The Chicago story
Shopping here since 1837.
State Street built the department store, the fire cleared the way for the skyline, and Michigan Avenue took the luxury north of the river.
- 1837
Chicago becomes a city
The town at the mouth of the Chicago River incorporates as a city on March 4, 1837.
Open River North → - 1868
State Street becomes the shopping street
Potter Palmer buys up State Street frontage and brings Field and Leiter's dry-goods store to State and Washington.
Open State Street → - 1871
The fire, and the tower that stood
The Great Chicago Fire burns much of the city. The 1869 Water Tower on Michigan Avenue is one of the few buildings left standing.
Open Mag Mile → - 1892
The first L line opens
Elevated trains start running on the South Side. By 1897 the Union Loop tracks circle downtown and give the Loop its name.
Open State Street → - 1907
The Tiffany dome
Marshall Field's finishes its State Street store with a mosaic dome by Louis Comfort Tiffany. Macy's runs the building today.
Open State Street → - 1947
The Magnificent Mile gets its name
Developer Arthur Rubloff dubs North Michigan Avenue the Magnificent Mile, and the shops follow.
Open Mag Mile → - 1962
Oakbrook Center opens
One of the country's early open-air suburban centers opens in Oak Brook, west of the city.
Open Oak Brook → - 1975
Shopping goes vertical
Water Tower Place opens on Michigan Avenue with its stores stacked around a multi-story atrium.
Open Mag Mile →
