Chicago burned to the ground in 1871 and rebuilt itself as a laboratory for modern architecture. The skyscraper grew up here, the river was made to run backwards, and the downtown sits on the shore of a lake so large it looks like the sea. Here are the facts and stories behind the city.
10 fun facts about Chicago
- The first skyscraper: the ten-storey Home Insurance Building, finished in 1885 and designed by William Le Baron Jenney, is often called the world's first skyscraper because of its load-bearing metal frame. It was demolished in 1931.
- A river that runs backwards: in 1900 engineers reversed the flow of the Chicago River with a new canal, sending the city's sewage away from Lake Michigan, its source of drinking water.
- Green for a day: every year since 1962 the Chicago River has been dyed bright green for St Patrick's Day.
- Once the tallest in the world: Willis Tower, opened in 1973 as the Sears Tower, is 442 metres tall and was the world's tallest building until 1998. On the 103rd-floor Skydeck you can step into glass boxes that stick out from the facade.
- A bean of 168 plates: Cloud Gate in Millennium Park, by Anish Kapoor, is made of 168 stainless-steel plates welded and polished until the seams disappear. It weighs about 100 tonnes and was formally dedicated in 2006. Everyone calls it The Bean.
- The first Ferris wheel: George Ferris built his giant wheel for the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, Chicago's answer to the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
- A tower that survived the fire: the castle-like Chicago Water Tower, finished in 1869, is one of the few buildings in the burned area that came through the Great Fire of 1871.
- Why it's called the Loop: the elevated railway tracks that circle the downtown were completed in 1897, and the business district inside them has been known as the Loop ever since.
- Four stars on the flag: the city flag has four red stars, for Fort Dearborn, the Great Fire of 1871, the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition and the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition.
- Home of deep dish: Pizzeria Uno says it served the first deep-dish pizza in 1943.
The Great Chicago Fire
On the evening of 8 October 1871 a fire broke out in a barn behind the home of Patrick and Catherine O'Leary on DeKoven Street. Fanned by strong winds after a long, dry summer, it raced through a city built largely of wood. By the time it burned out two days later, it had destroyed about 3.3 square miles of the city, killed around 300 people and left about 100,000 homeless. Newspapers blamed Mrs O'Leary's cow for kicking over a lantern, but in 1893 the reporter Michael Ahern admitted he had made the story up, and in 1997 the City Council formally cleared her. The Chicago Fire Academy now stands on the site of the barn.
The Loop, explained
The Loop is Chicago's historic downtown, and it is one of the best places in the world to see how the modern office building developed. The Rookery, finished in 1888 by Burnham and Root, has a light-filled lobby remodelled by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1905. Daniel Burnham's 1909 Plan of Chicago helped keep much of the lakefront as public parkland, which is why Grant Park and Millennium Park sit between the towers and the water.
What to eat in Chicago
- Deep-dish pizza: a tall, pie-like pizza baked in a pan. It takes a while to cook, so expect a wait at popular places.
- Chicago-style hot dog: an all-beef sausage in a poppy-seed bun with mustard, onions, green relish, tomato, a pickle spear, sport peppers and celery salt. Never ask for ketchup.
- Italian beef: thinly sliced roast beef on a long roll, dipped in its own juices and topped with sweet peppers or spicy giardiniera.
- Chicago Mix popcorn: caramel and cheddar popcorn mixed in one bag, a sweet-and-salty combination sold all over the city.
- Maxwell Street Polish: a grilled Polish sausage with grilled onions, mustard and sport peppers, named after the old Maxwell Street market.
Good to know before you go
- An architecture boat tour on the Chicago River is the best introduction to the skyline. Most run from spring to autumn and sell out on summer weekends, so book ahead.
- Winters are cold and windy. The Pedway, a network of tunnels and walkways under and between buildings in the Loop, helps you stay warm.
- For views from above, choose between the Willis Tower Skydeck and 360 Chicago in the former John Hancock Center. Clear days and sunset are best.
- The Art Institute of Chicago, next to Millennium Park, is one of the great art museums of the United States. Allow at least half a day.
Explore Chicago with World City Trail
Our Chicago scavenger hunt turns these sights into a game you play on your phone. The route leads through the main sights of downtown Chicago and takes around three hours, with about 73 minutes of walking.
At each stop you solve a puzzle and hear a short story, at your own pace. You can start whenever you like and play in English, German or Spanish.
Play the Chicago scavenger hunt →
Facts checked in October 2026.