Chicago may not make national or world news headlines as much as New York or LA, but it certainly has its fair share of world (and national) titles to brag about. Here are 15 amazing facts you may not know about Chicago and its many attractions.
Chicago is home to the world’s largest free outdoor food festival — The Taste of Chicago. In 2006, 3.6 million people from around the world attended the Taste of Chicago festivities.
The Art Institute of Chicago holds the largest collection of Impressionist paintings outside the Louvre in Paris.
The first Blood Bank ever in the United States was created in Chicago in 1937.
At 23.5 miles, Chicago’s Western Avenue is the world’s longest street. It also has more car dealerships than any other street in the city — 62 total.
Chicago is home to Lincoln Park Zoo — one of the world’s last free zoos.
The Chicago Post Office located at 433 W. Van Buren is the only postal facility in the world where you can drive a car through.
At 2.2 million square feet, Chicago’s famous McCormick Place has the largest amount of exhibit space of any convention center in the country.
Chicago is home to the world’s largest population of Poles outside of Warsaw.
Harold Washington Library (The Chicago Public Library) is the world’s largest public library with a collection of more than 2 million books.
The World’s largest cookie and cracker factory as well as the world’s largest ice cream cone factory are located in Chicago. Nabisco (cookie and cracker factory) is located at 7300 S. Kedzie Avenue on Chicago’s south side and Keebler (ice cream cone factory) is also located on Chicago’s south side at 10839 S. Langley Avenue.
The first TV daytime soap opera ever to air in the United States was “These Are My Children” – it was broadcast from Chicago’s NBC station making Chicago the birthplace of TV soap operas.
Chicago is home to the world’s largest water filtration plant. The Jardine Water Purification Plant is located on the lakefront north of Navy Pier at 600 E. Grand Avenue.
Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium is the world’s second largest aquarium in the world. It holds 5 million gallons of water to support 20,000 aquatic animals. The first largest is The Georgia Aquarium which holds 8 million gallons of water to house over 100,000 aquatic animals.
The first car race ever seen in the United States was held in Chicago in 1895. The length of the track ran from Chicago to nearby suburban Evanston.
