The North Shoreline ( Lakeshore Drive )

Chicago (city, Illinois), city and seat of Cook County, located in northeastern Illinois, on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Chicago River. Chicago is the third largest city in the United States and one of the country's leading industrial, commercial, transportation, and financial centers.

Chicago covers a land area of 588.2 sq km (227.1 sq mi) and extends 47 km (29 mi) along Lake Michigan. It occupies flatland traversed by two short rivers: the Chicago River, which flows west from the lake through the downtown area, where it forks into a North Branch and a South Branch; and the Calumet River, in the south, which connects with the small Lake Calumet. Both rivers are linked by canals with the Illinois and Mississippi rivers, establishing Chicago as the connecting point in the waterway between the Mississippi Valley and the Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence Seaway. The city's rapid growth was due in large part to its location, with ready access to markets and raw materials.

The population of Chicago decreased from 3,005,072 in 1980 to 2,783,726 in 1990; the estimated population was 2,731,743 in 1994. Whites constitute 45.5 percent of the city's population; blacks, 39.0 percent; Asians and Pacific Islanders, 3.7 percent; and Native Americans, 0.3 percent. Hispanics, who may be of any race, represent 19.2 percent of the city's population.

Chicago is the center of a large metropolitan area spreading across three states, from Kenosha, Wisconsin, in the north to Gary, Indiana, in the southeast. The population of the consolidated metropolitan statistical area increased from 8,115,000 in 1980 to 8,240,000 in 1990. It reached an estimated 8,590,000 in 1995. The percentage of minorities is lower in the metropolitan area than in the city. Blacks account for only about one in five in the metropolitan region as a whole, and Hispanics represent approximately one in nine residents. While the proportion of Hispanics is growing in the metropolitan area, black presence has remained mostly unchanged.

Almost every ethnic group found in the United States is represented in Chicago. In 1990 more people claimed German ancestry in Chicago than any other ancestry, followed by Polish and Irish. Almost 45 percent of the more than 450,000 foreign-born people now living in Chicago entered the United States between 1980 and 1990. Spanish and Polish are the two most common languages spoken at home other than English.

Chicago has a highly diversified economy that has been aided by an extensive transportation and distribution network. It is the nation's most important rail and trucking center and is the location of one of the busiest airports in the United States, Chicago-O'Hare International Airport. Chicago has several commuter railroad lines that serve the suburbs. In addition, the Chicago Transit Authority operates bus, subway, and EL (elevated train) services in the city.

Michigan Avenue bridge and Wrigley Building by the Chicago River

The city is a significant port for both domestic and international trade. Great Lakes freighters and river barges deliver bulk commodities such as iron ore, limestone, coal, chemicals, petroleum, and grain. Some of this freight is destined for processing plants in the heavily industrialized Calumet River area. Foreign vessels arrive via the Saint Lawrence Seaway, bringing products such as automobiles, steel, fish, and alcoholic beverages. The boats depart carrying machinery, farm equipment, hides, and lumber, as well as a variety of food products.

Manufacturing employs about one-fifth of the metropolitan area's workers. Chicago's largest employer is the food products industry, followed by the printing and publishing, metal fabrication, electronic equipment, chemical, machinery, and transportation-equipment industries. The manufacture of furniture and agricultural implements has declined in importance in recent decades. Chicago is one of the nation's leading producers of steel, metalware, confectionery, surgical appliances, railroad equipment, soap, paint, cosmetics, cans, industrial machinery, printed materials, and sporting goods.

Chicago contains the headquarters of numerous corporations and is an important wholesale market for grain, machine tools, produce, fish, and flowers. The Chicago Board of Trade and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange are among the world's largest commodities markets and have led in the development of futures trading and related concepts. The city has long been an important convention and trade-show center, with numerous hotels and extensive exhibition facilities. The increasing importance of this industry has made it necessary to renovate and enlarge several facilities, including the McCormick Place (built in 1960), a multipurpose facility on Lake Michigan and the largest trade-show facility in North America.