The first thing we did on our way into Chicago was to stop at the former home and studio of Frank Lloyd Wright in the Oak Park neighborhood where there are several of his buildings.
We drove the RT around town easily, but parking it was a different story since most of the parking is in garages that are too short for us. After a bit of research online before we came I found that the Adler Planetarium has the best outdoor secure parking lot. The first day we met a friend, Loni, at the Planetarium for lunch and she was so kind to drive us around town while we just got to sightsee! What a treat to meet with her. She even brought doggie treats!
On May 1, 1893, The World’s Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World’s Fair opened. Over the next six months, more than 26 million visitors would flock to the 600-acre fairgrounds and 200-plus buildings full of art, food, entertainment and technological gadgets. That was almost a third of the American population at that time. I read that people mortgaged their homes to attend the fair and it was an event of a lifetime with the world opening up before them.
The fair, ostensibly meant to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ first voyage to the New World, served as a showcase for a fully rebuilt and vibrant Chicago, just two decades removed from its devastating fire.
Marshall Field who created the famous department store had a long history with the city of Chicago and he helped to finance this Chicago World's Fair along with creating the famous Field Museum.
The fair was the first large event to have been electrified. It was at a time when cities were not extensively electrified so this city with lights made a big impression. It was easy to imagine the times and event at this exhibit.
First we saw the 1893 Chicago World's Fair Exhibit. They had many of the original items from the fair displays and many photographs. It must have been amazing to have experience so many new things at one time.
What an amazing museum The Field Museum is. We needed another two days here.
My grandfather taught at the University of Chicago from 1910 to 1939. In 1940 he became Dean of Education at University of California. I heard about the university during my childhood when I lived with my grandfather.
I felt that the campus had a feeling of Oxford or some other old English University. It looked as if it had a closed campus at one time with the gate below. The old buildings were all attached with gated entrances.