| 1950 |
Chess Records Founded |
| 1954 |
Lyric Theatre of Chicago (Lyric Opera) Founded |
| 1955 |
Mayor Richard J. Daley Elected |
| 1955 |
WTTW’s First Broadcast |
| 1955 |
First Section of Congress Expressway (Dwight D. Eisenhower) Opened |
| 1958 |
Our Lady of the Angels School Fire |
| 1959 |
International Trade Fair Celebrates Opening of St. Lawrence Seaway—Queen Elizabeth’s Visit |
| 1960 |
Northwest Expressway (John F. Kennedy) Completed |
| 1961 |
Blackhawks Win Stanley Cup Championship |
| 1961 |
The Ebony Museum of Negro History and Art (DuSable Museum of African American History) Established |
| 1962 |
Dan Ryan Expressway Opened |
| 1963 |
Bears Win NFL Championship |
| 1963 |
O’Hare Airport Dedicated |
| 1964 |
Southwest Expressway (Adlai E. Stevenson) Completed |
| 1966 |
Civic Center Dedicated |
| 1966 |
Martin Luther King Jr. Marches in Chicago |
| 1967 |
Major Snowstorm |
| 1967 |
McCormick Place Fire |
| 1967 |
Museum of Contemporary Art Founded |
| 1967 |
Picasso Statue Dedicated in Civic Center Plaza |
| 1968 |
Democratic National Convention |
| 1971 |
Union Stock Yard Closes |
| 1972 |
Shakman Agreement Signed |
| 1972 |
Chicago Botanic Gardens opens |
| 1972 |
Crash of United Airlines Flight 553 |
| 1973 |
Sears Tower (later Willis Tower) Completed—Becomes World’s Tallest Building |
| 1974 |
Chagall’s Four Seasons Dedicated |
| 1974 |
Calder’s Flamingo Dedicated |
| 1975 |
Deep Tunnel Project Begins |
| 1976 |
Mayor Richard J. Daley Dies at 74 |
| 1976 |
Civic Center Renamed Richard J. Daley Center |
| 1977 |
Oldenburg’s Batcolumn Dedicated |
| 1977 |
First Running of Chicago Marathon |
| 1979 |
Jane Byrne Elected Mayor |
| 1979 |
State Street Mall Opens |
| 1979 |
Crash of American Airlines Flight 191 |
| 1981 |
Miro’s Chicago Dedicated |
| 1982 |
First Major City to Ban Sale of Handguns |
| 1982 |
Chicago Children’s Museum Founded |
| 1983 |
Harold Washington Elected Mayor |
| 1984 |
Rapid Transit Line Extended to O’Hare |
| 1984 |
DuBuffet’s Monument with Standing Beast Unveiled |
| 1985 |
State of Illinois Center (later James R. Thompson Center) Opens |
| 1985 |
Steppenwolf Theatre wins Regional Theatre Tony Award |
| 1986 |
Bears Win NFL Championship |
| 1986 |
The Chicago Theater Reopens |
| 1986 |
Lake Shore Drive S-Curve Straightened |
| 1987 |
Museum of Broadcast Communications Opens |
| 1987 |
Mayor Harold Washington Dies at 65 |
| 1989 |
Mayor Richard M. Daley Elected Mayor |
| 1991 |
Chicago Bulls Win NBA Championship |
| 1991 |
New Comiskey Park (U.S. Cellular Field) Opens |
| 1992 |
Freight Tunnel Flood |
| 1992 |
Chicago Bulls Win NBA Championship |
| 1992 |
Goodman Theatre wins Regional Theatre Tony Award |
| 1993 |
Chicago Bulls Win NBA Championship |
| 1993 |
Orange Line Opens to Midway Airport |
| 1994 |
Chicago Hosts World Cup |
| 1994 |
United Center Opens |
| 1995 |
Deadly Heat Wave |
| 1995 |
Chicago Stadium Demolished |
| 1996 |
National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum Opens |
| 1996 |
State Street Revitalization |
| 1996 |
Chicago Bulls Win NBA Championship |
| 1997 |
Chicago Bulls Win NBA Championship |
| 1998 |
Chicago Bulls Win NBA Championship |
| 1998 |
Steppenwolf Theatre Company Wins National Medal of the Arts |
| 1998 |
Chicago Fire Wins MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup |
| 1999 |
Notebaert Nature Museum Opens |
| 1999 |
City News Bureau Closes |
