Major Cities of the World
Major Cities of the World : Amsterdam
| Athens | Bangkok
| Beirut |
Berlin | Buenos Aires | Cape
Town | Chiang Mai | Chicago
| Florence | Hong
Kong | Kuala Lumpur | London
| Los Angeles | Moscow
| Mumbai | New
York | Ottawa | Paris
| Rome | San
Francisco | Singapore | Sydney
| Tokyo | Zurich
Chicago-United States
Chicago is the largest city in the state of Illinois, the largest in the Midwest, and, with a population of three million people, is the third-most populous city in the United States. The Chicago metropolitan area (colloquially known as Chicagoland) has a population of over 9.5 million people in Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana, making it also the third largest metropolitan area in the United States. Chicago is located along the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan and is a major center of transportation, industry, politics, culture, finance, medicine and higher education. Chicago's monikers include the "Windy City," "Chi-Town," the "Second City," and the "City of the Big Shoulders" (from Carl Sandburg's poem Chicago).
Chicago is the financial, business, and cultural capital of the Midwest. Founded in 1833 at the site of a portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed, it soon became a transportation hub of North America. By the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, it was one of the ten most influential world cities, a distinction it continues to hold.
Geography
Located in northeastern Illinois at the southwestern tip of Lake Michigan It sits on the continental divide at the site of the Chicago Portage, connecting the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes watersheds. The city lies beside Lake Michigan, and two rivers—the Chicago River in downtown and the Calumet River in the industrial far South Side—flow entirely or partially through Chicago. The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal connects the Chicago River with the Des Plaines River, which runs to the west of the city.
When Chicago was founded in the 1830s, most of the early building began around the mouth of the Chicago River, as can be seen on a map of the city's original 58 blocks[10]. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Chicago has a total area of 234.0 square miles (606.1 km²), of which 227.1 square miles (588.3 km²) is land and 6.9 square miles (17.8 km²) is water. The total area is 2.94% water.
The city is built on quite flat land; the average land elevation land is 579 feet (176 m) above sea level. The lowest points are along the lake shore at 577 feet (176 m), while the highest point at 735 feet (224 m) is a landfill located in the Hegewisch community area on the city's far south side ( 41°39'18 N, 87°34'44 W).
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