Chicago's Architecture -  US Rail Journeys Series 3 Episode 34

'Chicago's Architecture' takes me on a very interesting river trip through the city.

Please click on a thumbnail to see the photographs that go with this podcast:

On to the river:
I cross the river on on Michigan Avenue using the DuSable Bridge. Starting in 1918 the bridge takes 10 years to complete although it opens for traffic in 1920. Like the other bridges that I will pass under during the afternoon the bridge opens.

I join the Shoreline Sightseeing boat at the Michigan Avenue dock for the afternoon Architecture Tour.
Our Guide:
Becky is our guide and she bubbles with enthusiasm throughout the journey telling us interesting facts and anecdotes about the buildings that we're passing.
Some of the highlights:
We hear about the Chicago Fire of 1871 which destroys much of the city. Although it is a great disaster it gives the city the chance to start again. In 1885, just 14 years after the fire, the first skyscraper in the world is built in Chicago.

We pass the carriage sidings for Union Station. These are all below other buildings. Amtrak owns the land but is willing to sell air rights allowing developers to build above their tracks.

We also see the old main post office. A building with 2.7 million square feet of space inside. Between 1929 and 1996 this post office ships, via the railway network, the mail order purchases from Montgomery Ward and Sears Roebuck across the United States.
Down to Lake Michigan:
We travel to the lock that separates the Chicago River from Lake Michigan. The lock gate is slightly open and we see water flowing from the lake into the river. The lake surface is higher than the river. One might say it flows in the wrong direction!

Listen to the podcast to hear about the rest of the river tour through  Chicago's Architecture.

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Music:
AKM Music licenses Steam Railway and White Cat for use in this podcast.