On a cloudy day
The Magnificent Mile in Chicago has become one of the biggest shopping areas in the United States with all of the big brand-name stores; it is flocked to by 22 million visitors annually. The "Mile'' runs from the northern strip of Michigan Avenue below Lake Shore Drive to the Chicago River to the south. The name of the Magnificent Mile is said to have been coined by Arthur Rubloff, real estate developer, when launching his plan for construction and revitalization of the area after World War II.
However, many of the architectural sites date from the 1920's. Between 1920 and 1929, a series of buildings were completed as part of the execution of the "Paris on the Prairie" plan, designed by Daniel Burnham in1909. Burnham, who received his big break as an architect after the 1871 Great Chicago Fire and the massive reconstruction effort that ensued, later established himself as the designer of the homes of the wealthy Chicagoans. Though the architectural tastes of Burnham have been questioned by many, by the time of his death in 1912, his architectural firm was the largest in the country. Three years before his death he wrote his proposed plan for the city in essay form, advocating for wide boulevards and fountains, advocating Greek inspired architecture and city support for development.
Michigan Avenue was indeed widened into a broad boulevard and the Bascule Bridge, built to connect the Avenue with Pine Street on the opposite bank of the Chicago River, was modeled after the Parisian Ponte Alexandre III. The Ponte Alexandre III is widely considered to be the most opulent and beautiful bridge in Paris. The Chicago Bridge was adorned with nymph and cherub statues and old Europe-inspired, street lamps. The bridge was followed by other large buildings throughout the 1920's as mentioned above.
The oldest structure is the gothic-style Old Water Tower which. made of limestone block, managed to survive the Great Fire, dating back to 1869. This landmark which is one of the oldest in the city has become symbolic of the Magnificent Mile in Chicago and of the city itself. In 1969 it was named the first Water Landmark by the American Water Works Association.
From the 1970's onwards construction filled out what remained of open spaces on the skyline and this once residential area became the shopping hub that it is today, lined with skyscrapers of diverse architectural styles and periods. One of the last big skyscrapers, the park tower, contains a hotel on the first 30 floors and then upwards fills with 37-floors of residential housing. Single family homes as well as condos and townhouses can be found along the Magnificent Mile and on surrounding blocks.
Aside from the scores of shops and half a dozen hotels, diverse restaurants abound and all of the creature comforts are readily available in this busy district of the Windy City.
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