Chicago's Architecture...A River's Viewpoint

This past Sunday, a friend and I visited an outdoor art show on North Michigan Avenue.  Afterward, we stopped for lunch and pondered what to do for the rest of the afternoon.  My boyfriend suggested we take the Chicago Architecture Foundation Tour, which I though was a fantastic idea.

We purchased tickets and arrived just in time for the 2:00 p.m. boat tour.  The tour was approximately 90-minutes in length, taking us up and down the north and south branches of the Chicago river. 

For me, the highlight of the tour was our very enthusiastic and entertaining tour guide.  To say our guide was knowledgeable about Chicago's architectural community would be an extreme understatement.  Our guide not only provided an overview of Chicago's rich architectural history, but detailed information about the structures along the river and the world-famous architects which designed them. I've since discovered all tours are given by Chicago Architecture Foundation-certified docents.  All docents receive hundreds of hours of training about Chicago architecture and history, which was evident during the tour.

The tour included Chicago's most famous historic and modern landmarks, including Willis Tower, Navy Pier, Wrigley Building, Tribune Tower, Merchandise Mart, Lyric Opera, 333 W. Wacker, Marina City and many, many more. Over 50 buildings are discussed on the tour. We were also able to see riverfront homes with very interesting and unique designs, many of which I consider repurposed structures, rehabbed from old factories and warehouses. Since I am a resident of Oak Park, I was particularly excited to see various motifs woven into at least three architectural designs, paying tribute to our own Frank Lloyd Wright.

Because of my fascination for Roman, Egyptian and Greek mythology, I was intrigued by the three-story art deco statue of the mythical ancient Roman goddess, Ceres (goddess of Agriculture, particularly grain), which caps the Chicago Board of Trade structure.  Interestingly enough, until this past weekend, I had never really paid much  attention to her.  Nevertheless, learning the history of the stature and how it became a fixture of the Chicago Board of Trade building, I was inspired to learn more about other statues overlooking the city.  I find it interesting that I've been in and out of many of these buildings my entire life and have never given thought about the architects responsible for their design. At the conclusion of the tour, I knew I would never view Chicago the same way again.

The tour started at the dock near Lower Michigan and Wacker Drive.  We cruised west, turning north going as far as Goose Island.  The boat takes a 180 degree turn and heads southward toward the Roosevelt Road bridge, turning again and eventually heads eastbound to Navy Pier.  The boat makes a final turn and heads west, returning to its point of origin.

Tickets can be purchased in person either in advance or on the day of the tour.  Although we were very fortunate to have purchased same day tickets, I highly recommend advance purchases, as the tour sells out very quickly.  The Chicago Foundation Box Office is located at 224 South Michigan (Railway Exchange building) or at Chicago's First Lady boat dock, southeast corner of the Michigan Avenue Bridge and Wacker Drive. Look for the blue awning marking the stairway entrance.  It is also recommended that guests arrive at least 20-30 minutes prior to departure of the cruise.

One suggestion - If you plan to sit on the upper deck, be sure to bring sunglasses and a hat for those warm and sunny days.  It will make the tour much more enjoyable. However, the boat also has a shaded lower deck, equipped with round tables, ample seating and a wet bar.  Over all, I found the Chicago Architectural Foundation Tour a wonderful and brilliant tour which exceeded my expectations!  Definitely, two thumbs up!

Other Details: Family-Friendly Tour, Upper (Exposed) & Lower (Sheltered) Decks, Credit Cards Accepted, Complimentary Tour Maps

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Twitter: @chiarchitecture #chicagoriver