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Photo: CME Group/Henry Delforn/Allan Schoenberg, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The 4th Floor Visitor Gallery is temporarily closed.
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange is an American derivatives marketplace based in Chicago, Illinois, and located at 20 South Wacker Drive.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Sullivan/Holabird & Roche, 1898-1902
Louis Sullivan designed the northernmost (18) of the three buildings here, and the team of Holabird & Roche added the next two (24 & 30). The roots of Mies-style modernism are easily apparent in the immaculate proportions here, although Sullivan's piers overflow like water-pipes with ornament at the top, and Holabird & Roche's two make an interesting contrast with the master.
Extraordinary productions of major operas, in the impressive Civic Opera House, overlooking the river; local legend has it that the back-story behind business magnate Samuel Insull's decision to build it was the inspiration for the opera scenes in Citizen Kane. Although highly acclaimed today, there was a minor controversy among purists when they began to project English titles above the stage for non-English operas.
The Civic Opera House is also home to the Joffrey Ballet, one of the premier ballet companies in the United States. They are best known for their annual performance of The Nutcracker for the Christmas season.
1007 ft. Built by Adrian Smith in 1989, the granite-clad AT&T Corporate Center is one of the city's more distinctive skyscrapers for its massive size, spiked roof pinnacles, and a style evocative of both Gothic and Japanese architectural styles. It's not well-known, but it is the eighth tallest building in the U.S.
Once the tallest building in the world, the Sears Tower (officially renamed the Willis Tower) now has to settle for second-highest in the Americas alone, behind New York City's One World Trade Center (and even those are after a semantic battle with Toronto and the CN Tower). The Hancock Observatory (see Near North) has a nicer view of the city, but the Sears Tower offers an incredible view of its own from "The Ledge", which lets visitors walk out in a transparent balcony suspended 1,353 feet above the street. To avoid the crowds, visit after 4PM.
961 ft. For a time this was the tallest building in the world without an official name, although locals know exactly what to call it: The White Castle Building. It is distinctive for its "crown," which is brightly illuminated at night. If you are nearby, head into its lobby to see its enormous indoor garden and fountain.