Chicago

[albry]

Why is Chicago so called?

[Horse]

It is thought that a native American tribe gave this city its name. Some claim that it derives from the Indian words for either wild onion or skunk, other historians argue that the word Chicago means 'great'. Dr. William Barry, first secretary of the Chicago Historical Society, wrote, "Whatever may have been the etymological meaning of the word Chicago in its practical use, it probably denoted strong or great. The Indians applied this term to the Mississippi River, to thunder, or to the voice of the great Manitou."