Navy Pier
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Navy Pier
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Navy Pier as seen from the 23rd floor of The Lake Point Tower
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| Location | 600 E. Grand Avenue Chicago, Illinois, 60611 |
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| Coordinates | 41°53′29″N 87°35′59″W / 41.89139°N 87.59972°WCoordinates: 41°53′29″N 87°35′59″W / 41.89139°N 87.59972°W |
| Built | 1916 |
| Architect | Charles S. Frost E.C. Shankland |
| NRHP Reference # | 79000825 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | September 13, 1979 |
| Designated CL | November 14, 1977 |
Navy Pier is a 3,300-foot-long (1,010 m) pier on the Chicago shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of the Near North Side community area. The Navy Pier currently encompasses more than fifty acres of parks, gardens, shops, restaurants, family attractions and exhibition facilities and is the top leisure destination in the Midwest, drawing nearly nine million visitors annually. It is one of the most visited attractions in the entire Midwestern United States and is Chicago's number one tourist attraction.
Navy Pier opened to the public on July 15, 1916. Originally named "Municipal Pier," the pier was built by Charles Sumner Frost, a nationally-known architect, with a design based on the Plan of Chicago (1909) by Daniel Burnham and Edward H. Bennett]
Originally the Navy Pier was to be a dock for freights, passenger traffic and a space for indoor and outdoor recreation for the public. Many events were held at the pier, such as expositions, pageants and other types of entertainment. In the summer of 1918 the pier was also used as a jail for draft dodgers.
In 1927, the pier was renamed Navy Pier to honor the naval veterans who served in the First World War.
In 1941, during World War II the pier became a training center for the Navy. About 10,000 people worked, trained and resided there. The pier contained a 2,500-seat theater, gym, 12-chair barber shop, tailor, cobbler shops, soda fountain and a vast kitchen and hospital.
In 1946, as the Navy was winding down from its mission, the University of Illinois at Chicago held classes at the pier. Though the maximum capacity was exceeded the school outgrew the pier and the university relocated to Circle Campus.
After the university left, the Navy Pier became underutilized.
In 1959, the St. Lawrence Seaway opened and increased commercial shipping activity at the pier for a short time, though business died down and left for more modern facilities at Lake Calumet.
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