportO'Hare International Airport , also known simply as O'Hare Airport or O'Hare Field or O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop. It serves as the primary and largest hub for United Airlines and as a hub for...
, were undertaken during Richard J. Daley's tenure. When he died,
Michael Anthony BilandicMichael Anthony Bilandic was an Illinois politician who served as the mayor of Chicago, Illinois and as Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court. He was a member of the Democratic Party....
was mayor for three years. His loss in a primary election has been attributed to the city’s inability to properly plow city streets during a heavy snowstorm. In 1979,
Jane ByrneJane Margaret Byrne was the first and only female Mayor of Chicago. She served from April 16, 1979, to April 29, 1983. Chicago is the largest city in the United States to have had a female mayor as of 2009.-Early political career:...
, the city’s first female mayor, was elected. She popularized the city as a
movie locationA filming location is a place where some or all of a film or television series is produced, in addition to or instead of using sets constructed on a movie studio backlot or soundstage...
and
touristTourism in the United States is a large industry that serves millions of international and domestic tourists yearly. Tourists visit the US to see natural wonders, cities, historic landmarks and entertainment venues. Americans seek similar attractions, as well as recreation and vacation areas...
destination.
In 1983
Harold WashingtonHarold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Background and early career :...
became the first
African AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa. In the United States, the terms are generally used for Americans with at least partial Sub-Saharan African ancestry...
to be elected to the office of mayor, in one of the closest mayoral elections in Chicago. After Washington won the Democratic primary, racial motivations caused a few Democratic alderman and ward committeemen to back the Republican candidate
Bernard EptonBernard Epton was an American politician who served in the Illinois House of Representatives. In 1983 he lost a close and contentious election for Mayor of Chicago; he would have become the city's first Jewish mayor, and its first Republican mayor since 1931.Epton served in the U.S. Army Air Force...
, who ran on the slogan
Before it’s too late, a thinly veiled
appeal to fearAn appeal to fear is a fallacy in which a person attempts to create support for his or her idea by using deception and propaganda in attempts to increase fear and prejudice toward a competitor...
.
Washington’s term in office saw new attention given to poor and minority neighborhoods. His administration reduced the longtime dominance of city contracts and employment by ethnic whites. Washington died in office of a heart attack in 1987, shortly after being elected to a second term. Current mayor
Richard M. DaleyRichard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party and current Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007...
{{update after|2011|Reason=next mayoral election year}}, son of the late Richard J. Daley, was elected in 1989. He has led many progressive changes to the city, including improving parks; creating incentives for sustainable development, including green roofs; and major new developments. Since the 1990s, the city has undergone a revitalization in which some lower class areas have been transformed to higher priced and middle-class neighborhoods.
21st century
In 2003, Meigs Field, an airport close to downtown, was demolished without advanced warning by the order of mayor
Richard DaleyRichard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party and current Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007...
, who wanted the land for redevelopment. Private aircraft using the airport were stranded when the sole runway was destroyed. They were later permitted to depart from a taxiway.
Chicago was one of the four finalists to host the 2016 Olympic Games, but the city was eliminated on the first round of voting on October 2, 2009.
Topography
Chicago is located in northeastern Illinois at the southwestern tip of
Lake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, and the only one located entirely within the United States. The second largest of the Great Lakes by volume The third largest of the Great Lakes by surface area , it is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin,...
. It sits on a
continental divideA continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea...
at the site of the
Chicago PortageThe Chicago Portage connects the watersheds and the navigable waterways of the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes. It crosses the continental divide that separates the Great Lakes and Atlantic Ocean watersheds from the Gulf of Mexico watershed.The St...
, connecting the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
and the
Great LakesThe Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in eastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth. They are sometimes referred to as the "Third...
watershedsA drainage basin is an extent of land where water from rain or snow melt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea or ocean...
. The city lies beside Lake Michigan, and two rivers—the
Chicago RiverThe Chicago River is a river that runs 156 miles and flows through Chicago, including the downtown. Though not especially long, the river is notable for the 19th century civil engineering feats that directed its flow south, away from Lake Michigan, into which it previously emptied, and towards...
in downtown and the
Calumet RiverThe Calumet River refers to a system of heavily industrialized rivers and canals in the region between the neighborhood of South Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, and the city of Gary, Indiana.-Background:...
in the industrial far South Side—flow entirely or partially through Chicago. The
Chicago Sanitary and Ship CanalThe Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is the only shipping link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system, by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines Rivers. The canal also carries Chicago's treated sewage into the Des Plaines River...
connects the Chicago River with the
Des Plaines RiverThe Des Plaines River is a river that flows southward for 150 miles through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the U.S. Midwest, eventually meeting the Kankakee River west of Channahon to form the Illinois River, a tributary of the Mississippi River...
, which runs to the west of the city. Chicago's history and economy are closely tied to its proximity to Lake Michigan. While the Chicago River historically handled much of the region's waterborne cargo, today's huge
lake freighterLake freighters, or Lakers, are cargo vessels that ply the Great Lakes. The most well-known is the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, the latest major vessel to be wrecked on the Lakes. These vessels are traditionally called boats, not ships. In the mid-20th century, 300 lakers worked the Lakes but by the early...
s use the city's
Lake Calumet HarborThe Port of Chicago consists of several major port facilities within the city of Chicago, Illinois operated by the Illinois International Port District . The central element of the Port District, Calumet Harbor, is maintained by the U.S...
on the South Side. The lake also provides another positive effect, moderating Chicago's climate; making waterfront neighborhoods slightly warmer in winter and cooler in summer.
When Chicago was founded in the 1830s, most of the early building began around the mouth of the Chicago River, as can be seen on a map of the city's original 58 blocks. The overall
gradeGrading in civil engineering and construction is the work of ensuring a level base for a construction work such as a foundation or the base course for a road or a railway...
of the city's central, built-up areas, is relatively consistent with the natural flatness of its overall natural geography, generally exhibiting only slight differentiation otherwise. The average land elevation is {{convert|579|ft|abbr=on}} above
sea levelMean sea level is the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation.- Measurement :...
. The lowest points are along the lake shore at {{convert|577|ft|abbr=on}}, while the highest point, at {{convert|735|ft|abbr=on}}, is a
landfillA landfill, also known as a dump , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
located in the
HegewischHegewisch , one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, Illinois, is located on the city's far south side...
community area on the city's far south side.
Lake Shore DriveLake Shore Drive is a mostly freeway-standard expressway running parallel with and alongside the shoreline of Lake Michigan through Chicago, Illinois, USA. Except for the portion north of Foster Avenue , Lake Shore Drive is designated as part of U.S...
runs adjacent to a large portion of Chicago's lakefront. Parks along the lakeshore include:
Lincoln ParkLincoln Park is an urban park in Chicago, Illinois.Lincoln Park may also refer to:-Parks:United States*Lincoln Park , California *Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California...
,
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
,
Burnham ParkBurnham Park is a public park in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The 6-mi long, park is composed of Chicago Park District property that connects Grant Park to Jackson Park along the Lake Michigan lakefront. It was named for urban planner and architect Daniel Burnham in 1927...
and
Jackson ParkJackson Park is a 500 acre park on Chicago's South Side, located at 6401 South Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community area. It extends into the South Shore and Hyde Park community areas, bordering Lake Michigan and several South Side neighborhoods...
; 29 public beaches are also found along the shore. Near downtown, landfills extend into the Lake, providing space for the
Jardine Water Purification PlantThe Jardine Water Purification Plant, formerly the Central District Filtration Plant, is the largest capacity water filtration plant in the world, located at 1000 E. Ohio Street north of Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois...
,
Navy PierNavy Pier is a long pier on the Chicago shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of the Near North Side community area. The pier was built in 1916 at a cost of $4.5 million, equivalent to $ today. It was a part of the Plan of Chicago developed by architect and...
,
Northerly IslandNortherly Island is a man-made peninsula along Chicago's lakefront. . The site of the Adler Planetarium, Northerly Island connects to the mainland through a narrow isthmus along Solidarity Drive dominated by Neoclassical sculptures of Kościuszko, Havliček and Copernicus...
, the
Museum CampusMuseum Campus Chicago is a 57-acre lakefront park in Chicago that surrounds three of the city's most notable museums, all dedicated to the natural sciences: the Adler Planetarium, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Field Museum of Natural History....
,
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
and large portions of the
McCormick PlaceMcCormick Place is a large convention center made up of four interconnected buildings sited on and near the shore of Lake Michigan, about 4 km south of downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. McCormick Place hosts numerous trade shows, including the Chicago Auto Show, held every February.-History:As...
Convention Center. Most of the city's high-rise commercial and residential buildings can be found within a few blocks of the lake.
Chicagoland is an informal name for the Chicago metro area, used primarily by copywriters, advertising agencies, and traffic reporters. There is no precise definition for the term "Chicagoland", but it generally means the city and its suburbs together. The
Chicago Tribune, which coined the term, includes the city of Chicago, the rest of
Cook CountyCook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. According to 2008 US Census Bureau estimates, the county has 5,294,664 residents, which is larger than the populations of 29 individual U.S. states, the...
, eight nearby Illinois counties:
LakeLake County is the farthest north-east county in the U.S. state of Illinois. A 2006 census estimated the population was 713,076. Its county seat is Waukegan, Illinois. According to the 2000 United States Census, Lake County is the 31st richest county by per-capita income. The county is part of...
,
McHenryMcHenry County is located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 260,077. As of 2008, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population to be 318,641. Its county seat is Woodstock, Illinois. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is the sixth largest county,...
,
DuPageDuPage County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Its county seat is the city of Wheaton. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area...
,
KaneKane County is located in the U.S. state of Illinois. In 2000, the population of the county was 404,119. In 2007, its population was estimated at 501,021. This county is part of the Chicago Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Geneva, Illinois, and its largest city is Aurora.- Geography :According...
,
KendallKendall County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 54,544. According to Census Bureau statistics released in March 2009, Kendall County's estimated population of 103,460 as of July 2008 made it the fastest growing county in the United States between...
,
GrundyGrundy County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 37,535. Its county seat is Morris. The center of population of Illinois is located in Grundy County, in the village of Mazon. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Illinois' State...
,
WillWill County is a county located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population was 502,266. In 2007, the estimated population was 673,586, making it one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. The...
and
KankakeeKankakee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 103,833. Its county seat is Kankakee, Illinois....
, and three counties in
IndianaIndiana is a U.S. state, the 19
th admitted to the Union. It is located in the Great Lakes region, and with approximately 6.3 million residents, is ranked 16
th in population and 17
th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38
th in land area, and is the...
:
LakeLake County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. In 2000, its population was 484,564, making it Indiana's second-most populous county. The county seat is Crown Point. This county is part of Northwest Indiana and the Chicago metropolitan area....
,
PorterPorter County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 146,798 and records show that the population has increased to more than 160,000 as of 2007. Much of the population growth has to do with the expansion of the Chicago Metropolitan Area eastward into...
, and
LaPorteLaPorte County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 110,106. The county seat is the City of La Porte. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and "Michiana." It is also included in the Michigan City, Indiana-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan...
. The Illinois Department of Tourism defines Chicagoland as Cook County
without the city of Chicago, and only Lake, DuPage, Kane and Will counties. The
Chicagoland Chamber of CommerceThe Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit organization promoting business in the Chicagoland region of the United States. The Chamber is a voice at local, state and national levels for approximately 2,600 member companies and their 1.3 million employees...
defines it as all of Cook and DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties.
Climate
The city lies within the
humid continental climateThe humid continental climate is a climate found over large areas of landmasses in the temperate regions of the mid-latitudes where there is a zone of conflict between polar and tropical air masses. The humid continental climate is marked by variable weather patterns and a large seasonal...
zone, and experiences four distinct
seasonA season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather.Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the plane of revolution...
s. Summers are warm and humid with average high temperatures of 80-85°F (27-29°C) and lows of 61-65 °F (16-19°C). Winters are cold, snowy and windy with temperatures below freezing. Spring and fall are mild with low humidity.
According to the
National Weather ServiceThe National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
, Chicago's highest official temperature reading of {{convert|107|F|abbr=on}} was recorded on June 1, 1934. The lowest temperature of {{convert|-27|F|0|abbr=on}} was recorded on January 20, 1985. Along with long, hot dry spells in the summer, Chicago can suffer extreme winter cold spells. In the entire month of January 1977, the temperature did not rise above {{convert|31|F|abbr=on}}. The average temperature that month was around {{convert|10|F|abbr=on}}.
Architecture
{{see also|Architecture of Chicago|List of tallest buildings in Chicago|List of Chicago Landmarks}}
The outcome of the Great Chicago Fire led to the largest building boom in the history of the nation. Perhaps the most outstanding of these events was the relocation of many of the nation's most prominent architects to the city from
New EnglandNew England is a region of the United States. It is located at the northeastern corner of the US, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, Canada and the state of New York, consisting of the modern U.S...
, for construction of the 1893 World Columbian Exposition.
In 1885, the first
steel-framed high-rise buildingSteel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
rose in Chicago, ushering in the
skyscraperA skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building. There is no official definition or height above which a building may clearly be classified as a skyscraper...
era. Today, Chicago's skyline is among the world's tallest and most dense. Downtown's historic buildings include the
Chicago Board of Trade BuildingThe Chicago Board of Trade Building is a skyscraper located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It stands at 141 W. Jackson Boulevard at the foot of the LaSalle Street canyon, in the Loop community area in Cook County. Built in 1930 and first designated a Chicago Landmark on May 4, 1977, the...
in the
LoopThe Loop or The Chicago Loop are the terms used to designate the historical center of downtown Chicago. Most accurately, the term refers to an area bounded by a public transit circuit along Lake Street on the north, Wabash Avenue on the east, Van Buren Street on the south, and Wells Street on the...
, with others along the lakefront and the Chicago River. Once first on the
list of largest buildings in the world and still listed twentieth, the
Merchandise MartWhen opened in 1930, the Merchandise Mart or the Mart, located in Chicago, Illinois, was the largest building in the world with of floor space. Previously owned by the Marshall Field family, the Mart centralized Chicago's wholesale goods business by consolidating vendors and trade under a single...
(this building has its own zip code) stands near the junction of the north and south river branches. Presently, the four tallest in the city are Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower),
Trump International Hotel and TowerThe Trump International Hotel and Tower, also known as Trump Tower Chicago and locally as the Trump Tower, is a skyscraper condo-hotel in downtown . The building, named after real estate developer Donald Trump, was designed by architect Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill...
, the
Aon CenterThe Aon Center is a modern skyscraper in Chicago designed by architect firms Edward Durell Stone and The Perkins and Will partnership, and completed in 1973 as the Standard Oil Building...
(previously the Standard Oil Building), and the
John Hancock CenterJohn Hancock Center at 875 North Michigan Avenue in the Gold Coast area of Chicago, Illinois, is a 100-story, 1,127-foot tall skyscraper, constructed under the supervision of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, with chief designer Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan. When completed in...
. The city's architecture includes high-rise office and residential towers, mid-rise buildings, low-rise structures and single-family homes, including
bungalowA bungalow is a type of single-story house that originated in India. The word derives from the Gujarati બંગલો baṅgalo, which in turn derives from the Hindi बंगला baṅglā, meaning "Bengali" and used elliptically for a "house in the Bengal style"...
s.
IndustrializedAn industry is the manufacturing of a good or service within a category. Although industry is a broad term for any kind of economic production, in economics and urban planning industry is a synonym for the secondary sector, which is a type of economic activity involved in the manufacturing of raw...
areas, such as the
IndianaIndiana is a U.S. state, the 19
th admitted to the Union. It is located in the Great Lakes region, and with approximately 6.3 million residents, is ranked 16
th in population and 17
th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38
th in land area, and is the...
border, south of Midway Airport, and the banks of the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship CanalThe Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is the only shipping link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system, by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines Rivers. The canal also carries Chicago's treated sewage into the Des Plaines River...
are clustered. Future skyline plans include, amongst others, the
supertall Chicago Spire.
Multiple kinds and scales of houses, townhouses, condominiums and apartment buildings can be found in Chicago. Large swaths of Chicago's residential areas away from the lake in the "bungalow belt" are characterized by
bungalowA bungalow is a type of single-story house that originated in India. The word derives from the Gujarati બંગલો baṅgalo, which in turn derives from the Hindi बंगला baṅglā, meaning "Bengali" and used elliptically for a "house in the Bengal style"...
s built from the early 20th century through the end of World War II. Chicago is also a prominent center of the
Polish Cathedral styleThe Polish Cathedral style of North-American Catholic church is a genre of church architecture found throughout the Great Lakes and Middle Atlantic regions as well as in parts of New England in North America...
of
church architectureChurch architecture or ecclesiastical architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of Christian churches. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by imitating other architectural styles as well as responding to changing beliefs,...
. One of Chicago's suburbs is
Oak ParkOak Park, Illinois is a suburb bordering the west side of the city of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is the twenty-fifth largest city in Illinois. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago thanks to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' Blue and Green lines, CTA...
, home to the late architect
Frank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 projects, which resulted in more than 500 completed works....
.
Public art and monuments
Chicago is well known for its wealth of
public artThe term public art properly refers to works of art in any media that has been planned and executed with the specific intention of being sited or staged in the physical public domain, usually outside and accessible to all...
, including works by such artistic heavyweights as
Marc ChagallMarc Chagall ; [shuh-GAHL] , was a Russian-French artist, associated with several key art movements and was one of the most successful artists of the twentieth century. He forged a unique career in virtually every artistic medium, including paintings, book illustrations, stained glass, stage sets,...
,
Pablo PicassoPablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso was a Spanish painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. Commonly known simply as Picasso, he is one of the most recognized figures in 20th-century art...
,
Joan MiróJoan Miró i Ferrà was a Spanish Catalan painter, sculptor, and ceramist born in Barcelona.Earning international acclaim, his work has been interpreted as Surrealism, a sandbox for the subconscious mind, a re-creation of the childlike, and a manifestation of Catalan pride...
and
Magdalena AbakanowiczMagdalena Abakanowicz is a Polish sculptor. She is notable for her use of textiles as a sculptural medium and is regarded as being one of the most important and influential female artists of the 20th century. She has been a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań, Poland from 1965 to 1990...
that are all to be found outdoors. Several of these have been financed through the
B. F. Ferguson fundBenjamin Franklin Ferguson was an American lumber merchant and philanthropist whose 1905 $1 million charitable trust gift funded seventeen of the most notable public monuments and sculptures in , United States...
.
City sculptures additionally honor the many people and topics reflecting the rich
history of Chicago-Early days:At the beginning of Caucasian race recorded history, the Chicago area was inhabited by a number of Algonquian peoples, including the Mascoutens and Miamis. Trade links and seasonal hunting migrations linked these peoples with their neighbours, the Potawatomis to the east, Fox to the...
. There are monuments to:
There are also {{as of|2009|alt=preliminary plans|url=http://www.chopinmonumentinchicago.com/}} to erect a 1:1-scale replica of Wacław Szymanowski's
Art NouveauArt Nouveau is an international movement and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that peaked in popularity at the turn of the 20th century . The name 'Art nouveau' is French for 'new art'...
statue of
Frédéric ChopinFrédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He was one of the great masters of Romantic music....
found in
WarsawWarsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River roughly from both the Baltic Sea coast and the Carpathian Mountains. Its population as of 2009 was estimated at 1,709,781, and the Warsaw metropolitan area at approximately 2,785,000...
's Royal Baths along Chicago's lakefront in addition to a different sculpture commemorating the artist in
Chopin ParkChopin Park is an park located at 3420 North Long in the Portage Park community area of Chicago, Illinois. The park stretches from Roscoe Street on the south to Cornelia Avenue to the north between Linder and Long Avenues. The historic fieldhouse was designed by Albert A. Schwartz contains an...
for the 200th anniversary of
Frédéric ChopinFrédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He was one of the great masters of Romantic music....
's birth.
Neighborhoods
{{Main|Neighborhoods of Chicago|Chicago Loop|South Side (Chicago)}}
Chicago is partitioned into four main sections: Downtown (which contains the Loop), the North Side, the
South SideThe South Side is a major part of the City of Chicago, which is located in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Much of it has evolved from the city's incorporation of independent townships, such as Hyde Park Township which voted along with several other townships to be annexed in the June 29,...
, and the West Side. In the late 1920s, sociologists at the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
subdivided the city into 77 distinct
community areasThe City of Chicago is divided into seventy-seven community areas. These areas are well-defined and static, in contrast to the more popularly known neighborhoods...
. The boundaries of these areas are more clearly defined than those of the
over 210 neighborhoodsChicago contains some of the most culturally rich communities in the United States. Each neighborhood maintains a strong identity and because of this, two different neighborhoods could seem like different parts of the world...
throughout the city, allowing for better year-by-year comparisons.
Downtown is the center of Chicago's cultural, commercial and financial institutions, and home to Grant Park and many of the city's skyscrapers. Many of the city's financial institutions are located within a section of downtown called "The Loop", which is an eight block by five block square of city streets that are encircled by elevated rail tracks.
The North Side is the most densely populated residential section of the city and many high-rises are located on this side of the city along the lakefront.
Lincoln ParkLincoln Park is an urban park in Chicago, Illinois.Lincoln Park may also refer to:-Parks:United States*Lincoln Park , California *Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California...
is a {{convert|1200|acre|abbr=on|sing=on}} park stretching for {{convert|5.5|mi|abbr=on}} along the waterfront and is also home to the
Lincoln Park ZooLincoln Park Zoo is a free zoo located in Lincoln Park neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, when the Lincoln Park Commissioners were given a gift of a pair of swans. In 1874, the swans were joined by a bear cub, the first animal purchased for the zoo...
. The
River NorthThe River North Gallery District in Chicago is in the Near North Side, Chicago. It hosts the largest concentration of art galleries in the United States outside of Manhattan. A common definition puts the District in the area north of the Merchandise Mart, south of Chicago Avenue, east of Orleans...
neighborhood features the nation's largest concentration of contemporary art galleries outside of
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
. As a
PoloniaPolonia, which is the name for Poland in Latin and in many other languages, refers in modern Polish language to the Polish diaspora, and to people of Polish origin who live outside Poland....
center, due to the city having the largest population of Poles of any city in the world outside of
WarsawWarsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River roughly from both the Baltic Sea coast and the Carpathian Mountains. Its population as of 2009 was estimated at 1,709,781, and the Warsaw metropolitan area at approximately 2,785,000...
, Chicago celebrates every
Labor DayLabor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September .The holiday originated in Canada out of labor disputes first in Hamilton, then in Toronto, Canada in the 1870s, which resulted in a Trade Union Act which legalized and protected union activity in 1872 in Canada...
weekend at the
Taste of PoloniaThe Taste of Polonia is a Chicago festival held at the Copernicus Cultural and Civic Center in the Jefferson Park community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States every Labor Day weekend since 1979. It is the Copernicus Foundation's major fundraiser and a four-day celebration of...
Festival in the
Jefferson ParkJefferson Park is one of Chicago's 77 well-defined community areas as well as a neighborhood located on the city's Northwest Side. The territorial discrepancy between the two stems from the fact that the neighborhood of Jefferson Park occupies a larger swath of territory than the community area by...
area.
The South Side is home to one of the city's largest parades, the annual African American Bud Billiken Day parade, and the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
. Parkland stretches along the waterfront of the South Side. Two of the city's largest parks are also located here:
Jackson ParkJackson Park is a 500 acre park on Chicago's South Side, located at 6401 South Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community area. It extends into the South Shore and Hyde Park community areas, bordering Lake Michigan and several South Side neighborhoods...
, bordering the waterfront, hosted the
World's Columbian ExpositionThe World's Columbian Exposition — also known as The Chicago World's Fair — was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World. Chicago bested New York City, Washington, D.C. and St. Louis, Missouri, for the honor of...
in 1893 and is the site of the
Museum of Science and IndustryThe Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
. Slightly farther west is
Washington ParkWashington Park is a 372 acre park between Cottage Grove Avenue and Martin Luther King Drive, located at 5531 S. Martin Luther King Dr. in the Washington Park community area on the South Side of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States...
, which was considered as the primary site of the Olympic Stadium for the
2016 Summer OlympicsThe 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, are a major international multi-sport event to be celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee...
, for which Chicago unsuccessfully bid. The two parks are connected by a strip of parkland called
Midway PlaisanceThe Midway Plaisance, also known locally as the Midway, is a mile-long linear park on the South Side of the city of Chicago, Illinois between 59th and 60th Streets, joining Washington Park at its west end and Jackson Park at its east end. It divides the Hyde Park community area to the north from...
. Also, the U.S. automaker,
Ford Motor CompanyThe Ford Motor Company is an American multinational corporation based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury brands, Ford also owns Volvo Cars of Sweden, and a small stake...
, has an assembly plant located on the South Side.
The West Side holds the
Garfield Park ConservatoryThe Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago, Illinois is one of the largest and most impressive conservatories in the United States. Often referred to as "landscape art under glass," the Garfield Park Conservatory occupies approximately 4.5 acres inside and out and contains a number of...
, one of the largest collections of tropical plants of any U.S. city. Cultural attractions include Humboldt Park's Puerto Rican Day Parade festival,Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and the National Museum of Mexican Art in Pilsen. The Near West Side holds the television production company of Harpo Studios.
Culture and contemporary life
{{main|Culture of Chicago}}
The city's waterfront allure and nightlife has attracted residents and tourists alike. Over one-third of the city population is concentrated in the lakefront neighborhoods (from
Rogers ParkRogers Park is the northernmost of Chicago community areas in the far North Side of Chicago, Illinois, and is also the name of the Chicago neighborhood that constitutes most of the community area...
in the north to
South ShoreSouth Shore is one of 77 well-defined community areas of the City of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. A predominately black neighborhood located along Chicago's southern lakefront, it has become more diverse in recent years. It is a relatively stable and gentrifying neighborhood that has...
in the south).{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} The North Side has a large
gay and lesbian communityThe gay community, or LGBT community, is a loosely defined grouping of LGBT and LGBT-supportive people, organizations and subultures, united by a common culture and civil rights movements. The term "gay community" may also refer to gay men only, or gay men and lesbians only. Generally these...
.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} Two North Side neighborhoods in particular, Lakeview and the Andersonville area of the Edgewater neighborhood, are home to many
LGBTLGBT is an initialism referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. In use since the 1990s, the term “LGBT” is an adaptation of the initialism “LGB” which itself started replacing the phrase “gay community” which many within LGBT communities felt did not represent...
businesses and organizations.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} The area surrounding the North Side intersections of
HalstedHalsted Street is a major north-south street in the American city of Chicago, Illinois.-Location:In Chicago's grid system, Halsted street marks 800 West, one mile west of State Street, from Grace Street in Lakeview south to the city limits at the Little Calumet River in West Pullman...
,
BelmontBelmont Avenue is a major east-west street on the North Side of Chicago. Belmont is a central commercial street in Lakeview and, west of the North Branch of the Chicago River, Avondale...
, and
ClarkChicago's Clark Street is a north-south street in Chicago running near the shore of Lake Michigan from 7600 North, the city limits with Evanston, to 2200 South in the city street numbering system...
is a gay district known as "
BoystownBoystown is the popular name of a district within Chicago, Illinois. Situated within the neighborhood of Lakeview, it was the first officially recognized gay village in the United States, as well as the cultural center of one of the largest lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender communities in the nation...
".{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} The city has many upscale dining establishments as well as many ethnic restaurant districts. These include the Mexican villages such as Pilsen on 18th street and "La Villita" on 26th street,The
Puerto RicanA Puerto Rican is a person who was born or raised in Puerto Rico.Puerto Ricans born and raised in the United States are also referred to as Puerto Ricans, although they are not native Puerto Ricans, but descendants of Puerto Ricans...
enclave"Paseo Boricua" in the
Humboldt ParkHumboldt Park may refer to*Humboldt Park, Chicago, a Chicago neighborhood*Humboldt Park , a park in that neighborhood*Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, a Frederick Law Olmsted designed park formerly known as Humboldt Park...
neighborhood, "Greektown" on South Halsted, "Little Italy" on Taylor Street, just west of Halsted, "Chinatown" on the near South Side, Polish fare reigns at Belmont-Central, "Little Seoul" on and around Lawrence Avenue, a cluster of Vietnamese restaurants on Argyle Street and South Asian (Indian/Pakistani) on Devon Avenue.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}}
Entertainment and performing arts
{{seealso|Theatre in Chicago|List of people from Chicago}}
Chicago’s
theatreTheatre is a branch of the performing arts. While any performance may be considered theatre, as a performing art, it focuses almost exclusively on live performers creating a self contained drama. A performance qualifies as dramatic by creating a representational illusion...
community spawned modern
improvisational theatreImprovisational theatre is a form of theatre in which the improvisational actors/ improvisers use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously. Improvisers typically use audience suggestions to guide the performance as they create dialogue, setting, and plot extemporaneously...
. Two renowned comedy troupes emerged—
The Second CityThe Second City is a long-running improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
and
I.O.iO, or iO Chicago, is a theater located at 3541 N. Clark St., in Chicago, Illinois, in the neighborhood known as "Wrigleyville" . The theater both has performances of, and teaches improvisational comedy. It was founded in the 1980s by Del Close and Charna Halpern...
(formerly known as ImprovOlympic). Renowned Chicago theater companies include the
Steppenwolf Theatre CompanySteppenwolf Theatre Company is a Tony Award-winning Chicago theatre company founded in 1974 by Gary Sinise, Terry Kinney and Jeff Perry in the basement of a church in Highland Park, Illinois. Its name comes from the Hermann Hesse novel...
(on the city's north side), the
Goodman TheatreThe Goodman Theatre is a theater located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit organization. The building occupies the site of landmark Harris and Selwyn Theaters property....
, and the
Victory Gardens TheaterVictory Gardens Theater is a theater in Chicago, Illinois dedicated to the development and production of new plays and playwrights. The theater was founded in 1974 when seven Chicago artists, Warren Casey, Cordis Heard, Roberta Maguire, Mac McGuinnes, Cecil O'Neal, June Pyskaček, and David Rasche...
. Chicago offers Broadway-style entertainment at theaters such as Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre, Bank of America Theatre,
Cadillac Palace TheatreThe Cadillac Palace Theatre is a Chicago theatre owned by the Nederlander Organization and operated by Broadway In Chicago. It is located at 151 West Randolph Street in the Chicago Loop area downtown.-History:...
, Auditorium Building of Roosevelt University, and Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower Place.
Polish languagePolish is a West Slavic language and the official language of Poland. Its written standard is the Polish alphabet which corresponds basically to the Latin alphabet with a few additions...
productions for
Chicago's large Polish speaking populationPoles in Chicago, also known as Chicago Polonia, refers to both immigrant Poles and Americans of Polish heritage living in Chicago, Illinois. They are a part of worldwide Polonia, the proper term for the Polish Diaspora outside of the Republic of Poland. Poles in Chicago have contributed to the...
can be seen at the historic
Gateway TheatreThe Gateway Theatre, now part of the Copernicus Cultural and Civic Center in the Jefferson Park community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States, is the sole surviving atmospheric-style theatre in the Chicago area...
in
Jefferson ParkJefferson Park is one of Chicago's 77 well-defined community areas as well as a neighborhood located on the city's Northwest Side. The territorial discrepancy between the two stems from the fact that the neighborhood of Jefferson Park occupies a larger swath of territory than the community area by...
. Since 1968, the
Joseph Jefferson AwardsThe Joseph Jefferson Awards are given annually by a volunteer non-profit committee to acknowledge excellence in theatre in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are given in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson...
are given annually to acknowledge excellence in theater in the Chicago area.
Classical music offerings include the
Chicago Symphony OrchestraThe Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
, recognized as one of the finest orchestras in the world, which performs at
Symphony CenterSymphony Center is a music complex in Chicago, Illinois and is home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Sinfonietta. Symphony Center includes Orchestra Hall, which dates from 1904; Buntrock Hall, a rehearsal and performance space; a public multi-story rotunda; Rhapsody restaurant; and...
. Also performing regularly at
Symphony CenterSymphony Center is a music complex in Chicago, Illinois and is home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Sinfonietta. Symphony Center includes Orchestra Hall, which dates from 1904; Buntrock Hall, a rehearsal and performance space; a public multi-story rotunda; Rhapsody restaurant; and...
is the
Chicago SinfoniettaThe Chicago Sinfonietta is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. The stated mission of the orchestra is to "serve as a national model for inclusiveness and innovation in classical music" and to "help America become a true cultural democracy, in which everyone can share fully in its...
, a more diverse and multicultural counterpart to the CSO. In the summer, many outdoor concerts are given in
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
and
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
.
Ravinia ParkRavinia Park is a private park in Highland Park, Illinois with a variety of outdoor and indoor performing arts facilities, and it is best known as the site of the Ravinia Festival, the oldest outdoor music festival in the United States, with a series of outdoor concerts and performances held every...
, located {{convert|25|mi|km|0}} north of Chicago, is also a favorite destination for many Chicagoans, with performances occasionally given in Chicago locations such as the
Harris TheaterJoan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Harris & Harris Theater or most commonly Harris Theater is a 1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern edge of Millennium Park on Randolph Street in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, USA...
. The
Civic Opera HouseThe Civic Opera House is an opera house located at 20 North Wacker Drive in Chicago. It is part of a building which contains a 45-story office tower and two 22-story wings. This structure opened on November 4, 1929 and has an Art Deco interior...
is home to the
Lyric Opera of ChicagoLyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1952, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicolà Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria Callas's American debut in Norma...
.
The
Joffrey BalletThe Joffrey Ballet is a dance company founded in 1956. From 1995 to 2004, the company was known as The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. It is considered one of the foremost ballet companies in the world. The company regularly performs classical ballets such as Romeo & Juliet and The Nutcracker, while...
and
Chicago Festival BalletChicago Festival Ballet is a professional ballet company performing a repertoire of classical, romantic and neoclassical works in venues around the United States. Chicago Festival Ballet is also known as Von Heidecke’s Chicago Festival Ballet...
perform in various venues, including the
Harris TheaterJoan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Harris & Harris Theater or most commonly Harris Theater is a 1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern edge of Millennium Park on Randolph Street in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, USA...
in
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
. Chicago is home to several other modern and jazz dance troupes, such as the
Hubbard Street Dance ChicagoHubbard Street Dance Chicago is an American dance company based in Chicago. HSDC performs in downtown Chicago and its metropolitan area and tours nationally and internationally throughout the year....
.
Other live music genre which are part of the city's cultural heritage include
Chicago bluesThe Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois by taking the basic acoustic guitar and harmonica-based Delta blues and adding electrically amplified guitar, amplified bass guitar, drums, piano, and sometimes saxophone, and making the harmonica louder with a...
,
Chicago soulChicago soul is a style of soul music that arose during the 1960s in Chicago. Along with Detroit, the home of Motown, and Memphis, with its hard-edged, gritty performers , Chicago and the Chicago soul style helped spur the album-oriented soul revolution of the early 1970s.The sound of Chicago...
,
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, and
gospelGospel music is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
. The city is the birthplace of
house musicHouse is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American and Latino American communities, first in Chicago, then in New York City, New Jersey, Detroit and Miami...
and is the site of an influential
hip-hop sceneThe hip hop scene in Chicago, Illinois has produced a group of artists and styles.-Gritty/Grimy:Chicago hip hop or Chicago rap music, has no uniform sound or standard style similar to East Coast hip hop. Chicago hip hop often varies between Alternative hip hop, Hipster rap, Gangsta rap, and...
. In the 1980s, the city was a center for industrial,
punkPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and new wave. This influence continued into the
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s...
of the 1990s. The city has been an epicenter for
raveRave or rave party is a term first used in the 1980s and 90s to describe dance parties with fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties DJs and other performers play Electronic Dance Music...
culture since the 1980s. A flourishing independent rock music culture brought forth Chicago indie. The city has also been spawning a critically acclaimed underground metal scene with various bands gaining national attention in the metal and hard rock world{{Citation needed|date=February 2009}}. Annual festivals feature various acts such as
LollapaloozaLollapalooza is an annual music festival featuring alternative rock, hip hop, and punk rock bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. It has also provided a platform for non-profit and political groups...
, the
Intonation Music FestivalThe Intonation Music Festival was a yearly summer music festival held at in Chicago, Illinois.- 2005 :The festival was held on July 16 - July 17, 2005...
and Pitchfork Music Festival.
{{Seealso|Visual arts of Chicago}}
Tourism
Chicago attracted an approximate combined 35 million people in 2007 from around the nation and abroad. Upscale shopping along the
Magnificent MileThe Magnificent Mile is the portion of Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois extending from the Chicago River to Oak Street in the Near North Side community area. The district is located adjacent to downtown; it is also one block east of Rush Street, which is known for its nightlife...
and
State StreetState Street is a large south-north thoroughfare in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It begins on the Near North Side at North Avenue. For much of its course, it lies between Wabash Avenue on the east and Dearborn Street/Lafayette Avenue on the west...
, thousands of restaurants, as well as Chicago's eminent architecture, continue to draw tourists. The city is the United States' third-largest convention destination. Most conventions are held at
McCormick PlaceMcCormick Place is a large convention center made up of four interconnected buildings sited on and near the shore of Lake Michigan, about 4 km south of downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA. McCormick Place hosts numerous trade shows, including the Chicago Auto Show, held every February.-History:As...
, just south of
Soldier FieldSoldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
. The historic
Chicago Cultural CenterThe Chicago Cultural Center is a Chicago Landmark building that houses the city's official reception venue where the Mayor has welcomed Presidents and royalty, diplomats and community leaders. The building is a testament to the foresight of Chicago's turn of the century cultural leadership...
(1897), originally serving as the Chicago Public Library, now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries and exhibit halls. The ceiling of its Preston Bradley Hall includes a {{convert|38|ft|abbr=on}}
Tiffany glassTiffany glass is the generic name used here to describe the many and varied types of glass developed and produced from 1848 to 1933 at the Tiffany Studios, by Louis Comfort Tiffany. However, it is his head designer until 1909, Clara Driscoll, who is the person now recognized as the real creator of...
dome.
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
sits on a deck built over a portion of the former
Illinois Central RailroadThe Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois with New Orleans, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama. A line also connected Chicago with Sioux City, Iowa...
yard. The park includes the reflective
Cloud GateCloud Gate, a public sculpture by Indian-born British artist Anish Kapoor, is the centerpiece of the AT&T Plaza in Millennium Park within the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. The sculpture and AT&T Plaza are located on top of Park Grill, between the Chase Promenade and McCormick Tribune...
sculpture (known locally as "The Bean"). An outdoor Millennium Park restaurant transforms into an
ice rinkAn ice rink is a frozen body of water where people can ice skate or play winter sports. Some of its uses include playing ice hockey, figure skating exhibitions and contests, and ice shows.-Natural ice rink:...
in the winter. Two tall glass sculptures make up the
Crown FountainCrown Fountain is an interactive work of public art and video sculpture featured in Chicago's Millennium Park, which is located in the Loop community area. Designed by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa, it opened in July 2004. The fountain is composed of a black granite reflecting pool placed between a...
. The fountain's two towers display visual effects from LED images of Chicagoans' faces, along with water spouting from their lips.
Frank GehryFrank Owen Gehry, CC is a Canadian Pritzker Prize-winning architect based in Los Angeles.His buildings, including his private residence, have become tourist attractions...
's detailed, stainless steel band shell, the
Jay Pritzker PavilionJay Pritzker Pavilion, Pritzker Pavilion, or Pritzker Music Pavilion is a band shell in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The pavilion was designed by Frank Gehry, named for Pritzker family member Jay Pritzker, and was constructed between...
, hosts the classical
Grant Park Music FestivalGrant Park Music Festival is an annual classical music concert series held in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is claimed to be the nation's only free, outdoor classical music series. It is currently housed in the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook...
concert series. Behind the pavilion's stage is the
Harris Theater for Music and DanceJoan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Harris & Harris Theater or most commonly Harris Theater is a 1525-seat theater for the performing arts located along the northern edge of Millennium Park on Randolph Street in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, USA...
, an indoor venue for mid-sized performing arts companies, including the
Chicago Opera TheaterThe Chicago Opera Theater is an opera company that was founded as the Chicago Opera Studio in 1974 by Alan Stone to give vocal students performance experience, although it has grown into a professional opera company...
and Music of the Baroque.
In 1998, the city officially opened the
Museum CampusMuseum Campus Chicago is a 57-acre lakefront park in Chicago that surrounds three of the city's most notable museums, all dedicated to the natural sciences: the Adler Planetarium, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Field Museum of Natural History....
, a {{convert|10|acre|abbr=on|sing=on}} lakefront park, surrounding three of the city's main museums: the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, the
Field Museum of Natural HistoryThe Field Museum of Natural History is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It sits on Lake Shore Drive next to Lake Michigan, part of a scenic complex known as the Museum Campus Chicago...
, and the
Shedd AquariumThe John G. Shedd Aquarium is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago, Illinois in the United States that opened on May 30 1930. The aquarium contains over 25,000 fish, and was for some time the largest indoor aquarium in the world with of water. The Shedd Aquarium was the first inland aquarium with...
. The Museum Campus joins the southern section of
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
, which includes the renowned
Art Institute of ChicagoThe School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, The Art Institute of Chicago. Providing degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels, SAIC...
.
Buckingham FountainBuckingham Fountain is a Chicago landmark in Grant Park which was dedicated in 1927. The fountain itself represents Lake Michigan, while each sea horse symbolizes a state bordering the lake.-History:...
anchors the downtown park along the lakefront. The
Oriental InstituteThe Oriental Institute , established in 1919, is the University of Chicago's archeology museum and research center for ancient Near Eastern studies....
, part of the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
, has an extensive collection of
ancient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. The civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and...
ian and
Near EastNear East today is an ambiguous term that covers different countries for archeologists and historians, on one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
ern archaeological artifacts. Other museums and galleries in Chicago include the Chicago History Museum, the DuSable Museum of African American History, the
Museum of Contemporary ArtThe Museum of Contemporary Art, often abbreviated to MCA, is a contemporary art museum near Water Tower Place in downtown Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The museum, which was established in 1967, is one of the world's largest contemporary art venues...
, the
Peggy Notebaert Nature MuseumThe Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum is a nature museum located in Chicago, Illinois. The museum, which opened in October 1999, is located at the intersection of Fullerton Parkway and Cannon Drive in Lincoln Park. It is operated by the Chicago Academy of Sciences, which had previously been located at...
, the
Polish Museum of AmericaThe Polish Museum of America is located in West Town, in what had been the historical Polish Downtown neighborhood of Chicago. It is home to a plethora of Polish artifacts, artwork, and embroidered folk costumes among its growing collection...
, the
Museum of Broadcast CommunicationsThe Museum of Broadcast Communications is located in Chicago, Illinois. Its mission is "to collect, preserve, and present historic and contemporary radio and television content as well as educate, inform, and entertain through our archives, public programs, screenings, exhibits, publications and...
and the
Museum of Science and IndustryThe Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
.
Parks
{{main|Parks of Chicago}}
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Portage ParkPortage Park is a park in the Portage Park community area of Chicago, Illinois on the National Register of Historic Places. The park stretches from Irving Park Road on the south to Berteau Avenue between Central and Long Avenues...
on the Northwest side and Washington Square Park on the
Near North SideThe Near North Side is one of 77 well defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is located north of the Chicago River and the downtown central business district . With the exception of Cabrini-Green, the Near North Side is known for its extreme...
.
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When Chicago incorporated in 1837, it chose the motto "Urbs in Horto", a
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
phrase which translates into
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...
as "City in a Garden". Today the
Chicago Park DistrictThe Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
consists of 552 parks with over 7,300 acres (30 km²) of municipal parkland as well as 33 sand beaches, nine museums, two world-class conservatories, 16 historic lagoons and 10 bird and wildlife gardens.
Lincoln ParkLincoln Park is an urban park in Chicago, Illinois.Lincoln Park may also refer to:-Parks:United States*Lincoln Park , California *Lincoln Park, San Francisco, California...
, the largest of the city parks, covers 1200 acres and has over 20 million visitors each year, making it second only to
Central ParkCentral Park is a large public, urban park that occupies over a square mile in the heart of Manhattan in New York City. It is host to approximately twenty-five million visitors each year...
in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
in number of visitors. With accommodations for more than 5,000 boats, Chicago has the nation's largest municipal harbor system; even larger than systems in cities such as
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
,
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
, or Miami. The system is operated by the
Chicago Park DistrictThe Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
which also operates the city's parks. In addition to ongoing beautification and renewal projects for existing parks, a number of new parks have been added in recent years such as
Ping Tom Memorial ParkPing Tom Memorial Park is a public urban park in Chicago's, Chinatown owned and operated by the Chicago Park District . Located on the south bank of the Chicago River, the park is divided into three sections by a Santa Fe rail track and 18th Street. Currently, only development in the area south of...
, DuSable Park and most notably
Millennium ParkMillennium Park is a public park located in the Chicago Loop community area of Chicago within , United States. It is a prominent civic center of the city's Lake Michigan lakefront. Completed in 2004, it covers a section of northern Grant Park, previously occupied by Illinois Central railyards and...
. The wealth of greenspace afforded by Chicago's parks is further augmented by the
Cook County Forest PreservesThe Cook County Forest Preserves are a network of open spaces, containing forest, prairie, wetland, streams, and lakes, that are set aside as natural areas. Cook County contains Chicago, Illinois, and is the center of a densely-populated urban metropolitan area in northeastern Illinois...
, a network of open spaces containing
forestA forest is an area with a high density of trees. There are many definitions of a forest, based on the various criteria. These plant communities presently cover approximately 9.4% of the Earth's surface in many different regions and function as habitats for organisms, hydrologic flow modulators,...
,
prairiePrairies are considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type...
,
wetlandA wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally. Such areas may also be covered partially or completely by shallow pools of water. Wetlands include swamps, marshes, and bogs, among others. The water found in wetlands can be saltwater, freshwater,...
,
streamA stream is a flowing body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, kill, lick, rill, river syke, bayou, rivulet, or run...
s, and
lakeA lake is a terrain feature , a body of liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the bottom of basin and moves slowly if it moves at all. Another definition is, a body of fresh or salt water of considerable size that is surrounded by land...
s that are set aside as natural areas which lie along the city's periphery, home to both the
Chicago Botanic GardenLocated at 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, Illinois, USA, the Chicago Botanic Garden is a living plant museum situated on nine islands featuring 23 display gardens surrounded by lakes, as well as a prairie and woodlands. The Garden is open every day of the year, except December 25th...
and
Brookfield ZooThe Brookfield Zoo is a zoo located in the Chicago suburb of Brookfield, Illinois. The zoo covers an area of 216 acres and houses around 450 species of animals....
.
Cuisine
{{See also|Chicago farmers' markets|Chicago Dining|Food Manufacturers of Chicago}}
Chicago lays claim to a large number of regional specialties, all of which reflect the city's ethnic and
working classWorking class is a term used in academic sociology and in ordinary conversation to describe, depending on context and speaker, those employed in lower tier jobs as measured by skill, education, and compensation....
roots. Included among these are its nationally renowned
deep-dish pizzaChicago-style pizza is a deep-dish pizza style developed in Chicago. Chicago-style pizza has a buttery crust up to three inches tall at the edge, slightly higher than the large amounts of cheese and chunky tomato sauce, acting as a large bowl. The term also refers to "stuffed" pizza, another...
, although locally the Chicago-style thin crust is also popular; featuring a thinner than normal crust. There are very few pizzerias that specialize in true Chicago-style deep dish, the most prominent being
Gino's EastGino's East is a Chicago-based restaurant chain, notable for its deep-dish pizza , and for its interior walls, which thousands of patrons have covered in graffiti and etchings.-Cuisine:...
,
Pizzeria Uno and DueUno Chicago Grill, formerly known as Pizzeria Uno or more informally as Uno's, is the title for a franchised pizzeria restaurant chain under the parent company Uno Restaurant Holdings Corporation. The first Uno's was established in 1943 by former University of Texas football star Ike Sewell and his...
,
Giordano'sGiordano's is a pizzeria that specializes in Chicago-style pizza. The company started in 1974 after the owners, brothers Efren and Joseph Boglio, Italian immigrants, were discouraged at the lack of authentic pizza available in the Chicago area...
and
Lou Malnati'sLou Malnati's Pizzeria is a family-owned Chicago-style pizza restaurant chain headquartered in Lincolnwood, Illinois. It was founded by the son of Rudy Malnati, who was instrumental in developing the recipe for Chicago-style pizza, and it has become one of the Chicago area's best-known local...
. The number of "authentic" Chicago pizzerias specializing in the thin crust version is much higher, with many being "Mom and Pop" style shops. Among the largest chains in Chicago area are
Home Run InnHome Run Inn is a pizzeria chain based in the Chicago, Illinois, metropolitan area of the United States. It has seven locations, including two in Chicago, Addison, IL, Bolingbrook, IL, Westmont, IL, Bellwood, IL, Melrose Park, IL and Darien, IL...
,
Rosati'sRosati's Pizza is the second largest chain of restaurants in the Chicago metropolitan area, boasting nearly 150 locations nationwide. The chain centers its business around the thin crust variety of Chicago-style pizza...
and
Aurelio'sAurelio's Pizza is an Illinois restaurant chain which centers its business around the thin crust variety of Chicago-style pizza. Aurelio's locations are mostly franchised, with only the two original stores in Homewood, Illinois and Richton Park, Illinois being owned by the Aurelio family...
. The
Chicago-style hot dogA Chicago-style hot dog is a steamed, boiled or grilled – but never broiled – all-beef hot dog on a poppy seed bun, originating from the city of Chicago, Illinois...
, typically a
Vienna BeefVienna Beef is a manufacturer of hot dog used in the the classic Chicago style hot dog, as well as Polish sausage and Italian beef, delicacies of independent Chicago-style hot dog and beef stands...
dog loaded with an array of fixings that often includes Chicago's own neon green pickle
relishA relish is a cooked pickled, chopped vegetable or fruit food item which is typically used as a condiment.-Description and ingredients:The item generally consists of discernible vegetable or fruit pieces in a sauce, although the sauce is subordinate in character to the vegetable or fruit pieces. ...
, yellow mustard, pickled
sport peppersChili pepper is the vegetable of the plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Botanically speaking, the fruit of capsicums are berries...
, tomato wedges, dill pickle spear and topped off with celery salt. Ketchup on a Chicago hot dog is frowned upon. There are two other distinctly Chicago sandwiches, the
Italian beefAn Italian beef is a sandwich of thin slices of seasoned roast beef, dripping with meat juices, on a dense, long Italian-style roll, believed to have originated in Chicago, where its history dates back at least to the 1930s...
sandwich, which is thinly sliced beef slowly simmered in an
au jusAu jus is French for "with [its own] juice"; jus is the juice itself.In American cuisine, the term is mostly used to refer to a light sauce for beef recipes, which may be served with the food or placed on the side for dipping. In French cuisine, jus is a natural way to enhance the flavour of...
served on an Italian roll with sweet peppers or spicy
giardinieraGiardiniera is an Italian or Italian-American relish of pickled vegetables in vinegar or oil. Giardiniera is available as either mild or hot. Hot giardiniera is often referred to as "Hot G"....
, and the
Maxwell Street PolishA Maxwell Street Polish consists of a grilled or fried sausage topped with grilled onions and yellow mustard and optional sport peppers, on a bun. The sausage, a cross between Polish kielbasa and a natural-casing hot dog, is typically spicier than either and usually made from beef and pork...
, which is a
kielbasaKiełbasa is the Polish word for sausage. The word has become a commonly used North American term for Eastern European styles of sausage, including Ukrainian sausage, which is called kovbasa or kubasa.-Etymology:...
—typically from either the
Vienna BeefVienna Beef is a manufacturer of hot dog used in the the classic Chicago style hot dog, as well as Polish sausage and Italian beef, delicacies of independent Chicago-style hot dog and beef stands...
Company or the Bobak Sausage Company—on a hot dog roll, topped with grilled onions, yellow mustard and the optional sport peppers. Two other ethnic local creations are the Puerto Rican
jibaritoThe jibarito , a specialty of Aguada and Chicago, is a sandwich made with flattened, fried green plantains instead of bread....
, a sandwich made with flattened, fried green plantains instead of bread and
GreekThe Greeks , also known as Hellenes, are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions, who can also be found in diaspora communities around the world....
saganakiSaganaki is a Greek appetizer of fried cheese.The cheese used is usually Kefalograviera, Kasseri, Kefalotyri, or sheep's milk Feta cheese...
, an appetizer of fried cheese.
McDonald'sMcDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving nearly 47 million customers daily. At one time it was the largest global restaurant chain, but it has since been surpassed by multi-brand operator Yum! and sandwich chain Subway.In addition to its...
even adds its own downtown flavor, with their Rock-n-Roll McDonald's.
The grand tour of Chicago cuisine culminates annually in
Grant ParkGrant Park is a large park in the Loop community area of , United States. The park's most notable features are Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the Art Institute of Chicago. Grant Park is frequently referred to as the city's front yard...
at the
Taste of ChicagoThe Taste of Chicago is the world's largest food festival, held annually for 10 days in Chicago starting Friday before the 4th of July and ending the Sunday after . The event is the largest festival in Chicago...
which runs from the final week of June through
Fourth of JulyIn the United States, Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
weekend. Chicago features a number of celebrity chefs, a list which includes
Charlie TrotterCharlie Trotter is a Chicago chef and restaurateur.-Biography:A graduate of New Trier High School, Trotter started cooking professionally in 1982 after earning a degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison...
,
Rick TramontoRick Tramonto is a Chicago chef and cookbook author. He is executive chef and partner in Tru, a contemporary fine-dining restaurant from Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises.-Biography:...
,
Jean JohoJean Joho is a renowned chef and restaurateur. He currently heads the restaurant Everest in Chicago.Born in Alsace, France, he began his formal training at the age of 13 at L'Auberge de L'lll under master chef Paul Haeberlin. Joho con