Chicago
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Chicago
Chicago, one of the biggest US cities, lies in the state of Illinois, in its northeastern part, beside Lake Michigan and two rivers: the Chicago River in downtown and the Calumet River in the industrial far South Side. It is Illinois’s biggest city as well as the third populous city in US, the most influential city of the Midwest and one of the ten most influential cities in the world. It is often nicknamed as The Windy City, The Second City or Chi Town.
The city was established in 1833 as a frontier town of the Old Northwest and was incorporated on 4 March 1837. It became one of the fastest growing cities in the world. In 1871 Great Chicago Fire partly destroyed the city and after this year extensive rebuilding period began. In 1920s the city became known thanks to gangsters like Al Capone. This period was also the time of large increase in Chicago’s industry.
The area of city proper is 602.2 square kilometres, the urban area covers 5,498.1 and the metropolitean area (Chicagoland) 28,163 square kilometres. The city’s streets are organized in a grid pattern and it is divided into one-mile sections which usually contain eight blocks to the mile.
As far as the population is concerned, in 2006 there lived 2,873,790 inhabitants in the city, over 8,7 million in the urban and nearly 9,5 million people in the metro area. The population density is 4,867 inhabitants per square kilometre. Chicago's citizens speak over 100 different languages, and draw from a diverse range of peoples, cultures and religions. Residents of Chicago are referred to as Chicagoans.
Speaking of Chicago’s parts, three are worthy to mention. The North Side, primary probably the melting pot. It is the most densely developed and, on average, wealthiest side of Chicago. Of particular note, however, is the significant gay population. The South Side is historically an Irish bastion and has a massive black population. Popular Chinatown is the part of the South Side. The West Side is home to large Chicago’s Hispanic population.
The city was established in 1833 as a frontier town of the Old Northwest and was incorporated on 4 March 1837. It became one of the fastest growing cities in the world. In 1871 Great Chicago Fire partly destroyed the city and after this year extensive rebuilding period began. In 1920s the city became known thanks to gangsters like Al Capone. This period was also the time of large increase in Chicago’s industry.
The area of city proper is 602.2 square kilometres, the urban area covers 5,498.1 and the metropolitean area (Chicagoland) 28,163 square kilometres. The city’s streets are organized in a grid pattern and it is divided into one-mile sections which usually contain eight blocks to the mile.
As far as the population is concerned, in 2006 there lived 2,873,790 inhabitants in the city, over 8,7 million in the urban and nearly 9,5 million people in the metro area. The population density is 4,867 inhabitants per square kilometre. Chicago's citizens speak over 100 different languages, and draw from a diverse range of peoples, cultures and religions. Residents of Chicago are referred to as Chicagoans.
Speaking of Chicago’s parts, three are worthy to mention. The North Side, primary probably the melting pot. It is the most densely developed and, on average, wealthiest side of Chicago. Of particular note, however, is the significant gay population. The South Side is historically an Irish bastion and has a massive black population. Popular Chinatown is the part of the South Side. The West Side is home to large Chicago’s Hispanic population.