With Chicago’s expansion in the late 19th century, a
major university was the perfect addition to an array of new cultural
institutions. Funded by oil magnate John D. Rockefeller, (who deemed it
his best ever investment) the forward-thinking institution opened in
1892. Today, the university is one of the USA’s most respected, boasting
78 Nobel prize winners as students, faculty, or researchers, as well as
several on-campus attractions that are destinations in their own right.
Bond Chapelopen 8am–4:45pm daily Free
Smart Museum of Art
Cobb Hall
Rockefeller Memorial Chapel
Regenstein Library
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Go for a deep-dish pizza at a Chicago favorite, Girodano’s ( 5311 S. Blackstone Ave. ).
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Rockefeller memorial chapel’s carillon is played Oct–Jun 6pm Mon–Fri, noon Sun, Jun–Sep, every Sun.
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Unless otherwise stated, all attractions have Disabled Access.
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Top 10 FeaturesOriental Institute The institute’s amazing museum
has five galleries that showcase the history, art, and archaeology of
the ancient Near East. Don’t miss the Egyptian Gallery’s towering 17-ft
(5.2-m) statue of King Tutankhamun.
Bond Chapel Built
in 1926, this small, ivy-covered chapel features exterior stone
carvings of angels, imps, and Adam and Eve. Inside, stained-glass
windows illustrate scenes from the New Testament.
Smart Museum of Art Magazine
moguls David and Alfred Smart founded this museum in 1974. It might be
small, but its contents (ranging from ancient ceramics to 20th-century
sculpture) pack an impressive punch. Main Quadrangle Rejecting
post-Civil War modernity, Henry Ives Cobb’s 1891 campus plan mimics
England’s Gothic Oxford University, with this main unifying quad
surrounded by smaller ones. Robie House Frank
Lloyd Wright described his striking low-rise, Prairie-style masterpiece
as “the cornerstone of modern architecture.” The not-so-humble
architect built it in 1909 for bicycle manufacturer Frederick C. Robie .
Cobb Gate This
ornate northern entrance to the Main Quad is adorned with gargoyles.
University lore says they represent students’ four years of college
life: from struggling freshman at the base to graduation at the apex.
Nuclear Energy
This 12-ft
(3.65-m) bulbous bronze sculpture by Henry Moore marks the general area
where Enrico Fermi and his team of scientists achieved the first
controlled self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction in 1942. Rockefeller Memorial Chapel The
tallest building on campus is this mini-cathedral named for university
patron John D. Rockefeller. It boasts magnificent stained glass, a
72-bell carillon (the world’s second largest), and a 10,000-pipe organ.
Cobb Hall Confusingly,
the oldest building on campus is not named for its architect, Henry
Cobb, but for an unrelated donor, Silas Cobb. Built in 1882, the
beautiful Gothic structure houses classrooms, offices, and the
Renaissance Society, a contemporary art gallery. Regenstein Library The
1970-built limestone “Reg,” honors Chicago industrialist Joseph
Regenstein. Exceptional jazz archives, map collections, and children’s
books feature among its seven million plus volumes.
Top 10 Alumni
Milton Friedman (1912–2006), economist James D. Watson, (1928–), scientist Philip Glass (1937–), composer/musician Edwin Hubble (1889–1953), astronomer Susan Sontag (1933–2005), critic/author Eliot Ness (1903–57), author/law enforcer John Ashcroft (1942–), US Attorney General Philip Roth (1933–), author Carl Sagan (1934–96), astronomer/author Studs Terkel (1912–), oral historian
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