Chicago, The Windy City, Chi-Town, or The Second City. It’s a place that is known by many names, but to architects and urban planners alike, it’s famous for its history which has given us some of the best-known buildings and important advancements that have helped to shape other cities across the United States. From its inception, Chicago has long served as an architectural hub for innovation.
Located on the South West shores of Lake Michigan, Chicago began as a small settlement in 1830 with a population of only 200 residents. Over the next decade, its population grew to nearly 5,000. Many emigrants saw the economic opportunities and potential of Chicago, with trade routes that included ports in the Great Lakes and railroads that went all across the United States. Cattle imports formed the city’s enormous meatpacking district which, in turn, expanded the railways and employed more than 25,000 Chicagoans. Despite its rapid rise, Chicago was hit by tragedy in October of 1871 when a fire swept through the city, killing 300 people and destroying 17,500 buildings. During the aftermath and the city’s recovery, many people stepped into the spotlight with bold ideas about how the urban cores should be planned, and buildings constructed.
