why is chicago the "windy city". is it windier than say, omaha, or(god forgive you ever go there) kingman, az.

Question

i should have said god forbid instead of forgive

Answer 1

Chicago was called The Windy City in reference to its self promotion in bidding for the 1893 World's Fair. A NY City reporter labeled it that. That is the most popular explanation, anyway. Also, our politicians are so full of hot air :)

As for literal wind..we are by Lake Michigan which gives off a nice breeze, and downtown on those narrow streets enclosed by tall buildings-well the wind down there CAN knock you down. Especially when turning corners, be careful! I learned that the hard way. :)

Answer 2

The phrase started in the late 1800's when an Easterner arrived by train in Chicago and found the city to be very "windy".
Chicago's weather is influenced by Hudson Bay and arctic weather from the North, prevailing winds from the western prairies, occasional storms systems from the Gulf, and greatly by Lake Michigan to the East. It does not have a calm season like most locales. It tends to be more unpredictable than anything else.

Answer 3

probably because it gets alot of attention, and all that, and also the average speed on the average time on each day, amarillo texas holds the spot at number 3 or 4 (at forbes.com), or something like that, and i lived there for sometime and i can tell you that its not that windy, so the calculations depend on how windy, and how often the wind is there.