Illegal drag racing two stories beneath Chicago’s streets.

"No writer ever gave more to a city and got back less.”

Once at the center of U.S. finance, the historic Trading Room was meticulously recreated piece by piece and rebuilt in the Art Institute.

Theater has had many different incarnations but has survived the ravages of time.

Chicago was once a major hub of film production, but being silent film you don’t hear much about it.

A Chicago Movie Palace Lost to Time.

The oldest house in Chicago certainly doesn't look the part and there are some who say it doesn't deserve its title either.

Not to be confused with the iconic New York City skyscraper, this Chicago building is a vibrant hub for artists.

A goddess-topped water fountain in Chicago was created thanks to the dreams of a thirsty newsboy.

This memorial plaque remembers a strangely shallow maritime disaster known as "Chicago's Titanic."

This landmark of the Chicago silent film industry may not be in the picture business anymore but it still stands proudly.

This cheerfully-named branch of the Chicago River is the fetid result of years of blood, entrails, and meatpacking waste.

A bloodstain from "the wound of the transverberation of the heart."

This urban drawbridge gained eternal pop culture fame when the Blues Brothers jumped it while it was raised.

An eccentric park and pool.

One of the last functioning antique elevators in Chicago.

These mansions date back to Chicago's days as a brewer's paradise.

A strange and haunting monument of unknown origin in the historic Graceland Cemetery.

Home to a protest movement, a bombing, and a dramatic change in labor history.

The 606 is a decade in the making.

First planned industrial community in the United States.

Chicago's largest cemetery is full of beautiful Victorian monuments and more than a few ghost stories.

At Chicago's revered Field Museum, visitors are invited to learn about and literally explore DNA.

The world's only known button museum.