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Looping Chicago's loop
CHICAGO!

October 10, 1996

When in Chicago, it's difficult not to be in the loop. The fabled "Loop" is, in fact, the heart of this big-shouldered city -- its financial, cultural, civic and tourist center. Within its far-reaching fold, the Loop holds much of the best Chicago has to offer in art, architecture, museums, shopping, dining, entertainment, and sight-seeing.

The Loop's name originally came from the path traced by the elevated train tracks as they circle the downtown business district. But now when people in Chicago use the expression, they mean a much broader area: bounded by the Chicago River in the north and west, Roosevelt Street on the south, and Lake Michigan to the east.

Taking the train around the Loop is one way to start a tour of downtown Chicago. This gives a good overview of some of the area's architectural highlights and tourist sites. Or you might want to begin at the Chicago Water Tower -- now a visitor's center -- ten blocks north of the Loop.

"The historic water tower is one of the few buildings to survive the Great Chicago Fire of 1871," explains Marguerite Tully, of the Chicago Office of Tourism. That fire is one reason Chicago is so architecturally stunning today.

With the city in ruins, innovative architects brought their talents to town -- helping rebuild it within five years. Some of those buildings survived, but more important, the spirit of architectural experimentation continued to thrive. Famous architects who worked here include Daniel Burnham, Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Mies van der Rohe. It was in late 19th century Chicago that the steel-frame skyscraper originated.

Chicago's building legacy is so strong that the city's downtown has been called an outdoor museum of modern architecture. For some history along with your beauty, the Chicago Architectural Foundation offers two-hour walking tours of the Loop.



One of the most famous old buildings you'll encounter is the beautiful Rookery, built in 1885 in red stone. Frank Lloyd Wright re-did the lobby in 1905, using marble and gold-leaf. More modern buildings dominate the skyline, including the 98-story John Hancock Center, and the 110-story Sears Tower, the tallest building in the world. Both have observation decks with great views of downtown Chicago, and well beyond.

The Loop is also home to the world's largest public library, the Harold Washington Public Library, named after the city's first African American mayor. Its architecture is post-modern, and pays tribute to some of the styles of the past.

Also scattered throughout the Loop are outdoor sculptures by great 20th century artists such as Picasso, Chagall, and Calder.

On the east side of the Loop, in Grant Park, you'll find some of the city's greatest cultural institutions: the Art Institute of Chicago, The Field Museum of Natural History, Adler Planetarium, and the Shedd Aquarium (the world's largest indoor aquarium).

One of the city's most unique areas, Grant Park runs along almost the full-length of the Loop, with the vast Lake Michigan on one side, and a wall of skyscrapers on the other. Its huge Buckingham Fountain features colored-light water displays from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. every night.

Just to the north, extending into the lake, is Navy Pier, built as a commercial shipping pier in 1916. It was later turned over to the Navy -- which used it as a training site for aircraft mechanics in World War II -- and now renovated as a tourist attraction and convention center. The landmark has shopping promenades, landscaped gardens, the Chicago's Children's Museum (with IMAX theater), and an amusement park.

The pier's biggest attraction is a 15-story Ferris wheel -- built for looks, not speed. "We figure that mostly people will want to use it as a way to see the skyline and the lake," says Jim Reilly, head of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, "And so it moves slowly" -- no small feat in a city like Chicago.


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