:''This article is about the
U.S. city in the state of
Illinois. For other uses, see
Chicago (disambiguation).''
'Chicago' (
pronounced or ; shi-'cah'-go or shi-'caw'-go) is the largest city in the state of
Illinois and the largest in the entire
Midwest and, with a population of nearly 3 million people, is the
third largest in the
United States. It is a city rich in history and is ranked as an
alpha world city. It is the anchor of the
Chicago metropolitan area, commonly called
Chicagoland, which has a population of over 9.5 million people in Illinois,
Wisconsin and
Indiana, making it also the
third largest metropolitan area in the U.S.
[1] The City of Chicago is almost entirely located in
Cook County, Illinois with a small portion in
DuPage County, while the metropolitan area extends over several counties.
Founded in 1833 at the
site of a portage between the
Great Lakes and the
Mississippi River watershed, it soon became a transportation hub and the business, financial, and cultural capital of the
Midwest. Since the
Chicago World's Fair of 1893, it has been regarded as one of the ten most influential
cities in the world.
[2]
History
Main articles: History of Chicago,
Political history of Chicago,
Windy City, Origin of Name (Chicago),
List of nicknames for Chicago,
List of mayors of Chicago
The name ''Chicago'' is the
French rendering of the
Miami-Illinois name ''shikaakwa'', meaning “
wild leek”.
[3][4][5]
Chicago in its first century was one of the fastest growing
cities in the world. Within the span of forty years, its population grew from slightly under 30,000 to over 1 million by 1890. In the next forty years the population tripled to over 3 million.
[6]
During the mid-18th century the Chicago area was inhabited primarily by
Potawatomis, who took the place of the
Miami and
Sauk and Fox people. The first settler in Chicago,
Haitian
Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, 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 of St. Louis 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 center between the eastern and western United States. Chicago’s first railway,
Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, opened. The
Illinois and Michigan Canal allowed steamboats and sailing ships on the Great Lakes to connect through Chicago to the
Mississippi River. With a flourishing economy that brought many new residents from rural communities and
Irish American,
Polish American,
Swedish American,
German American and numerous other
immigrants. The city’s manufacturing and retail sectors dominated the Midwest and greatly influenced the American economy, with the
Union Stock Yards dominating the meat packing trade.
Beginning in 1855, Chicago constructed the first comprehensive
sewer system in the U.S., requiring the level of downtown streets to be raised as much as 10 feet (3 meters). However, the untreated sewage and industrial waste flowed from the
Chicago River into
Lake Michigan,
polluting 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 cribs. Nonetheless, spring rains continued to carry polluted water as far out as the water intakes. In 1900, the problem of sewage was largely resolved when Chicago undertook an innovative engineering feat. The city actually reversed the river's flow with the construction of the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal leading to the
Illinois River which joins the
Mississippi River.
After the
Great Chicago Fire of 1871 destroyed a third of the city, including the entire
central business district, Chicago experienced rapid rebuilding and growth.
[7] During Chicago's rebuilding period, the
first skyscraper was constructed in 1885 using
steel-skeleton construction. In 1893, Chicago hosted the
World's Columbian Exposition on former marshland at the present location of
Jackson Park. The Exposition drew 27.5 million visitors, and is considered among the most influential world's fairs in history.
[8] The
University of Chicago had been founded one year earlier in 1892 on the same location. The term "midway" for a fair or carnival referred originally to the
Midway Plaisance, a strip of park land that still runs through the University of Chicago campus and connects
Washington and Jackson Parks.
The city was the site of
labor conflicts and unrest during this period, which included the
Haymarket Riot on
May 4 1886. Concern for social problems among Chicago’s lower classes led to the founding of
Hull House in 1889, of which
Jane Addams was a co-founder. The city also invested in many large, well-landscaped
municipal parks, which also included public sanitation facilities.
The 1920s brought notoriety to Chicago as
gangsters (including the notorious
Al Capone) battled each other and law enforcement on the city streets during the
Prohibition era. The 1920s also saw a large increase in industry with arrivals of the
Great Migration which led thousands of
Southern blacks to Chicago.
In 1933, Mayor
Anton Cermak was
assassinated while in the presence of President
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
On
December 2 1942, physicist
Enrico Fermi conducted the world’s first controlled
nuclear reaction 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 1960s, many upper- and middle-class citizens started leaving the city for the
suburbs, as was the case in many cities across the country, leaving impoverished neighborhoods in their wake. (Since the 1990s, the city has undergone a revitalization where some lower class neighborhoods were transformed into pricey neighborhoods.) The city hosted the tumultuous
1968 Democratic National Convention, which featured physical confrontations both inside and outside the convention hall, including full-scale
police riots in city streets. Major construction projects, including the
Sears Tower (which in 1974 became the
world’s tallest building),
McCormick Place, and
O'Hare Airport, were undertaken during Richard J. Daley's tenure. When he died,
Michael Bilandic 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 Byrne, the city’s first female mayor, was elected. She popularized the city as a
movie location and
tourist destination.
In 1983
Harold Washington became the first
African American 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 Democratic alderman and ward committeemen to back the Republican candidate
Bernard Epton, who ran on the slogan ''Before it’s too late'', a thinly-veiled
appeal to fear.
[9]
Washington’s term in office saw new attention given to poor and minority neighborhoods, and reduced the longtime dominance of city contracts and employment by ethnic whites. Current mayor
Richard M. Daley, son of the late Richard J. Daley, was first elected in 1989. New projects during the younger Daley’s administration have made Chicago larger, more environmentally friendly, and more accessible.
[10]
Since the early 1990s, some of Chicago’s formerly abandoned neighborhoods are now highly sought after neighborhoods. Areas such as the
South Loop,
West Loop,
Wicker Park/
Bucktown,
Uptown and others have attracted young, middle and upper-class residents. The city has made considerable investment in infrastructure, has also revitalized downtown theaters and retail districts, and improving lakefront and riverfront cityscapes.
Geography
Main articles: Geography of Chicago
Topography
Aerial view of Chicago looking north during winter
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—flow entirely or partially 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, as can be seen on a map of the city's original 58 blocks
[11]. 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 is built on quite flat land; the average land elevation 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 a
landfill located in the
Hegewisch community area on the city's far south side ().
Lake Michigan
The history of Chicago is closely tied to that of
Lake Michigan. Since before Chicago was founded, ships were bringing people and supplies from all points on the compass. Lake Michigan is the third largest of the
Great Lakes, with a maximum depth of 925 feet and a size slightly greater than the country of
Croatia. The average depth off Chicago’s shore averages 15–35 feet. To reach greater depths, one must travel several miles out in the lake, or head north to
Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The lake bottom off Chicago’s shore is littered with
shipwrecks, ranging from
schooners and
tugboats to car ferries and even
World War II airplanes.
Scuba diving is a popular recreation for local residents, as are lakefront cruises.
Zebra mussels were discovered in
Lake Saint Clair in 1988, and soon spread, impacting the ecosystem.
Climate
Main articles: Climate of Chicago, Illinois
The city experiences four distinct
seasons. In July, the warmest month, high temperatures average 84.9 °
F (29.4 °
C) and low temperatures 65.8 °F (18.8 °C). In January, the coldest month, high temperatures average 31.5 °F (−0.3 °C) with low temperatures averaging 17.1 °F (−8.3 °C). According to the
National Weather Service, Chicago’s highest official temperature reading of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded on
July 24 1934. The lowest temperature of −27 °F (−33 °C) degrees was recorded on
January 20 1985.
Chicago’s yearly
precipitation averages about 37
inches (965
mm). Summer is the rainiest season, with short-lived rainfall and
thunderstorms more common than prolonged rainy periods.
[12] Winter is the driest season, with most of the precipitation falling as
snow. The snowiest winter ever recorded in Chicago was 1929–30, with 114.2 inches of snow in total. Chicago’s highest one-day rain total was 6.49 inches (164 mm), on
August 14 1987.
Cityscape
Architecture
Main articles: Chicago architecture,
List of Chicago Landmarks
Carter-Harrison Crib
The Near North Side of Chicago at night
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 nations most prominent achitects to the city from New England for construction of the 1893 World Columbian Exposition. Many architects including Burnham, Root, Adler and Sullivan went on to design other well known Chicago landmarks because of the Exposition.
In 1885, the first steel-framed high-rise building rose in Chicago ushering in the
skyscraper era.
[14] Today, Chicago's skyline is among the world's tallest.
[15] Downtown's historic buildings include the
Chicago Board of Trade Building in the
Loop, with others along the lakefront and the Chicago River. Once first on the
list of largest buildings in the world and still listed sixth, the
Merchandise Mart stands near the junction of the north and south river branches. The three tallest in the city are the
Sears Tower (tallest in the U.S.), the
Aon Center, and the
John Hancock Center. The city's architecture includes lakefront high-rise residential towers, low-rise structures, and single-family homes.
Industrialized areas such as the
Indiana border, south of
Midway Airport, and the banks of the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal are clustered.
Future skyline plans entail the
supertall Waterview Tower,
Chicago Spire, and
Trump International Hotel and Tower. The 60602
zip code was named by ''
Forbes'' as the hottest zip code in the country with upscale buildings such as
The Heritage at Millennium Park (130 N. Garland) leading the way for other buildings such at Waterview Tower, The Legacy and Momo. The median sale price for residential real estate was
$710,000 in 2005 according to ''Forbes''. Other new skyscraper construction may be found directly south (
South Loop) and north (
River North) of the Loop.
Every kind and scale of houses, townhouses, condominiums and apartment buildings can be found in Chicago. Large swaths of Chicago's residential areas away from the lake are characterized by
bungalows built either during the early 20th century or after World War II. Chicago was a center of the
Polish Cathedral style of church architecture.
Parks line
Lake Shore Drive.
Grant Park and
Millennium Park lie on the east Loop.
Lincoln Park are on the north side.
Burnham Park and
Jackson Park in
Hyde Park are to the south. Interspersed are 31
beaches in Chicago, the
Lincoln Park Zoo, several bird sanctuaries,
McCormick Place Convention Center,
Navy Pier,
Soldier Field, the
Museum Campus, and the
Jardine Water Purification Plant.
Neighborhoods
The city of Chicago is subdivided into 77 community areas. Regionally, Chicago can be divided into three main sections: the North Side, the
South Side, and the West Side.
The Loop
The Loop, named for a circuit of cable cars and later for the
elevated train Loop where practically all branches of the
CTA train system lead, is the main commercial and cultural center, and includes the city's tallest buildings. It is generally not considered to be part of any of the "sides" of the city.
North Side
The city's North Side is densely populated, and is the more commercially active section of the city, with
Lincoln Park,
Lakeview,
Lincoln Square,
Rogers Park and
Uptown being prime examples of multi-zoned neighborhoods.
Immigrants from
Poland settled along Milwaukee Avenue, the
Swedish established a community in neighborhoods such as
Andersonville, and
Germans settled along Lincoln Avenue; today, there are immigrant populations from all parts of the world. People of
Middle Eastern,
Asian,
Caribbean, or
African origin may all live within the space of a few city blocks. The heart of the city's
Orthodox Jewish community is
West Rogers Park, while the American Indian Center of Chicago has been in
Uptown since 1966.
Much of the North Side reaped the benefits of an economic boom which began in the 1990s. For example, the River North area, just north of the Chicago River and the Loop, has undergone a transition from an abandoned warehouse district to an active commercial, residential, and entertainment hub, featuring the city's largest concentration of contemporary art galleries. Just west of River North's galleries and bistros, demolition of the
CHA's
Cabrini-Green housing project began in 2003
[16]. High-priced townhouses contrast with the gray, low-income highrises along Halsted near
Division Street.
South Side
Main articles: South Side of Chicago
The South Side is by far the largest section of the city in terms of geography, comprising roughly 60% of the city's total land area. It has a higher ratio of single-family homes and large sections zoned for industry. Although it has a reputation of high crime, the reality is much more varied as the South Side is so large in area. It encompasses the affluent, the middle-class, and the poor. South Side neighborhoods such as
Armour Square,
Back of the Yards,
Bridgeport,
Englewood,
Little Village and
Pullman tend to be lower to middle-class and blue collar, while
Hyde Park, Kenwood,
Avalon Park,
Mount Greenwood, and
Beverly tend to have upper-middle class, and affluent homes and incomes.
West Side
The West Side is made up of neighborhoods such as
Austin,
Lawndale,
Garfield Park,
West Town, and
Humboldt Park. Some neighborhoods, particularly Garfield Park and Lawndale, have prolonged socio-economic problems ranging from
urban decay, overcrowding, and high crime. Attempts to remedy it have included razing of many CHA public housing units in favor of a more mixed income community.
Other West Side neighborhoods closer to downtown, such as
Wicker Park and the
Ukrainian Village, have, since the mid-1990s, seen extensive economic and residential developments to the point of gentrification. Humboldt Park, once home to a large German-American population, is now the apex of Chicago's Puerto Rican community, although it too is slowly beginning to gentrify. The West Loop,
Greektown and the other communities surrounding
University of Illinois at Chicago, such as Little Italy, Tri-Taylor and
University Village, neighborhoods experiencing new construction, renovation, and an influx of the middle to upper income residents.
The southernmost neighborhood of the
Near West Side is predominantly Mexican-American
Pilsen, a community known historically as an immigrant gateway. As a result of Pilsen's close proximity to downtown and south
University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) campus, Pilsen has seen many immigrants begin to leave for more affordable neighborhoods. The creation of upscale
University Village, which borders Pilsen on the north, replaced the low income
Maxwell Street neighborhood. The redevelopment of
Maxwell Street and the rest of the
near West Side has been gaining momentum. East Pilsen, home to an established artist's colony, has already seen much new construction, and the rest of Pilsen is poised to begin its redevelopment.
The West Side has three of Chicago's largest parks: Douglas Park, Garfield Park, and Humboldt Park, all of which are attractively landscaped.
Garfield Park Conservatory houses one of the largest collections of tropical plants of any major U.S. city. Other attractions on the West Side include the
United Center, Humboldt Park's
Puerto Rican Day festival, and the
Mexican Fine Arts Center in Pilsen.
The West Side is serviced by the
CTA's
Green Line,
Blue Line, and
Pink Line.
Culture
Main articles: 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 Park in the north to
Hyde Park in the south). 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 (Indian/Pakistani) on Devon Avenue.
Entertainment and performing arts
A Chicago jazz club
Chicago’s
theater district spawned modern
improvisational comedy.
[17] Two renowned comedy troupes emerged—
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 Theater. Chicago offers Broadway-style entertainment at theatres such as
Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre,
LaSalle Bank Theatre,
Cadillac Palace Theatre,
Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, and
Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower Place.
Classical music offerings include the
Chicago Symphony Orchestra, recognized as one of the finest orchestras in the world, which performs at
Symphony Center. In the summer, many outdoor concerts are also given in
Grant Park. The
Civic Opera House is home to the
Lyric Opera of Chicago.
The
Joffrey Ballet performs in various venues, including the
Harris Theater. Chicago is home to several other modern and jazz dance troupes, such as the
Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.
Various forms of music are distinct to Chicago. Among them are
Chicago blues,
Chicago soul,
jazz, and
gospel. The city is the birthplace of the
house style and is the site of an influential
hip-hop scene. In the 1980s, the city was a center for industrial,
punk and new wave. This influence continued into the
alternative music of the 1990s. The city has been an epicenter for
rave culture since the 1980s. A flourishing independent rock music culture brought forth Chicago
indie. Annual festivals feature various acts such as
Lollapalooza, the
Intonation Music Festival and
Pitchfork Music Festival.
Tourism
Chicago attracts about 33 million visitors annually from around the world and nation.
[18] Upscale shopping along the
Magnificent Mile, thousands of restaurants, as well as Chicago's eminent architecture, continue to draw tourists. The city is the United States' third-largest convention destination.
[19] Most conventions are held at
McCormick Place, just south of
Soldier Field.
Navy Pier, 3,000
feet (900 m) long, houses retail, restaurants, museums, exhibition halls, and auditoriums. Its 150-foot-tall (45 m)
Ferris wheel is north of
Grant Park on the lakefront and is one of the most visited landmarks in the Midwest, attracting about 8 million people annually.
[20]
The historic
Chicago Cultural Center (1897), originally serving as the Chicago 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.
Millennium Park is a rebuilt section of a former railyard that was planned for unveiling at the turn of the 21st century, though it was delayed for several years. The park includes the ''
Cloud Gate'' sculpture (known locally as "The Bean"). When facing ''Cloud Gate'' and Lake Michigan, a curved skyline image reflects. A Millennium Park restaurant outdoor transforms into an
ice skating rink in the winter. Two tall glass sculptures make up the
Crown Fountain. Architects Krueck & Sexton implemented this design concept of artist
Jaume Plensa. The fountain's two towers display visual effects from LED images of Chicagoans' faces, with water spouting from their lips.
Frank Gehry's detailed stainless steel bandshell, Pritzker Pavilion, hosts the classical Grant Park Music Festival concert series. Behind the pavilion's stage is the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, an indoor venue for mid-sized performing arts companies, including Chicago Opera Theater and Music of the Baroque. Gehry's stainless steel BP Bridge connects Millennium Park with Daley Bicentennial Plaza.
In 1998, the city officially opened the
Museum Campus, a 10-
acre (4-
ha) 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 joins the southern section of
Grant Park which includes the renowned
Art Institute of Chicago.
Buckingham Fountain anchors the downtown park along the lakefront. During the summer of 2007, Grant Park hosts the public art exhibit, ''.
The
Museum of Science and Industry, in
Hyde Park, is the only remaining building from the
World's Columbian Exposition of 1893.
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, the
Polish Museum of America,
Museum of Contemporary Art, the
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, the
Hyde Park Art Center and
The Renaissance Society.
Sports
Main articles: Sports in Chicago
Soldier Field
Chicago was named the best sports city in the United States by ''The Sporting News'' in 2006.
[21] The city has 17 sports teams. Five of those teams play in the
four major North American professional sports leagues.
The
Chicago Bears of the
National Football League play at
Soldier Field. The Bears are one of two charter NFL teams still in existence, the other being the
Arizona Cardinals.
It is one of three U.S. cities with two
Major League Baseball teams (
New York City and
Los Angeles). Unlike the other two, the two teams had remained with Chicago since the formation of the
American League in 1900. The
Chicago Cubs of the
National League play at
Wrigley Field, which is the second-oldest
MLB stadium and is located in the North Side neighborhood of
Lakeview, commonly referred to as "Wrigleyville." The
Chicago White Sox of the
American League play at
U.S. Cellular Field, built in the early 1990s and located in the South Side neighborhood of
Bridgeport.
The
Chicago Bulls of the
National Basketball Association play at the
United Center on Chicago's Near West side. In 2006, the
Chicago Sky joined the
WNBA. The Sky play at the
UIC Pavilion.
The
Chicago Blackhawks, of the
National Hockey League, also play in the United Center. The Hawks are an
Original Six franchise, founded in 1926.
The
Chicago Wolves of the
American Hockey League and
Chicago Rush of the
Arena Football League both play at the
Allstate Arena in nearby
Rosemont.
The
Chicago Fire, members of
Major League Soccer moved from Soldier Field to the new
Toyota Park in Bridgeview at 71st and Harlem Avenue during the summer of 2006. Toyota Park is also home to the
Chicago Machine of the
MLL.
The
Chicago Marathon is held every October since
1977. This event is one of five
World Marathon Majors.
[22]
The city was selected on
April 14 2007 to represent the United States internationally for the
bid for the
2016 Summer Olympics.
[23][24] Chicago also hosted the
1959 Pan American Games, and
Gay Games VII in 2006. Chicago was selected to host the 1904 Olympics, but they were transferred to St. Louis to coincide with the World's Fair.
[25] Each of the big four
United States television networks directly owns and operates stations in Chicago.
WGN-TV, which is owned by the
Tribune Company, is carried (with some programming differences) as "
Superstation WGN" on
cable nationwide. The city is also the home of ''
The Oprah Winfrey Show'' and
Jerry Springer, while
Chicago Public Radio produces programs such as
PRI's ''
This American Life'' and
NPR's ''
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!''.
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 ''
Chicago Reader'', the ''
Daily Southtown'', the ''
Chicago Defender'', the ''
Chicago Sports Weekly'', the ''
Daily Herald'', ''
StreetWise'', and the ''
Windy City Times''.
Food
Chicago has some 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 an array of
condiments, such as pickle relish, sport peppers, a dill pickle spear, and more.
[26] 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. Grant Park celebrates the
Taste of Chicago festival in late June and early July (basically the week of
the Fourth of July). Every type of food in the city is represented, with free concerts and events daily.
In the June 2006 issue of ''
GQ magazine'', Chicago was hailed as the best restaurant city in America.
Economy
Main articles: Economy of Chicago
Chicago has the third largest
gross metropolitan product in the nation—approximately
$442 billion according to 2007 estimates.
[27] The city has also been rated as having the most balanced economy in the United States, due to its high level of diversification.
[28] Chicago was named the fourth most important business center in the world in the
MasterCard Worldwide Centers of Commerce Index.
[29] Additionally, the Chicago metropolitan area recorded the greatest number of new or expanded corporate facilities in the United States for five of the past six years.
[30] The
Boeing Company relocated its corporate headquarters from
Seattle to Chicago in 2001.
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 (the "Merc"). The city and the surrounding suburbs are home to 66
Fortune 500 companies. Chicago and the surrounding areas also house many major brokerage firms and insurance companies, such as
Allstate Corporation and Zürich 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.
[31]
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.
[32] 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 of the
railroads in the 19th century 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 transportation 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.
[33] In addition, Chicago is home to eleven
Fortune 500 companies, while the metropolitan area hosts an additional 21 Fortune 500 companies.
[34] Chicago also hosts 12 Fortune Global 500 companies and 17 Financial Times 500 companies. The city claims one
Dow 30 company,
aerospace giant
Boeing, which moved its headquarters from
Seattle to the Loop in 2001. 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.
[35]
In 2006, Chicago placed 10th on the
UBS list of the world's richest cities.
[36]
Demographics
Main articles: Demographics of Chicago
'City of Chicago
Population by year[37]' |
|---|
'Census
year' | 'Population' | 'Rank' | > |
>| 1840 | 4,470 | 92 |
>| 1850 | 29,963 | 24 |
>| 1860 | 112,172 | 9 |
>| 1870 | 298,977 | 5 |
>| 1880 | 503,185 | 4 |
>| 1890 | 1,099,850 | 2 |
>| 1900 | 1,698,575 | 2 |
>| 1910 | 2,185,283 | 2 |
>| 1920 | 2,701,705 | 2 |
>| 1930 | 3,376,438 | 2 |
>| 1940 | 3,396,808 | 2 |
>| 1950 | 3,620,962 | 2 |
>| 1960 | 3,550,404 | 2 |
>| 1970 | 3,366,957 | 2 |
>| 1980 | 3,005,072 | 2 |
>| 1990 | 2,783,726 | 3 |
>| 2000 | 2,896,016 | 3 |
>| 2003 | 2,869,121 | 3 |
>| 2006 | 2,873,321 | 3 |
Residents of Chicago are referred to as Chicagoans.
A 2006 estimate puts the city's population at 2,873,790.
[38] As of the
2000 census, there were 2,896,016 people, 1,061,928 households, and 632,909 families residing within Chicago. More than half the population of the state of Illinois live in the Chicago metropolitan area. The
population density of the city itself 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%
White, 31.32%
Black or
African-American, 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.
[39] With over 12,700 people per square mile, Chicago is one of the nation's most densely populated cities.
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
Poles,
Germans,
Czechs, and
Italians. The majority of
African Americans are also located on Chicago’s South and West Sides. The Chicago metropolitan area also has the second largest African American population, behind only
New York City.
[40] 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".
[41] Swedish influence is particularly evident in
Andersonville on the far north side.
Poles in Chicago make up the largest ethnically
Polish population outside of Warsaw,
Poland making it one of the most important centers of
Polonia, a fact that the city celebrates every
Labor Day weekend at the
Taste of Polonia Festival in
Jefferson Park.
[42] The
Southwest Side is home to the largest concentration of
Górals (
Carpathian highlanders) outside of
Europe; it is the location of the
Polish Highlanders Alliance of North America. Chicago has one of the largest concentrations of
Italian Americans in the US, with 500,000 living in the metropolitan area.
[43] The city has a large population of
Bulgarians (about 150,000),
Serbs[44],
Lithuanians,
[45], and the third largest
Greek population of any city in the world.
[46] Chicago has a large
Romanian-American community with more than 100,000,
[47] as well as a large
Assyrian population with about 80,000. The city is the seat of the head of the
Assyrian Church of the East,
Mar Dinkha IV, the
Evangelical Covenant Church,
[48] and the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America headquarters.
[49]
Chicago has the third-largest South Asian population in the United States. The
Devon Avenue corridor on the north side is one of the largest South Asian neighborhoods/markets in
North America. Chicago has the second-largest
Puerto Rican population in the continental United States.
[50] and the second largest Mexican population in the United States after
Los Angeles.
[51] There are about 185,000 Arabs in Cook County with another 75,000 in the five surrounding counties.
[52][53]
Law and government
Main articles: Law and government of Chicago
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 aldermen, 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-heelers. During the 1880s and 1890s, Chicago had a powerful radical tradition with large and highly organized
socialist,
anarchist and labor organizations.
[54] 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. 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. Representatives have part of the city in their districts: the
1st (much of the south side),
2nd (far southeast side),
3rd (southwest side),
4th (a Hispanic-majority district on the west side),
5th (northwest side),
6th (O'Hare Airport),
7th (downtown and the west side) and
9th (north shore); all but the 6th are represented by Democrats.
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 U.S. cities.
[55] 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 Washington. Since Washington's death, Chicago has since been under the leadership of
Richard M. Daley, the son of Richard J. Daley. Because of the dominance of the Democratic Party in Chicago, the Democratic
primary vote held in the spring is generally more significant than the general elections in November.
Crime
Main articles: Crime in Chicago,
Organized crime in Chicago
Chicago police officers in Marquette Park
Chicago saw a major rise in violent crime starting in the late 1960s. The city, however, has experienced a decline in overall crime since the 1990s.
[56] 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.
[57] After adopting crime-fighting techniques recommended by
Los Angeles and
New York City Police Departments in 2004,
[58] Chicago recorded 448
homicides, the lowest total since 1965 (15.65 per 100,000.) Chicago's homicide tally remained steady throughout 2005 and 2006 to 449 and 452, respectively, and the overall crime rate in 2006 continued the downward trend that has taken place since the early 1990s.
[59]
Education
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 than 400,000 students enrolled,
[60] is led by
CEO Arne Duncan. The CPS also includes several selective-admission magnet schools.
Like many urban U.S. school districts, Chicago Public Schools 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.
[61]
Private schools
The
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago operates the city's
Roman Catholic schools. Among the well-known private schools are the
Latin School and
Francis W. Parker School (Chicago) in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, and the
University of Chicago Laboratory Schools in Hyde Park.
Higher education
Main articles: Colleges and universities of Chicago
Since the 1890s, Chicago has been a world center in higher education and research. Two of America's top research universities are located in Chicago: the
University of Chicago in
Hyde Park on the south side of the city and
Northwestern University in the northern suburb of
Evanston. The
University of Chicago Graduate School of Business maintains a campus in downtown Chicago, and Northwestern University's
Feinberg School of Medicine and
School of Law are located in
Streeterville, a neighborhood in the Near North Side community area of Chicago.
Catholic universities are located in Chicago, such as
DePaul University (the largest Catholic university in the U.S.), and
Loyola University, which has one campus in the North Side and one in the downtown area, as well as a Medical Center in the western suburb of Maywood. Loyola University Chicago is the largest Jesuit Catholic university in the country.
The
University of Illinois at Chicago is the city's largest university and features the nation's
largest medical school.
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.
Founded on the principles of social justice,
Roosevelt University was named in honor of president Franklin D. Roosevelt, two weeks after his death.
The
Illinois Institute of Technology in
Bronzeville has renowned engineering and architecture programs, and was host to world-famous modern architect
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe for many years. The
Vandercook College of Music and Great Books based
Shimer College share Illinois Institute of Technology's campus.
Rush Medical College, now part of
Rush University, was the first institution of higher learning chartered in Illinois and one of the first medical schools to open west of the Alleghenies. In fact, Rush Medical College received its charter on March 2, 1837, two days before the city of Chicago was incorporated.
The Chicago region has 12 accredited theological schools representing Catholic and most Protestant denominations. The United Church of Christ-related
Chicago Theological Seminary is the city's oldest institution of higher education. These accredited seminaries are joined in a consortium known as the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS).
[62] The
Moody Bible Institute is near downtown.
North Park University, a small Christian liberal arts university affiliated with the
Evangelical Covenant Church, is located on the northwest side in the North Park neighborhood.
Finally, there are several colleges noted for their art programs.
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the
American Academy of Art are well-known for
fine arts programs. The
Illinois Institute of Art Chicago is well-known for its applied arts programs.
Columbia College Chicago is well-known for its performing arts and communications programs and
Harrington College of Design is well-known for its interior design program.
Infrastructure
Health systems
Chicago is home to the
Illinois Medical District on the Near West Side. It includes
Rush University Medical Center, the
University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago, 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''.
[63] 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.
[64]
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).
[65] 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
American Medical Association,
American Osteopathic Association,
American Dental Association,
Academy of General Dentistry,
American Dietetic Association,
American College of Surgeons,
American Society for Clinical Pathology,
American College of Healthcare Executives and the
American Hospital Association are all based in the city.
Transportation
CTA Blue Line at Eisenhower Expressway and Ashland Avenue
,
Mass transit in Chicago,
Chicago 'L',
Chicago airports
Chicago is a major transportation hub in the United States. 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.
[66] Additionally, it is the only city in North America in which six
Class I railroads meet.
[67]
Chicago is one of the largest hubs of passenger rail service in the nation. Many
Amtrak long distance services originate from
Union Station. Such services provide connections to New York,
Seattle,
New Orleans,
San Francisco,
Los Angeles and
Washington, D.C. Amtrak also provides a number of short-haul services throughout Illinois and toward nearby
Milwaukee.
Nine
interstate highways run through Chicago and its suburbs. Segments that link to the city center are named after influential politicians, with four of them named after former US Presidents. Traffic reports tend to use the names rather than interstate numbers.
The
Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) coordinates the operation of the three service boards: CTA, Metra, and Pace. The
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) handles public transportation in Chicago and a few adjacent suburbs. The CTA operates an extensive network of buses and a
rapid transit system known locally as the
"L" (for "elevated"), with several lines, including service to Midway and O'Hare airports.
Pace provides bus and
paratransit service in over 200 surrounding suburbs with some extensions into the city. Bicycles are permitted on all CTA and Metra trains during non-rush hours and on all buses 24 hours.
Metra operates commuter rail service in Chicago and its suburbs. The
Metra Electric Line shares the railway with the South Shore Line's
NICTD Northern Indiana Commuter Rail Service, providing commuter service between
South Bend and Chicago.
Chicago is unique among large American cities for offering a wide array of bicycle transportation facilities, such as miles of on-street bike lanes, 10,000 bike racks, and a state-of-the-art central bicycle commuter station in Millennium Park. The city has a 100-mile on-street bicycle lane network that is maintained by the Chicago Department of Transportation
Bike Program and the
Chicagoland Bicycle Federation.
[68] In addition, trails dedicated to bikes only are built throughout the city.
Chicago is served by
Midway International Airport on the south side and
O'Hare International Airport, one of the world's busiest airports, on the far northwest side. 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).
[69] Both O'Hare and Midway are owned and operated by the City of Chicago.
Gary/Chicago International Airport, located in nearby
Gary, Indiana, serves as the third Chicago area airport, although
SkyValue offers the only seasonal scheduled passenger service.
Chicago/Rockford International Airport, formerly Greater Rockford Airport, serves as a regional base for United Parcel Service cargo flights, some passenger flights, and occasionally as a reliever to O'Hare, usually in times of bad weather. Chicago is the world headquarters for
United Airlines, world's second-largest airline by revenue-passenger-kilometers. Midway airport serves as a 'focus city' for
Southwest Airlines, the world's largest low-cost airline.
A small airport,
Meigs Field, was located on the Lake Michigan waterfront adjacent to Grant Park and downtown. There were long-term scheduled flights to Springfield as well as some service to other cities. At 1:30 a.m. on
March 31 2003, the airport runways were unexpectedly destroyed by order of the Mayor, who had sought closure of the airport and development of the land.
[70] This resulted in a fine to the city by the Federal Aviation Administration for closure of the airport without sufficient notice, but the airport was eventually demolished.
Utilities
ComEd Power station near the Loop, 1300 S. Lumber St.
Electricity for most of northern Illinois is provided by
Commonwealth Edison, also known as ComEd. Their service territory borders
Iroquois County to the south, the
Wisconsin border to the north, the
Iowa border to the west and the
Indiana border to the east. In northern Illinois, ComEd (a division of
Exelon) operates the greatest number of nuclear generating plants in any US state. Because of this, ComEd reports indicate that Chicago receives about 75% of its electricity from
nuclear power. Recently, the city started the installation of wind turbines on government buildings with the aim to promote the use of renewable energy.
[3] [4] [5]
Domestic and industrial waste was once incinerated but it is now
landfilled, mainly in the
Calumet area. Since 1995, the city has had a
blue bag program to divert certain refuse from landfills.
[6]
Sister cities
Chicago has twenty-seven
sister cities:
[71] Many of them, like Chicago, are the
second city of their country, or are the main city of a country that has sent many immigrants to Chicago over the years.
References
1. Population in Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Ranked by 2000 Population for the United States and Puerto Rico
2. The World According to GaWC (2006). ''Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network''.
3. Swenson, John F. “Chicagoua/Chicago: The Origin, Meaning, and Etymology of a Place Name.” ''Illinois Historical Journal'' 84.4 (Winter 1991): 235–248
4. McCafferty, Michael. ''Disc: "Chicago" Etymology''. LINGUIST list posting, Dec. 21, 2001
5. McCafferty, Michael. ''A Fresh Look at the Place Name Chicago''. Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society 95.2 (Summer 2003)
6. http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ahaa/imagebase/chimaps/mcclendon.html
7. Bruegmann, Robert (2004-2005). Built Environment of the Chicago Region. ''Encyclopedia of Chicago (online version)''.
8. Chicago History. ''Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau''.
9. Constancy
★
★
★
10. Chicago: The Wind at Its Back (2005). ''SustainLane''.
11. Thompson's Plat of 1830
12. Chicago Seasonal Temperature and Precipitation Rankings (11/25/2005). ''National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office - Chicago, IL.
13. Monthly Weather Averages for Chicago Midway Airport (1928-2006 Data)
14. Chicago (2004). ''Chicago Public Library''.
15. World's Tallest Cities. ''UltrapolisProject.com''.
16. Tearing Down Cabrini-Green
17. Improvised Dialogue, Sawyer, R Keith, , , Ablex/Greenwood, September 30, 2002, ISBN 1-56750-677-1
18. http://www.suntimes.com/business/109470,CST-FIN-Tourism25.article
19. Las Vegas and Orlando Bruising Chicago's Trade Show Business
20. About Navy Pier - The Pier
21. Best Sports Cities 2006: Who, where and how
22. World Marathon Majors
23. Levine, Jay. "Chicago In The Running To Host 2016 Summer Games." ''CBS.'' July 26, 2006. Retrieved on December 1 2006.
24. "Official Chicago 2016 Website." Retrieved on December 1 2006.
25. 1904 Summer Olympics
Media
Main articles: Media in Chicago
Chicago is the third-largest media market in North America (after Los Angeles and New York City).[Nielsen Media - DMA Listing (September 24, 2005).]
26. Classic Chicago Hot Dog
27.
28. . Accessed from 'World Business Chicago'.
29. "London named world's top business center by MasterCard", CNN, June 13, 2007.
30. 'Freaking Awesome' City Tops All U.S. Metro Areas Ron Starner
31. Gauging Metropolitan "High-Tech" and "I-Tech" Activity (2004). Accessed from 'SAGE Publications'.
32. Hirsch, Susan E. (2004-2005). Economic Geography. ''Encyclopedia of Chicago (online edition)''.
33. Chicago falls to 3rd in U.S. convention industry (4/26/2006). ''Crain's Chicago Business''.
34. Fortune 500 2006 - Illinois. ''CNNMoney.com''.
35. . ''CBRE - CB Richard Ellis''.
36. City Mayors: World's richest cities
37. Gibson, Campbell (June 1998). Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990. ''U.S. Bureau of the Census - Population Division''.
38. Best places to live 2006: Chicago, IL snapshot. ''CNN Money''.
39. Chicago Demographics (2003). ''US Census Bureau''
40. Report to Congress - October 1, 2000 Chicago Region, U.S. Census Monitoring Board.
41. Chicago Stories - Swedes in Chicago (2006). ''WTTW.com''. Accessed June 5, 2006.
42. America the diverse - Chicago’s Polish neighborhoods (5/15/2005)''USA Weekend Magazine''.
43. "Italians", Encyclopedia of Chicago.
44. Serbian Delegation (4/30/2004). ''WTCC Weekly News'' at www.wtcc.org.
45. Cities Guide Chicago - A hard-knock life (2006). ''Economist.com''.
46. Chicago Stories - The Greeks in Chicago (2006). ''WTTW.com''. Accessed June 5, 2006.
47. About Us. ''Romanian Museum in Chicago'' at www.romanianmuseum.com.
48. www.covchurch.org.
49. Contact Us. ''ELCA.org''.
50. Alternative Guide to Chicago, Humboldt Park, Office of Multicultural Student Affairs at the University of Chicago.
51. Mexican Hometown Associations, Xochitl Bada, PBS.
52. "Palestinians", Encyclopedia of Chicago.
53. "Little Arabia on Chicago’s Northwest Side", Ray Hanania.
54. Labor and Urban Politics, Schneirov, Richard, , , University of Illinois Press, April 1, 1998, ISBN 0-252-06676-6
55. Chicano Politics and Society in the Late Twentieth Century, , , , University of Texas Press, January 1, 1998, ISBN 0-292-75215-6
56. CPD 2004 Annual Report.
57. Heinzmann, David (1/1/2003). Chicago falls out of 1st in murders. ''Chicago Tribune'', found at qrc.depaul.edu/djabon/Articles/ChicagoCrime20030101.htm.
58. David Heinzmann and Rex W. Huppke (12/19/2004). City murder toll lowest in decades ''Chicago Tribune''.
59. Chicago Police Department News Release, January 19, 2007
60. CPS At A Glance (2005). ''Chicago Public Schools'' at www.cps.k12.il.us/AtAGlance.html.
61. Making Schools Work, Ouchi, William G., , , Simon and Schuster, September 8, 2003, ISBN 0-7432-4630-6
62. Association of Chicago Theological Schools
63. America's Best Hospitals
64. National survey again names University of Chicago Hospitals to the Honor Roll of the best US hospitals
65. 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.
66.
Madigan, p.52.
67. 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).
68. Existing Bike Lanes
69. . ''Airports Council International''.
70. http://www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2003/03-1-157x.html
71. Sister Cities designated by Chicago Sister Cities International Retrieved on May 22, 2007.
Further reading
★
Chicago Timeline. ''Chicago Public Library'' at www.chipublib.org/004chicago/chihist.html.
★ [ USGS—Chicago] - Elevation and topography.
★ James R. Grossman, Ann Durkin Keating, Janice L. Reiff. ''The Encyclopedia of Chicago'' (University of Chicago Press 2005) ISBN 0-226-31015-9;
''The Encyclopedia of Chicago (online versio 
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