Most cities pale in comparison to this urban enclave whose
stunning skyline erupts from the western shores of
Lake Michigan. Chicago is host to a world of
ethnic and
religious diversity, world-class
educational institutions and
shopping, plus
commerce and
industry. All are enveloped within incomparable
architecture. It is also a place of
raging winters and
seductive summers, crowded highways and tranquil
parks, famous people and
friendly folks. It might be called the ‘Second City’, but its spectrum
is second to none.
The poet Carl Sandburg called it the ‘
City of the Big Shoulders’ but Chicago got its most famous nickname in 1893, when, after growing exasperated with the long-winded boastings of the city’s politicians, Charles Dana, editor of the
New York Sun, dubbed it ‘
the Windy City’. The
civic pride was not misplaced. Chicago had changed from a mere village of 350 people in 1830, to the growing nation’s ‘Second City’ (to New York), capable of hosting the
1893 World’s Columbia Exposition, which attracted 26 million visitors during its six-month run. The Exposition was the culmination of a phoenix-like recovery from the
great fire of 1871, which levelled the central business district and left about 100,000 people homeless.
Because of its
strategic location, Chicago became famous as a hub for roads, canals, railways and airplanes. In the 1920s, during Prohibition, gangsters like
Al Capone and police adversaries like
Eliot Ness made it infamous.
The Windy City has always prided itself on being a
center for culture. All year round, there are
festivals,
exhibitions,
parades and full programs of
theater,
dance,
art and all types of
music, including a world-class symphony. The famous
Art Institute is home to an extraordinary collection of French Impressionists, as well as American artist Grant Wood’s classic work,
American Gothic. Works by
René Magritte and
Andy Warhol can be found at the
Museum of Contemporary Art.
Ernest Hemingway was born in the near west suburb of Oak Park, which he described ungenerously as full of ‘wide lawns and narrow minds.’
Famous
architects, such as Louis Sullivan, Mies van der Rohe and Frank Lloyd Wright and his Prairie School of Architecture, thrived here. Fittingly, with architecture being perhaps the ultimate combination of industry and art, the
world’s first steel-framed skyscraper, the Reliance Building (now the Hotel Burnham) was built here. The city’s most recent contribution to architecture and art is
Millennium Park. The park is the setting for the works of Frank Gehry, Jaume Plensa and Anish Kapoor.
The
modern city focuses on the area known as the
Loop, where the raised metropolitan railway (known as the ‘El’ or ‘L’) circles the central Downtown
business and
shopping district. The east side of the city edges on to
Lake Michigan. Chicago is one of the most
culturally diverse cities and in the world. Over 50 languages are spoken here. The city’s multitude of cultures can be gauged just by checking its list of
annual ethnic parades and
festivals.
Today, the city’s
economy no longer relies upon the heavy industries of steel production or meatpacking. Instead, it leans toward
communications, i
nformation technology and
financial institutions as well as
research and
development both in commerce and in its academic faculties. For instance, the Chicago Board of Trade, founded in 1848 for the purpose of trading in futures, commodities and options, is still one of the world’s major centers for such business.
Hard-working Chicagoans love
sports, both as participants and fans. Many can be seen playing along the lakeshores. In fact, this energy and the lake combine well to represent Chicago in a way quite similar to how the
original American Indians thought of it. They named it Checaugou, after the River Checaugou (Chicago River), which flowed into Lake Michigan. The word translates as ‘
strong’ or ‘
great’ and modern-day Chicago certainly lives up to this
heritage.
The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
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Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
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The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
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