LIFE in a Great City: Chicago

3 minute read

For the inaugural gallery in our “Great Cities” series, LIFE.com chose to focus on a place that, in so many ways — from the triumphant to the deeply troubling — remains an emblematic American metropolis. Inspired by these extraordinary pictures, made by LIFE photographers from the 1930s to the 1970s, Chicagoist editor-in-chief Chuck Sudo pays tribute to the town he loves: the Windy City, that toddling town, sweet home Chicago.

Architect Daniel Burnham, whose fingerprints are all over so much of modern Chicago, famously advised, “make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood and probably themselves will not be realized.”

That, in a proverbial nutshell, is Chicago at its finest: daring to dream and willing to put in the effort to make those dreams reality — whether that means establishing a trading post atop a marsh, rebuilding after a legendary, catastrophic fire or fashioning an iconic skyline that stretches halfway to the heavens. The photos LIFE.com selected to kick off its “Great Cities” series perfectly capture the fully realized dreams of the men and women of Chicago, and epitomize why the 20th century was, so emphatically, “The American Century.”

Passion — daring to dream — permeates the town and, in large part, defines Chicagoans, both native-born and adopted. This is the city that gave us Nelson Algren, Studs Terkel, Gwendolyn Brooks, Carl Sandburg, Roger Ebert, Mike Royko. Chicago is where Oprah Winfrey and Michael Jordan became global superstars. It is the birthplace of the Temperance movement — and it’s where booze flowed like water during Prohibition. Over the decades, its politicians and mobsters have often been indistinguishable from one another, while Chicago’s struggles with poverty, violence and political corruption — like those of any other great, international metropolis — are as old as the city itself.

In the end, though, Chicago’s well-documented woes are as much a part of the city’s fabric as its glories, its triumphs, its world-class cultural achievements.

Daniel Burnham also wrote, “aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will not die, but long after we are gone be a living thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistence.” Those of us who call ourselves Chicagoans continue to dream big, to reach higher, hoping to add our names to the city’s bold, forever unfolding narrative — and inspire the dreams of future generations in the city we love.

Chuck Sudo is editor-in-chief of Chicagoist. Part of the Gothamist network of local-centric sites, Chicagoist is dedicated to reporting on life in the Windy City in all its facets and in 2012 was named one of Chicago’s top online news sites by the Community Media Workshop. Chuck was born and raised on Chicago’s Northwest side and has called the Bridgeport neighborhood on the South Side home for 15 years. Follow Chuck @bportseasoning.

The El Capitan stopping in Chicago, 1939.
The El Capitan stopping in Chicago, 1939.Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Crowd of 10,000 at an "America First Committee" rally listening to speeches promulgating isolationism and urging the cutting off of aid to Britain, Chicago Arena, 1941
Crowd of 10,000 at an "America First Committee" rally listening to speeches promulgating isolationism and urging the cutting off of aid to Britain, Chicago Arena, 1941.William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1941.
Chicago, 1941.Horace Bristol—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago Sun, 1943.
Chicago Sun, 1943.Wallace Kirkland—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago train yard, 1943.
Chicago train yard, 1943.Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
News of the D-Day invasion, Chicago, 1944.
News of the D-Day invasion, Chicago, 1944.Gordon Coster—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Tenement, West Side of Chicago, 1944.
Tenement, West Side of Chicago, 1944.Gordon Coster—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1944.
Chicago, 1944.Gordon Coster—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1944.
Chicago, 1944.Gordon Coster—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Black Hawks Bill Mosienko (left) and Max Bentley (right), 1946.
Black Hawks Bill Mosienko (left) and Max Bentley (right), 1946.Frank Scherschel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Stranded during a railroad strike, Chicago, 1946.
Stranded during a railroad strike, Chicago, 1946.Mark Kauffman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
People gathering on the street to watch a satire of political officials, Chicago, 1947.
People gathering on the street to watch a satire of political officials, Chicago, 1947.Wallace Kirkland—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Children in a junk-littered lot, Chicago, 1947.
Children in a junk-littered lot, Chicago, 1947.Walker Evans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1947.
Chicago, 1947.Walker Evans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
The Empire State Express at the Chicago Railroad Fair, 1948.
The Empire State Express at the Chicago Railroad Fair, 1948.George Skadding—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Children watch a giant animated figure of Paul Bunyan, Chicago, 1949.
Children watch a giant animated figure of Paul Bunyan, Chicago, 1949.Francis Miller—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
The Y.M.C.A. hotel, Chicago, 1951.
The Y.M.C.A. hotel, Chicago, 1951.Ralph Crane—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago nightclub, 1952.
Chicago nightclub, 1952.Gjon Mili—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Legendary Chicago club owner Matt Schulien entertains patrons, 1952.
Legendary Chicago club owner Matt Schulien entertains patrons, 1952.Gjon Mili—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
The Sea Restaurant, Chicago, 1952.
The Sea Restaurant, Chicago, 1952.Wallace Kirkland—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Michigan Senator Blair Moody (right) and Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. confer during the 1952 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Michigan Senator Blair Moody (right) and Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. confer during the 1952 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.Hank Walker—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Aerial view overlooking network of tracks for some 20 major railroads converging on Union Station (upper left), Chicago, 1954.
Aerial view overlooking network of tracks for some 20 major railroads converging on Union Station (upper left), Chicago, 1954.Andreas Feininger—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Cleveland-Chicago game, 1954.
Cleveland-Chicago game, 1954.Francis Miller—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Prudential Building, Chicago, 1954.
Prudential Building, Chicago, 1954.John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Ernie Banks, 1955.
Ernie Banks, 1955.John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago detectives force their way into an apartment, 1957.
Chicago detectives force their way into an apartment, 1957.Gordon Parks—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Poet Carl Sandburg looks out a window in the Chicago Board of Trade Building, 1957.
Poet Carl Sandburg looks out a window in the Chicago Board of Trade Building, 1957.Grey Villet—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Bill Klose, Cub fan who threw out first ball of season, 1957.
Bill Klose, Cub fan who threw out first ball of season, 1957.Frank Scherschel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Ted Williams waits while pitcher warms up at Comiskey Park, 1957.
Ted Williams waits while pitcher warms up at Comiskey Park, 1957.Frank Scherschel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1957.
Chicago, 1957.Francis Miller—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1957.
Chicago, 1957.Francis Miller—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Stunt man Jack Wylie flying over the Chicago River, 1958.
Stunt man Jack Wylie flying over the Chicago River, 1958.Al Fenn—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Midway Airport, 1960.
Midway Airport, 1960.Robert W. Kelley—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago garage, 1961.
Chicago garage, 1961.Andreas Feininger—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago, 1961.
Chicago, 1961.Andreas Feininger—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Mies van der Rohe buildings, Chicago, 1961.
Mies van der Rohe buildings, Chicago, 1961.Andreas Feininger—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Dick Butkus in a game against the Rams, 1965.
Dick Butkus in a game against the Rams, 1965.Bill Eppridge—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chicago welcomes astronauts James McDivitt and Ed White, 1965.
Chicago welcomes astronauts James McDivitt and Ed White, 1965.Robert W. Kelley—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
National Guardsmen in front of a store during riots following the murder of Martin Luther King Jr., Chicago, April 1968.
National Guardsmen in front of a store during riots following the murder of Martin Luther King Jr., Chicago, April 1968.Lee Balterman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
O'Hare Airport, 1970.
O'Hare Airport, 1970.Co Rentmeester—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
A TWA plane lands at O'Hare, 1970.
A TWA plane lands at O'Hare, 1970.Co Rentmeester—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

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