Cont’d... Families with children won’t want to miss the Chicago Children’s Museum. This interactive and educational oasis is the fifth most visited cultural institution in Chicago and one of the most popular children’s museums in the country. Currently, the museum is host to numerous permanent exhibits, as well as fun and interactive kids & family programs. Chicago Shakespeare Theater opened at Navy Pier in early 2000, making the Theater among the finest venues in the world in which to experience Shakespeare performed live on stage. The new theater complex brings to fruition the original conceptual plan for a performing arts theater at Navy Pier. It also marks a milestone in Shakespeare Repertory’s vision to create a permanent home for the performance of Shakespeare in the heart of Chicago. The Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows is the first museum in the United States dedicated solely to the spectacular beauty of stained glass windows. Permanently displayed in an 800-foot-long series of galleries along the lower level terraces of Navy Pier’s Festival Hall, the Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows showcases both religious and secular windows and is divided by artistic theme into four categories: Victorian, Prairie, Modern, Tiffany and Contemporary. All of the windows were designed by prominent local, national and European studios, 80% of which were originally installed in residential, commercial and religious buildings in the Chicago area from 1870 to the present. Admission to the Museum is free, and the Museum is available for viewing during Pieroperating hours.
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Navy Pier, then called Municipal Pier, completed construction in 1916. It opened to the public and was the only pier to combine the business of shipping with the pleasure of public entertainment.
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In 1942 Navy Pier was the home of pilot training orientation commences and eventually 15,000 pilots are qualified, including a young airman named George H.W. Bush. As many as 200 WWII planes still rest at the bottom of Lake Michigan as a result of accidents during training.
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In 1946 the Navy moves out of Navy Pier and the University of Illinois takes up residence, transforming the facility into a two-year undergraduate branch campus. The Navy's main mess hall becomes a giant library considered "the largest reading room" in Illinois. In 1965 the University moved from Navy Pier to its new Circle Campus, just west of downtown.
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Navy Pier is the home of the Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows, which is the first museum in the United States dedicated solely to stained glass windows.
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Navy Pier is the host to Chicago’s most magical holiday event, the Bank of America Winter “WonderFest, a month long event which includes in-door ice skating, cookie decorating, inflatable slides, an in-door Ferris wheel, thousands or decorated tress, free entertainment and so much more.”
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Navy Pier hosts FREE fireworks every summer (Memorial Day – Labor Day)! Every Wednesday & Saturday nights, come enjoy fireworks with breathtaking view of the Chicago skyline as your backdrop!
Dining at the Pier Navy Pier offers dining opportunities as diverse as Chicago itself. Open year-round, five restaurants and an extensive food court provide culinary delights to please every palate. Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. & Market is themed on the movie Forrest Gump and serves quality seafood in a casual family atmosphere. Delicious Italian Cuisine is served at Capi’s Italian Kitchen. Traditional tavern food is plentiful at Charlie’s Ale House. For fine dining, RIVA is a favorite, with fresh seafood, steaks and pasta, plus incredible views of the Chicago skyline.
For more information and event listings call (800) 595-PIER Or, visit the Navy Pier website at www.navypier.com