I thought since I’m a Windy City writer I’d
start a Wednesday walking tour. Each week I’ll do my best to show you a Chicago
landmark or maybe some hidden gem that only those of us lucky enough to call
Chicago home would know about.
This week I’ll start with a place that draws
many tourists, it’s located in Grant Park and only one of the many open spaces
along Lake Michigan. Many people don’t know that after the great fire in 1871
and the 1893 World’s Columbia Exposition, Chicago was a planned city. The
Burham Plan was enacted in 1909 that allowed for wider streets, new railways,
harbor facilities and civic buildings and because of the success of the world’s fair many ideas were presented
for improving and preserving Chicago's lakefront.
Buckingham Fountain is a Chicago
landmark at the edge of Grant Park. Dedicated in 1927, it is one
of the largest fountains in the world. Built in a rococo wedding
cake style and inspired by the Latona
Fountain at the Palace of Versailles, it is meant to
allegorically represent Lake Michigan. The fountain itself represents Lake Michigan,
with each sea horse symbolizing the states of Illinois,
Wisconsin,
Michigan
and Indiana,
that border the lake.
The fountain was
designed by beaux arts architect Edward H.
Bennett. The statues were created by the French sculptor Marcel F. Loyau. The
fountain was donated to the city by Kate Buckingham in memory of her brother,
Clarence Buckingham and its official name is the Clarence Buckingham Memorial Fountain.
It operates from
April to October, with regular water shows and evening color-light shows.
During the winter, the fountain is decorated with festival lights. I’ve seen
Latona Fountain and Buckingham is more beautiful probably because of the
Georgia pink marble that really stands out in the sunshine against the blue
skyline and water. If you visit make sure you check out the water show, every hour
on the hour from now to the middle of October.
You can check out
another picture of it on my new FB Timeline banner: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Elizabeth-Marx/294710950557778
Lovely picture, Elizabeth. I think the walking tour is a great idea. Thank you for sharing your city with those of us who are unable to travel to it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Kate. I'm going to do my best to make everyone so familiar with Chicago that they feel at home when they finally get to visit. I try to do that in my books set her too. Check back next Wednesday, I think I'll share something out of the way.
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