place

Old Chicago

1975 establishments in Illinois1980 disestablishments in IllinoisAmusement parks closed in 1980Amusement parks opened in 1975Bolingbrook, Illinois
Defunct amusement parks in IllinoisDemolished shopping malls in the United StatesFormer buildings and structures in ChicagoIndoor amusement parksShopping malls established in 1975Shopping malls in Illinois

Old Chicago was a combination shopping mall and indoor amusement park that existed in the southwest Chicago suburb of Bolingbrook, Illinois from 1975 until 1980. It was billed as "The world's first indoor amusement park", and it was intended to draw visitors all year round, rain or shine. It opened to great fanfare and over 15,000 visitors on June 17, 1975, with an enormous building that housed major rides, such as three roller coasters and a Ferris wheel, as well as a turn-of-the-century-themed shopping mall with design reminiscent of the architecture of Louis Sullivan, such as his work for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. However, only six months after opening, the complex ran into financial troubles due to construction cost overruns. The opening of a competing amusement park in Chicago's north suburbs (known today as Six Flags Great America) hurt attendance, and the lack of large anchor stores failed to draw enough local and repeat shoppers. Despite management changes, the center continued to lose money. By 1978, the mall began closing on Mondays and Tuesdays, and in early 1980 the entire amusement park shut down and the rides were sold, only five years after opening. Efforts to find alternative uses for the huge building failed, and the structure was demolished in the spring of 1986. Its address was 555 S. Bolingbrook Drive, Bolingbrook, Illinois 60439.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Old Chicago (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Old Chicago
Old Chicago Drive,

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Latitude Longitude
N 41.679166666667 ° E -88.071111111111 °
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Wal-Mart

Old Chicago Drive 200
60440
Illinois, United States
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