Chicago, Illinois
(pron.
IPA ) is the largest city in the
U.S. state of
Illinois, as well as the
third-most populous city in the United States with 2.8 million people.
[http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/tables/SUB-EST2005-01.csv] It is the seat of
Cook County, although a small portion of the northwest tip of the city, near
O'Hare Airport lies in
DuPage County. Known as the "
Second City," the "
Windy City," the "City of Big Shoulders," and "
Chi-town" (along with other
nicknames and
colloquial nicknames that reflect the city's character), Chicago is located along the southwestern shore of
Lake Michigan. When combined with its
suburbs and nine surrounding counties in
Illinois,
Wisconsin,
Indiana, and Southwest
Michigan the greater
metropolitan area known as
Chicagoland encompasses a population of 9.3 million,
[http://www.census.gov/population/www/estimates/metropop/table01.csv] making it the
third-largest in the United States.
Since its 1833 founding as a
frontier town of the
Old Northwest, Chicago has grown into one of the world's ten most influential
world cities.
[The World According to GaWC (2006). Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network.] Chicago today is the financial, economic, and cultural capital of the
Midwest. The city is recognized as a major transportation, business, and architectural center of the United States. The city's skyscrapers, local cuisine, political traditions, and sports teams are some of its most recognized symbols.
A resident of Chicago is referred to as a
Chicagoan. Typically, residents of Chicago will identify themselves with one of the many
neighborhoods of Chicago.
African Americans form a
plurality in the city (just under two-fifths), about one-third are
Caucasian, around a quarter
Hispanic and one-twentieth
Asian, with small amounts of other groups filling in the remainder. Chicago also has several dozen distinct neighborhoods to match its ethnic diversity; the city is divided into 77
community areas, identified in the 1920s by the
University of Chicago.
The indigenous
Potawatomi tribe called the
marshes on which Chicago was later built "Checagou," which translates to "wild onion" or "garlic" (also referred to as "skunk cabbage").
[Alice Maggio (January 29, 2004). From Checagou to Chicago: A City by No Other Name. URL accessed on April 29, 2006.] European explorers assigned the name to the
Chicago River, followed by settlers' delegating it as the name of the city. Before Chicago's founding, the name of the river was spelled several ways, such as "Chetagu" or "Shikago."
The origin of Chicago's nickname as "The Windy City" is debated (see
List of nicknames for Chicago). The most common explanation had been that the phrase was created by New York newspapers in the 1880s during a national debate over which city would host the 1893
World's Fair. However, "Windy City" was used before this by the
Cincinnati Enquirer at least as early as 1876. Ironically, the Chicago citizenry turned the intended slur into a compliment of the city's new life and vitality following a quick recovery from the
Great Chicago Fire. As a result, the name remains in common usage.
|
Chicago, looking north from State and Washington Streets in the 19th Century |
During the mid-1700s, the Chicago area was inhabited primarily by
Potawatomis, who took the place of the
Miami and
Sauk and Fox people. The first non-native settler in Chicago was
Haitian.
Jean-Baptiste Pointe du Sable, who arrived in the 1770s, married a Potawatomi woman and founded the area's first trading post. In 1803, the United States Army built
Fort Dearborn, which was destroyed in 1812 in the
Fort Dearborn Massacre. The
Ottawa,
Ojibwa, and Potawatomi later ceded the land to the United States in the
Treaty with the Ottawa, etc. of 1816. On
August 12,
1833, the Town of Chicago was organized with a population of 350, and within seven years it grew to a population of over 4,000. The City of Chicago was incorporated on
March 4,
1837.
Starting in 1848, the city became an important transportation link between the eastern and western United States with the opening of the
Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, Chicago's first railway, and the
Illinois and Michigan Canal, which allowed shipping from the Great Lakes through Chicago to the
Mississippi River. With a flourishing economy that brought many new residents from rural communities and immigrants from
Europe, Chicago grew from a city of 299,000 to nearly 1.7 million between 1870 and 1900. The city's manufacturing and retail sectors dominated the Midwest and greatly influenced the American economy, with the
Union Stock Yards' dominating the packing trade.
After the
Great Chicago Fire of 1871, Chicago experienced rapid rebuilding and growth.
[Bruegmann, Robert (2004-2005). Built Environment of the Chicago Region. Encyclopedia of Chicago (online version).] During Chicago's rebuilding period, the first
skyscraper was constructed in 1885 using
steel-skeleton construction. By 1893, Chicago hosted the
World's Columbian Exposition on former marshland at the present location of
Jackson Park. The World's Columbian Exposition drew 27.5 million visitors, and is considered among the most influential world's fairs in history.
[Chicago History. Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau.] Nevertheless, the city was the site of labor conflicts and unrest, which included the
Haymarket Riot on
May 4,
1886. Social problems among Chicago's lower classes led to the founding of
Hull House in 1889, of which
Jane Addams was a co-founder.
Lake Michigan - the primary source of fresh water for the city - was already highly polluted from population growth and the rapidly growing industries in and around Chicago. The city responded by embarking on several large
public works projects, including a large excavation project which built tunnels below Lake Michigan to newly built
water cribs which were two miles (3 km) off the lakeshore. However, the cribs failed to bring enough clean water since spring rains would wash the polluted water from the
Chicago River into them. Beginning in 1855, Chicago constructed the first comprehensive sewer system in the U.S. In 1900, the problem of sewage was solved by reversing the direction of the River's flow with the construction of the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal leading to the
Illinois River.
|
The Chicago River at night. |
The 1920s brought international notoriety to Chicago as gangsters, such as
Al Capone, battled each other and the law during the
Prohibition era. Nevertheless, the 1920s also saw a large increase in Chicago industry as well as the first arrivals of the
Great Migration that would lead thousands of mostly Southern blacks to Chicago and other Northern cities. On
December 2,
1942, the world's first controlled
nuclear reaction was conducted at the
University of Chicago as part of the top secret
Manhattan Project.
Mayor
Richard J. Daley was elected in 1955, in the era of so-called
machine politics. Starting in the 1950s, many upper and middle-class citizens left the inner-city of Chicago for the
suburbs and left many impoverished neighborhoods in their wake. Nevertheless, the city hosted the
1968 Democratic National Convention and saw the construction of the
Sears Tower (which became the
world's tallest building),
McCormick Place, and
O'Hare Airport. In 1979
Jane Byrne, the city's first female mayor, was elected, and in 1983
Harold Washington became the first
African American to be elected to the office of mayor.
Richard M. Daley, son of Richard J. Daley, became mayor in 1989. New projects during the younger Daley's administration have made Chicago larger, environmentally friendlier, and more accessible.
[Chicago: The Wind at Its Back (2005). SustainLane.] Since the early 1990s, Chicago has seen a turnaround with increased ethnic diversity and many formerly abandoned neighborhoods starting to show new life. As a part of its environmentally friendly image, Chicago has declared
Peregrine Falcon, a protected species that started to build its nests in Chicago skyscrapers, the official bird of the city in 1999.
[Peregrine Falcon: Official City Bird of Chicago. Falcon Living.] Since Mayor
Richard M. Daley has taken office in 1989, the City of Chicago has also enjoyed a resurgence in tourism.
 |
Landsat image of the Chicagoland area |
Located in northeastern Illinois at the southwestern tip of
Lake Michigan, Chicago's official geographic coordinates are . It sits on the
continental divide at the site of the
Chicago Portage, connecting the
Mississippi River and the
Great Lakes watersheds. The city lies beside Lake Michigan and two rivers: the Chicago River in downtown and the
Calumet River in the industrial far South Side, entirely or partially flow through Chicago. The
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal connects the Chicago River with the
Des Plaines River, which runs to the west of the city.
When Chicago was founded in the 1830s, most of the early building began around the mouth of the
Chicago River. According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, Chicago has a total area of 234.0
square miles (606.1
km²), of which 227.1 square miles (588.3 km²) is land and 6.9 square miles (17.8 km²) is water. The total area is 2.94% water.
The city has been built on relatively flat land; the average elevation of land is 579
feet (176
m) above sea level. The lowest points are along the lake shore at 577 feet (176 m), while the highest point at 735 feet (224 m) is in the
landfill on the city's far south side ().
Since the first recorded
earthquake in 1804,
[200th Anniversary of the First Recorded Chicago Earthquake (9/14/2004). Illinois State Geological Survey.] Chicago has occasionally experienced earthquakes. More recently, an earthquake with an epicenter in
Ottawa, Illinois, registering about 4.3 on the
Richter scale shook some buildings in Chicago on
June 28, 2004. This earthquake sparked worries that the
New Madrid fault might become active again. An earthquake of 6 or higher in the Missouri Fault might cause moderate to high damage in Chicago.
Cityscape
|
Downtown Chicago along the Chicago River looking north |
The city's urban context is organized within a
grid pattern. The pattern is modified by the shoreline, the three branches of the
Chicago River, the system of active/inactive rail lines, several diagonal streets (including Clybourn Street, Milwaukee, Lincoln, Elston, Archer, and Ogden Avenues), the expressways, and hundreds of bridges and viaducts. In addition, the baselines for numbering streets and buildings are State Street (for east-west numbering) and Madison (for north-south numbering). Street numbers begin at "1" at the baselines and run numerically in directions indicated to the city limits, with N, S, E, and W indicating directions. Chicago is divided into one-mile sections which ideally contain eight blocks to the mile, with each block's addresses ideally occupying a 100-number range. Even-numbered addresses are on the north and west sides of streets; odd-numbered address are on the south and east sides.
Since the first steel-framed high-rise building of the world was constructed in the city in 1885, Chicago has been known for the
skyscraper.
[Chicago (2004). Chicago Public Library.] Today, many high-rise buildings are located in the downtown area, notably in the
Loop and along the lakefront and the Chicago River. The three tallest buildings are the
Sears Tower (also the tallest building in
North America), the
Aon Center, and the
John Hancock Center. The rest of the city consists of low-rise buildings and single-family homes. There are clusters of
industrialized areas, including the lakefront near the
Indiana border, the area south of
Midway Airport, and the banks of the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.
Future building sites that will contribute to the skyline of Chicago include the
skyscrapers of
Waterview Tower,
400 North Lake Shore Drive, and the
Trump International Hotel and Tower.
Along
Lake Shore Drive, parks line the lakefront. The most notable of these parks are
Grant Park, which borders the east end of the Loop, Lincoln Park on the north side, and
Jackson Park in the
Hyde Park neighborhood on the south side. Interspersed within this system of parks are beaches, a zoo and several bird sanctuaries,
McCormick Place Convention Center,
Navy Pier,
Soldier Field, the
Museum Campus, and a
water treatment plant.
Pushed along by the national real estate boom in recent years, Chicago has seen an unprecedented surge in skyscraper construction, most notably in the area directly south (
South Loop) and north (
River North) of the Loop. This has been accompanied by a rapid
gentrification of many parts of the city, as once-dormant areas become "hip" neighborhoods replete with an increased level of commercial services. An example is the west-side neighborhood
Wicker Park.
Climate
Chicago, like much of the
Midwest, has a climate that is prone to extreme, often volatile, weather conditions. The city experiences four distinct
seasons. In July, the warmest month, high temperatures average 84 °
F (29 °
C) and low temperatures 63 °F (17 °C). In January, the coldest month, high temperatures average 29 °F (−2 °C) with low temperatures averaging 13 °F (−11 °C).
[Chicago, Illinois - Summary (2006). Weatherbase.] According to the
National Weather Service, Chicago's highest official temperature reading of 105 °F (40 °C) was recorded on
July 24,
1934. The lowest temperature of −27 °F (−32 °C) degrees was recorded on
January 20,
1985.
Chicago's yearly
precipitation averages about 38
inches (965
mm). Summer is the rainiest season, with short-lived rainfall and
thunderstorms more common than prolonged rainy periods.
[Chicago Seasonal Temperature and Precipitation Rankings (11/25/2005). ''National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office - Chicago, IL.] Winter is the driest season, with most of the precipitation falling as snow. Chicago's highest one day precipitation total was 6.49 inches (164 mm) which fell on
August 14,
1987.
A 2006 estimate puts the city's population at 2,873,790.
[Best places to live 2006: Chicago, IL snapshot. CNN Money.] As of the 2000
census, there were 2,896,016 people, 1,061,928 households, and 632,909 families residing within Chicago. This encompasses about one-fifth of the entire population of the state of
Illinois and 1% of the population of the
United States. The
population density was 12,750.3 people per
square mile (4,923.0/km²). There were 1,152,868 housing units at an average density of 5,075.8 per square mile (1,959.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 36.39%
Black or
African American, 31.32%
White, 26.02%
Hispanic or
Latino, 4.33%
Asian and
Pacific Islander, 1.64% from two or more races, 0.15%
Native American, and 0.15% from
other races.
[Chicago Demographics (2003). US Census Bureau] The city itself makes up 23.3% percent of the total population of Illinois, down from a high of 44.3% in 1930.
Of the 1,061,928 households, 28.9% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.1% were
married couples living together, 18.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.4% were non-families. Of all households, 32.6% are made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.50.
Of the city population, 26.2% are under the age of 18, 11.2% are from 18 to 24, 33.4% are from 25 to 44, 18.9% are from 45 to 64, and 10.3% are 65 years of age or older. The
median age is 32 years. For every 100 females there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $38,625, and the median income for a family was $46,748. Males had a median income of $35,907 versus $30,536 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $20,175. Below the
poverty line are 19.6% of the population and 16.6% of the families. Of the total population, 28.1% of those under the age of 18 and 15.5% of those 65 and older are living below the
poverty line.
Chicago has a large Irish-American population on its
South Side. Many of the city's politicians have come from this population, including current mayor
Richard M. Daley. Other
European ethnic groups are the
Germans,
Italians and
Polish. Chicago has the largest population of
Swedish-Americans of any city in the U.S. with approximately 123,000. After the
Great Chicago Fire, many Swedish carpenters helped to rebuild the city, which led to the saying
the Swedes built Chicago.
[Chicago Stories - Swedes in Chicago (2006). WTTW.com. Accessed June 5, 2006.]The city has the largest ethnically
Polish population outside of
Poland, making it one of the most important
Polonia centers.
[America the diverse - Chicago's Polish neighborhoods (5/15/2005). USA Weekend Magazine.] Chicago is also the second-largest
Serbian[Serbian Delegation (4/30/2004). WTCC Weekly News at www.wtcc.org.] and
Lithuanian city,
[Cities Guide Chicago - A hard-knock life (2006). Economist.com.] and the third largest
Greek city in the world.
[Chicago Stories - The Greeks in Chicago (2006). WTTW.com. Accessed June 5, 2006.] Chicago has a large
Romanian-American community with more than 100,000,
[About Us. Romanian Museum in Chicago at www.romanianmuseum.com.] as well as a large
Assyrian population with about 80,000. The city is home to the seat of the head of the
Assyrian Church of the East,
Mar Dinkha IV, and the
ELCA headquarters.
[Contact Us. ELCA.org.] The Chicago Metropolitan area is also becoming a major center for
Indian-Americans and
South Asians. Chicago has the third-largest South Asian population in the United States, after
New York City and the
San Francisco Bay Area. The Devon Avenue corridor on Chicago's north side is one of the largest South Asian neighborhoods in
North America.
|
Trading floor at the Chicago Board of Trade |
Chicago has the third largest
gross metropolitan product in the nation - approximately
$390 billion.
[The Role of Metro Areas in the U.S. Economy (1/13/2006). p. 15. Accessed from The United States Conference of Mayors at www.usmayors.org/74thWinterMeeting/metroeconreport_January2006.pdf.] The city has also been rated as having the most balanced economy in the United States due to its high level of diversification.
[[www.worldbusinesschicago.com/ about/upload/20ChicagoSunTimes6-23-03.pdf Moody's: Chicago's Economy Most Balanced in US (1/23/2003)]. Accessed from 'World Business Chicago' at www.worldbusinesschicago.com/ about/upload/20ChicagoSunTimes6-23-03.pdf.] Chicago is a major financial center with the
second largest central business district in the U.S. The city is the headquarters of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (the Seventh District of the Federal Reserve). The city is also home to four major financial and futures exchanges, including the
Chicago Stock Exchange, the
Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the
Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and the
Chicago Mercantile Exchange (Merc). Chicago and the surrounding areas also house many major brokerage firms and insurance companies, such as
Allstate Corporation and Zurich North America. In addition, despite Chicago commonly being perceived as a rust-belt city, a study indicated that Chicago has the largest high-technology and information-technology industry employment in the United States.
[Gauging Metropolitan "High-Tech" and "I-Tech" Activity (2004). Accessed from 'SAGE Publications' at http://edq.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/18/1/10?ijkey=50c44cb29d68315499a2aa3771131b328064bf28&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha.]Manufacturing (which includes chemicals, metal, machinery, and consumer electronics), printing and publishing, and food processing also play major roles in the city's economy. Nevertheless, much of the manufacturing occurs outside the city limits, especially since
World War II.
[ Hirsch, Susan E. (2004-2005). Economic Geography. Encyclopedia of Chicago (online edition).] Several medical products and services companies are headquartered in the Chicago area, including
Baxter International,
Abbott Laboratories, and the Healthcare Financial Services division of
General Electric. Moreover, the construction of the
Illinois and Michigan Canal, which helped move goods from the
Great Lakes south on the
Mississippi River, and the
railroads in the 1800s made the city a major transportation center in the United States. In the 1840s, Chicago became a major
grain port, and in the 1850s and 1860s Chicago's pork and beef industry expanded. As the major meat companies grew in Chicago many, such as
Armour, created global enterprises. Though the meatpacking industry currently plays a lesser role in the city's economy,
Chicago continues to be a major tranportation and distribution center.
The city is also a major convention destination; Chicago is third in the U.S. behind
Las Vegas and
Orlando as far as the number of conventions hosted annually.
[Chicago falls to 3rd in U.S. convention industry (4/26/2006). Crain's Chicago Business.] In addition, Chicago is home to eleven
Fortune 500 companies, while the metropolitan area hosts an additional 21 Fortune 500 companies.
[Fortune 500 2006 - Illinois. CNNMoney.com.] Chicago also hosts 12 Fortune Global 500 companies and 17 Financial Times 500 companies. The city and its surrounding metropolitan area are also home to the second largest labor pool in the United States with approximately 4.25 million workers.
[Chicago Market Outlook 2006 - Market Commentary. CBRE - CB Richard Ellis, at www.cbre.com/NR/rdonlyres/9326419A-60CC-47BC-9960-448BD4B32C52/0/MarketOutlook06FINAL.pdf.]Chicago is the
county seat of
Cook County. The government of the City of Chicago is divided into
executive and
legislative branches. The
Mayor of Chicago is the
chief executive, elected by general election for a term of four years. 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 Council is the legislative branch and is made up of 50 alderman, one elected from each
ward 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 Party organization dominated by ethnic ward-healers. During the 1880s and 1890s, Chicago had a powerful radical tradition with large and highly organized socialist, anarchist 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 totals' leading the state of Illinois to be "
solid blue" in presidential elections since 1992. The citizens of Chicago have not elected a
Republican mayor since 1927, when
William Thompson was voted into office.
Former Chicago Mayor
Richard J. Daley's mastery of
machine politics preserved the
Chicago Democratic Machine long after the demise of similar machines in other large American cities.
During much of that time the city administration found opposition mainly from a liberal "independent" faction of the Democratic Party. The independents finally won control of city government in 1983 with the election of
Harold Washington. Since Washington's death, Chicago has since been under the leadership of
Richard M. Daley, the son of Richard J. Daley.
In November 2,
2004, Chicago voters casted 839,496 ballots ( 81.28%) for Democratic
John Kerry to only 188,056 ( 18.21%) for Republican
George W. Bush, who won nationwide. All 50 Chicago wards went for John Kerry.[
1]
Like most major American cities, Chicago has experienced a decline in overall crime since the 1990s. However, in addition to its gangland problems, Chicago historically saw a major rise in violent crime starting in the late 1960s. Murders in the city peaked first in 1974, with 970 murders when the city's population was over three million (resulting in a murder rate of around 29 per 100,000), and again in 1992, with 943 murders when the city had
fewer than three million people, resulting in a murder rate of 34 per 100,000. It peaked again in 1993 with 931 murders. Following 1992, the murder count slowly decreased to 705 by 1999; by this time, it had the most murders of any big city in the U.S.
[Heinzmann, David (1/1/2003). Chicago falls out of 1st in murders. Chicago Tribune, found at qrc.depaul.edu/djabon/Articles/ChicagoCrime20030101.htm.] After adopting crime-fighting techniques recommended by the
New York Police Department and the
Los Angeles Police Department in 2004,
[David Heinzmann and Rex W. Huppke (12/19/2004). City murder toll lowest in decades Chicago Tribune.] Chicago recorded 448 homicides, the lowest total since 1965. Nevertheless, this murder rate of 15.65 per 100,000 population is still above the U.S. average.
Chicago has been among the first U.S. cities to build an integrated emergency response center to coordinate the city's response to terrorist attacks, gang violence, and natural disasters. Built in 1995, the center is integrated with over 2000 cameras, a direct link to the
National Counterterrorism Center, and communications with all levels of city government. Recently installed anti-crime cameras have been introduced and are capable of pinpointing gunshot sounds, calculating where the shots were fired, and pointing and zooming the cameras in the direction of the shots within a two block radius. Early results show these new cameras to be highly effective in reducing crime.
[McKay , Jim (12/8/2005). Triggered Response. Government Technology at www.govtech.net/magazine/story.php?id=97507&issue=12:2005.] Placed in residential areas, these cameras cause some Chicagoans to feel uneasy about being so closely watched. They have prompted some calls of discrimination since these cameras tend to be prevalent in Black and Latino communities with higher than average crime rates.
The FBI often does not accept crime statistics submitted by the
Chicago Police Department, which tallies data differently than other cities. The police record all criminal sexual assaults as opposed to only rape as with other police departments. Aggravated battery is counted along with the standard category of aggravated assault. As a result, Chicago is often omitted from studies like
Morgan Quitno's annual "Safest/Most Dangerous City" survey.
[Locy, Toni (6/7/2005). Murder, violence rates fall, FBI says. USA Today.]Public education
The
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is the
school district that controls over 600 public elementary and high schools in Chicago. The school district, with more 400,000 students enrolled,
[CPS At A Glance (2005). Chicago Public Schools at www.cps.k12.il.us/AtAGlance.html.] is led by
CEO Arne Duncan. The CPS also includes several selective-admission magnet schools, such as
Whitney Young Magnet High School, William Jones College Prep,
Walter Payton College Prep, Lane Tech College Prep, and
Northside College Preparatory High School.
Like many urban U.S. school districts, CPS suffered many problems throughout the latter half of the 20th century, including overcrowding, underfunding, mismanagement and a high dropout rate. In 1987, then U.S. Secretary of Education
William Bennett named the Chicago Public Schools as the "worst in the nation."
Several
school reform initiatives have since been undertaken to improve the system's performance. Reforms have included a system of Local School Councils,
Charter Schools, and efforts to end
social promotion. The most notable and public of these reforms has been a concerted effort at aggressively closing down underperforming schools while at the same time renovating and improving successful ones or building new ones .
Higher education
Chicago is home to many institutions of higher education within its city limits and nearby environs. While some of these institutions are primarily located outside of central Chicago, many have downtown branches. The city is home to two of America's top research universities:
University of Chicago in
Hyde Park on the South Side and
Northwestern University in northside suburb
Evanston. Both maintain campuses near the
Magnificent Mile in downtown Chicago. Several private
Catholic universities are located in Chicago, such as
DePaul University (the largest private university in Illinois),
St. Xavier University, and
Loyola University.
The
University of Illinois at Chicago is the city's largest university and features the nation's largest medical school. The
Illinois Institute of Technology in
Bronzeville has renowned engineering and architecture programs.
Dominican University, located outside Chicago in River Forest, teaches many of its library courses at the
Chicago Public Library's Harold Washington Building in the Loop.
North Park University, a small Christian liberal arts university affiliated with the
Evangelical Covenant Church, is located on the city's northwest side in the North Park neighborhood. The Chicago region has 12 accredited theological schools representing Catholic and most mainline Protestant denominations. The United Church of Christ-related
Chicago Theological Seminary is the city's oldest institution of higher education. These accredited seminaries in the region are joined in a consortium known as the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS).
[Association of Chicago Theological Schools] The
Moody Bible Institute is near downtown Chicago.
Chicago State University and
Northeastern Illinois University are other state universities in Chicago. The city also has a large
community college system known as the
City Colleges of Chicago. Additionally, there are several smaller colleges noted for their
fine arts education programs -
Roosevelt University,
Columbia College Chicago, and
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Chicago has a major
theater scene, and is the birthplace of modern
improvisational comedy.
The city is home to two renowned comedy troupes:
The Second City and
I.O. (formerly known as ImprovOlympic). Renowned Chicago theater companies include the
Steppenwolf Theatre Company (on the city's north side), the
Goodman Theatre, and the Victory Gardens Theatre. Other theatres, from nearly 100 storefront performance spaces such as the Strawdog Theatre Company in the
Lakeview area to landmark downtown houses such as the
Chicago Theatre, present a variety of
plays and
musicals. The city is home to the
Lyric Opera of Chicago, the
Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the
Joffrey Ballet, and several modern and jazz dance troupes.
Chicago is known for its
Chicago blues,
Chicago soul,
Jazz, and
Gospel. The city is the birthplace of the
House style of music, and is the site of an influential
Hip-Hop scene. The city is also home to various
alternative bands from the 1990s and a handful of
punk rock bands. There is also a flourishing independent rock scene, with multiple festivals featuring various acts each year (
Lollapalooza, the
Intonation Music Festival and
Pitchfork Music Festival being the most prominent).
Chicago has several signature foods which reflect the city's ethnic and
working-class roots. These include the
deep-dish pizza and the
Chicago hot dog, which is almost always made of
Vienna Beef and loaded with mustard, chopped onion, sliced tomato, pickle relish, celery salt, sport peppers, and a dill pickle spear. However, putting ketchup on a Chicago hot dog is often taken as an insult. Chicago is also known for
Italian Beef sandwiches and the
Maxwell Street Polish (always served topped with grilled onions and mustard). The city has many upscale dining establishments as well as many ethnic restaurant districts. These include "Greektown" on South Halsted, "Little Italy" on Taylor Street, just west of Halsted, "Chinatown" on the near South Side, and South Asian on Devon Avenue.
Sites of interest
In 1998, the city officially opened the
Museum Campus, a 10-
acre (4-
hectare) lakefront park surrounding three of the city's main museums: the
Adler Planetarium, the
Field Museum of Natural History, and the
Shedd Aquarium. The Museum Campus was constructed on the southern section of
Grant Park. Grant Park is also home to Chicago's other major downtown museum, the
Art Institute of Chicago, which is partnered with The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Navy Pier, a 3000-
foot (900 m) pier housing restaurants, shops, museums, exhibition halls, auditoriums, and a 150-foot-tall (45 m)
Ferris wheel, is located north of Grant Park on the lakefront.
The
Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, located in the
Hyde Park neighborhood, is housed in the only in-place surviving building from the
World's Columbian Exposition of 1893.
The
Chicago Cultural Center, built in 1897 as Chicago's first permanent
public library, now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries, and exhibit halls. The ceiling of Preston Bradley Hall includes a 38-foot (11 m)
Tiffany glass dome. The
Oriental Institute, part of the
University of Chicago, has an extensive collection of
ancient Egyptian and
Near Eastern archaeological artifacts, while the
Freedom Museum is dedicated to exploring and explaining the
First Amendment to the United States Constitution. Other museums and galleries in Chicago are the
Chicago History Museum,
DuSable Museum of African-American History,
Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum,
Museum of Contemporary Art, and the
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum.
Millenium Park is a monument that was intended to be finished for the turn of the century, however was delayed several years. It includes the modern sculpture
The Bean which, when facing the bean and the lake, reflects the image of the Chicago Skyline back to viewers. It contains a "hip" outdoor restaurant which is transformed into an ice skating rink in the winter. Two large glass sculptures which spout water are also included.
Media
Chicago is the third-largest market in the U.S. (after
New York City and
Los Angeles).
[Nielsen Media - DMA Listing (September 24, 2005).] All of the major
American television networks have subsidiaries in Chicago.
WGN-TV, which is owned by the
Tribune Company, is carried (with some programming differences) as "
Superstation WGN" on
cable nation-wide. The city is also the home of the
Oprah Winfrey Show, while
Chicago Public Radio produces programs such as
PRI's
This American Life and
NPR's
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!. Other television news programs include ABC 7, NBC 5, CBS 2, FOX 32, WGN 9, and CLTV
There are two major daily
newspapers published in Chicago: the
Chicago Tribune and the
Chicago Sun-Times, with the former having the larger circulation. There are also several regional and special-interest newspapers such as the
Daily Southtown, the
Chicago Defender, the
Chicago Free Press, the
Newcity News, the
Daily Herald,
StreetWise,
Windy City Times,
The Gazette (Chicago), and the
Chicago Reader.
Sports
|
U.S. Cellular Field on Chicago's South Side. Home of the 2005 World Series Champion Chicago White Sox |
Chicago is the home to 16 professional sports teams, and is one of three U.S. cities that has two
Major League Baseball teams. The
Chicago Cubs of the
National League play at
Wrigley Field, which is located in the north side neighborhood of
Lakeview, commonly referred to as "Wrigleyville." The
Chicago White Sox of the American League won the
World Series championship in 2005, their first since 1917.
U.S. Cellular Field, once called New
Comiskey Park and now referred to as "The Cell" by many locals unhappy with the corporate sponsor-ship, is located on the city's south side.
The
Chicago Bulls of the
National Basketball Association is one of the world's most recognized
basketball teams. One of the team's most well-known players,
Michael Jordan, led the Bulls to six NBA championships in eight seasons in the 1990s. The
Chicago Bears of the
National Football League play at
Soldier Field. The
Chicago Fire, members of
Major League Soccer, won one league and three
US Open Cups since 1997. After eight years at Soldier Field, they recently moved to the new
Toyota Park in Bridgeview at 71st and Harlem Avenue during the summer of 2006. Other major league sports teams in Chicago include the
Chicago Blackhawks of the
National Hockey League and the
Chicago Sky of the
Women's National Basketball Association The city has offered an official
Olympic bid for the
2016 Summer Olympics, and is considered a strong contender among the three candidate American cities.
[Kathy Bergen and Gary Washburn (5/11/2006). City out to prove Olympic mettle. Chicago Tribune.] Chicago also hosted the
1959 Pan American Games, and
Gay Games VII in 2006.
Health and medicine
|
Entrance to "Old" Cook County Hospital. This building is now closed and services have been moved to the new John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County. |
Chicago is home to the
Illinois Medical District on the Near West Side. It includes
Rush University Medical Center, the
University of Illinois at Chicago medical center, and
John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County, the largest trauma-center in the city. The
University of Chicago operates the
University of Chicago Hospitals, which was ranked the fourteenth best
hospital in the country by
U.S. News and World Report.
It is the only hospital in
Illinois ever to be included in the magazine's "Honor Roll" of the best hospitals in the
United States.
The
University of Illinois College of Medicine at
UIC is the largest medical school in the United States (1300 students, including those at campuses in
Peoria,
Rockford and
Urbana-Champaign).
[About the College - A Brief History of the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine (2005). UIC College of Medicine at www.uic.edu/depts/mcam/history.shtml.] Chicago is also home to other nationally recognized medical schools including
Rush Medical College, the
Pritzker School of Medicine of the
University of Chicago, and the
Feinberg School of Medicine of
Northwestern University. In addition, the
Chicago Medical School and
Loyola University Chicago's Stritch School of Medicine are located in the suburbs of
North Chicago and
Maywood, respectively. The
Midwestern University Chicago College of
Osteopathic Medicine is in
Downers Grove.
The leading healthcare informatics organizations are located in Chicago, including the American Medical Informatics Association and the Health Information Management Systems Society. These organizations include as members many healthcare
IT vendors and the
CIO/VP Technology leaders of most American healthcare operations. The
American College of Surgeons,
American Dental Association,
American Hospital Association,
American Medical Association, and the
American Osteopathic Association are based in the city.
Transportation
Main articles: Streets and highways of Chicago, Mass transit in Chicago, Chicago airportsChicago is considered to be the premier transportation hub in America. It is an important component in global distribution, as it is the third largest inter-modal port in the world after
Hong Kong and
Singapore.
[Madigan, p.52.] Additionally, it is the only city in North America in which all six
Class I railroads meet.
[Appendix C: Regional Freight Transportation Profiles. Assessing the Effects of Freight Movement on Air Quality at the National and Regional Level. U.S. Department of Transportation - Federal Highway Administration (April 2005).] |
CTA Blue Line station at O'Hare Airport |
Seven
interstate highways run through Chicago. Segments that link to the city center are named after influential politicians, and traffic reports tend to use the names rather than interstate numbers. The Kennedy Expressway is
I-90 from the Loop to O'Hare International Airport. The Dan Ryan Expressway is I-90/
94 from south of the "Circle Interchange" to the
I-57 Split, and from the I-57 Split south is the Bishop Ford Freeway. The rest of I-94 is called the Edens Expressway. I-90 becomes the Chicago Skyway when it breaks off from the Dan Ryan Expressway. Other named highway segments are the Stevenson Expressway (
I-55) and Eisenhower Expressway (
I-290).
The
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) handles public transportation in the City of Chicago and a few adjacent suburbs. The CTA operates public buses, a
rapid transit system, and an elevated train known as the "
Chicago L" or "El" to Chicagoans, as well as rapid transit service to Midway and O'Hare Airports. The
Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) provides service in forty surrounding suburbs and partially into the city.
Metra operates commuter rail service in Chicago and its suburbs. The
Metra Electric Line shares the railway with the South Shore Line's
NICTD Northwest Indiana Commuter Rail Service, which accesses
Gary/Chicago Airport.
Pace operates a primarily-suburban bus service that also offers some routes into Chicago.
Chicago is served by
Midway Airport on the south side and
O'Hare International Airport, one of the world's busiest airports, on the far northwest. In 2005, O'Hare was the world's busiest airport by aircraft movements and the second busiest by total passenger traffic (due to government enforced flight caps).
[Preliminary Traffic Results for 2005 Show Firm Rebound (3/14/2006). Airports Council International.] Both O'Hare and Midway are owned and operated by the City of Chicago. The State of Illinois has debated opening a new airport near
Peotone.
Gary/Chicago International Airport, located in nearby
Gary, Indiana, serves as the third Chicagoland airport. However, as of mid-2006, the airport does not support any scheduled passengers service.
Utilities
Electricity for all of northern Illinois is provided by
Commonwealth Edison, also known as ComEd. Their service territory borders
Iroquois to the south, the
Wisconsin border to the north, the
Iowa border to the west and the
Indiana border to the east.
skyline at sunset]]
*
Neighborhoods of Chicago*
Notable citizens of Chicago*
List of fiction set in Chicago*
List of non-fiction about Chicago*
List of songs about Chicago*
Large Cities Climate Leadership Group
*
Chicago Timeline.
Chicago Public Library at www.chipublib.org/004chicago/chihist.html.
*
NO - Elevation and topography.
*
Official City Website*
Convention & Visitors Bureau*
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce*
AREA Chicago Art/Education/Activism Online/Print Publication*
Learn About Chicago's Historic Movable Bridges*
Gapers Block - A site about Chicago Illinois*
A site for foreigners moving to Chicago*
WikiSatellite view of Chicago at WikiMapia
