Every day in Chicago is Flag Day. Try walking a block down Michigan Ave. without seeing the city's colors in flag form. Atop building entrances, on police uniforms and on the bridge over the Chicago River, the Chicago flag is everywhere. Ever wonder what the Chicago flag represents? Well wonder no more! The top blue stripe represents the North Branch of the Chicago River and the bottom blue stripe represents the South Branch of the Chicago River. The top white band represents the North Side. The white center band represents the West Side and the bottom white band represents the South Side. The stars symbolize historical events, and the points of the stars represent important virtues or concepts. The 4 six-pointed red stars represent: (from left to right) Fort Dearborn, The Great Chicago Fire of 1871, The World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 and the Century of Progress Exposition of 1933-34. The flag was designed by Wallace Rice in 1917 after he won the design competition for the flag.