Chicago’s Navy Pier during WWII

Chicago’s Navy Pier has intriguing history. Did you know pilot training orientation commenced at Navy Pier during WWII? Eventually, 15,000 pilots were qualified for military service, including a young airman named George H.W. Bush, the future President of the United States. As many as 200 WWII planes still rest at the bottom of Lake Michigan as a result of accidents during training. This photograph was taken between WWI and WWII, so it’s pretty close to how the pier and the skyline appeared at the time. Construction for the pier actually began in 1914.