Government of Chicago in the context of "Mayor of Chicago"

The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois, during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly 3.3 square miles (9 km) of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 100,000 residents homeless. The fire began in a neighborhood southwest of the city center. A long period of hot, dry, windy conditions, and the wooden construction prevalent in the city, led to the conflagration spreading quickly. The fire leapt the south branch of the Chicago River and destroyed much of central Chicago and then crossed the main stem of the river, consuming the Near North Side.

Help flowed to the city from near and far after the fire. The city government improved building codes to stop the rapid spread of future fires and rebuilt rapidly to those higher standards. A donation from the United Kingdom spurred the establishment of the Chicago Public Library.

The City Hall-County Building, commonly known as City Hall, is a 12-story building in Chicago, Illinois, that houses the seats of government of the City of Chicago and Cook County. The building's west side (City Hall, 121 N. LaSalle St.) holds the offices of the mayor, city clerk, and city treasurer; some city departments; offices of alderpersons of Chicago's 50 wards; and the Chicago City Council's chambers. The building's east side (County Building, 118 N. Clark St.) houses offices of the Government of Cook County, including the Cook County Board of Commissioners' chambers.

The building spans a city block bounded by Randolph Street to the north, Washington Street to the south, Clark Street to the east, and LaSalle Street to the west. It is the seventh building to serve as Chicago's city hall, the fourth built at its location, and the third shared by the governments of Chicago and Cook County. Its location has served as the seat of the city and county governments since 1853, except for a period from 1871—when the Great Chicago Fire destroyed the building—to 1885.

The Chicago Park District is a municipal government agency of the City of Chicago. It is one of the oldest and the largest park districts in the United States.

As of 2016, there are over 600 parks included in the Chicago Park District as well as 27 beaches, 10 boat docking harbors, two botanic conservatories, a zoo, 11 museums, and one stadium. The Chicago Park District also has more than over 230 field houses, 78 public pools, and dozens of sports and recreational facilities, with year-round programming. It also owns and operates the lakefront stadium, Soldier Field, which the Chicago Bears and Chicago Fire FC lease. The district is an independent taxing authority as defined by Illinois State Statute and is considered a separate (or "sister") agency of the City of Chicago. The district's headquarters are located in the Brighton Park community area on the West Side of Chicago.

Shedd Aquarium (formally the John G. Shedd Aquarium) is a municipal public aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is operated by the Chicago Park District, a municipal government agency of the City of Chicago.

Opened on May 30, 1930, the 5 million US gal (19,000,000 L; 4,200,000 imp gal) aquarium holds about 32,000 animals. It is the third largest aquarium in the Western Hemisphere (after the Georgia Aquarium and The Seas at Epcot) and the 11th-largest aquarium in the world.

The Adler Planetarium is a municipal public museum for astronomy in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is operated by the Chicago Park District, a municipal government agency of the City of Chicago. It is the first planetarium in the United States.

It was founded in 1930 by local businessman Max Adler. Located on the northeastern tip of Northerly Island on Lake Michigan, the Adler Planetarium was the first planetarium in the United States. It is part of Chicago's Museum Campus, which includes the Shedd Aquarium and the Field Museum of Natural History. The Planetarium's mission is to inspire exploration and understanding of the universe.