DK Travel : Chicago : History & Culture

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James R.Thompson Center

Also known as the State of Illinois, this striking 17-story, steel and granite structure shimmers with 24,600 curved glass panels. Helmut Jahn designed the controversial 1985 building to be a democratic fusion of government offices and public spaces, such as shops, restaurants, and art galleries. The soaring skylit atrium is sliced by internal glass elevator shafts and contains unusual, see-through escalators. Outside, the plaza features the intriguing 1984 sculpture Monument with Standing Beast by Jean Dubuffet.
Jane Addams

This social activist (1860– 1935) founded Hull House social center (see Jane Addams’ Hull House) and won a Nobel Peace Prize.
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable

Chicago’s first non-native settler was an African-American trader who set up camp around 1779.
Kenwood Historic District

A world apart from some of the Far South’s dicier areas, this wealthy enclave within Kenwood, founded by John A. Kennicott in 1856, has mansions that have to be seen to be believed. In the late 19th century, this area was an upscale Chicago suburb, where wealthy residents built majestic homes on spacious lots, a rarity in the quickly booming city. A stroll around the district will uncover architectural styles ranging from Italianate and Colonial Revival to Prairie style, by influential figures such as Howard Van Doren Shaw and Frank Lloyd Wright (see Frank Lloyd Wright’s Oak Park).
Millennium & Grant parks

The modern Millennium Park (see Millennium & Grant parks) is Chicago's superb new adaptation of its “front yard”. The park is home to a dynamic Frank Gehry-designed music pavilion and pedestrian bridge, and a vast sculpture by British artist Anish Kapoor. It also boasts lush gardens, restaurants, a winter ice rink, peristyle, and an interactive fountain by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa. The adjoining Grant Park (see Millennium & Grant parks) hosts many summer festivals including the Taste of Chicago (see Festivals & Events). It is also home to Museum Campus (see South Loop), the Art Institute of Chicago (see The Art Institute of Chicago), and the ornate 1927 Buckingham Fountain.
Museum of Science & Industry

The largest science museum within a single building in the Western Hemisphere, this museum attracts an amazing two million people a year.
Oprah Winfrey

TV’s talk-show darling (1954–) has filmed in Chicago since 1984 and become an honorary native of the city.
Oriental Institute

Learn about the origins of agriculture, the invention of writing, the birth of civilization, and the beginning of the study of arts, science, politics, and religion at this University of Chicago departmental museum. Its five galleries showcase ancient Near Eastern civilizations from about 3500 BC to AD 100, and the exhibits were largely unearthed during the department’s own excavations.
Osaka Japanese Gardens

At the north end of Jackson Park’s serene Wooded Island (which is excellent for bird-watching), lies this hushed retreat, complete with meandering paths, lagoons, and fountains. The extraordinary garden is a partial re-creation of the one formed in 1934 around the beautiful Japanese Pavilion that had been built for the 1893 Expo, but which sadly burned down in 1946. The gardens were renamed in 1993 for one of Chicago’s sister cities, Osaka, which donated the Japanese gate seen here.
Richard J. Daley

This effective, if corrupt, Chicago mayor (1902–76) served longer than any other.