Chicago is one of the largest cities in the United States of America, with the third largest population in the country. Where exactly is this metropolis located?
The United States of America is a huge country, consisting of 50 states and one federal district - Columbia. The names of the largest cities in America are familiar even to those who have never been to this part of the globe. The three largest metropolitan areas in the country are New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, which has the third largest population.
Chicago
Chicago is located in Illinois, on the southwestern shore of the famous Lake Michigan. In addition, the Chicago and Calumet Rivers flow through the city, and the Chicago Ship Sanitation Canal connects the Chicago River with the Des Plains River, which crosses the eastern part of the metropolis.
More than 2.5 million people live in Chicago itself. At the same time, when taking into account the size of its population, it is advisable to take into account not only the number of city residents, but also the number of residents of the Chicago metropolitan area, since a significant part of them regularly visit the city in connection with work or other matters. The total number of people living in the metropolitan area of Chicago is more than 9, 5 million citizens. Because of this, the metropolitan area is sometimes referred to as "Greater Chicago" or "Country of Chicago". According to this indicator, the territory is ranked 26th in the world.
In addition to its importance as a place of concentration of a significant population, Chicago plays an important role in the life of the United States of America due to the fact that it is also the largest financial center after New York. In addition, it is one of the main transport hubs of the state: O'Hare International Airport has been repeatedly recognized as the busiest airport in the world.
State of illinois
Despite the fact that Chicago is the largest city in the state of Illinois, its official capital is located elsewhere - in the city of Springfield. In addition to a developed industry, which is concentrated mainly in the Chicago area, the state also has a significant agricultural base, concentrated in its central part, and significant reserves of minerals, including coal, oil and others. In addition, the southern part of the state is home to imposing forested areas.
The total area occupied by the state is about 150 thousand square kilometers. More than half of this territory is occupied by prairies, that is, natural areas close to the steppes. At the same time, more than 500 large and small rivers flow on the territory of Illinois, and there are about 950 lakes, the largest of which is Michigan.
