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General meeting at Soldier Field on June 21, 1926

The 28th International Eucharistic Congress was held in Chicago from June 20–24, 1926. The event, held by the Catholic Church, was a eucharistic congress, which is a large-scale gathering of Catholics that focuses on the Eucharist and other items of Catholic faith. The event was organized by Cardinal George Mundelein, the Archbishop of Chicago, and was the first International Eucharistic Congress held in the United States and the second in North America. The event attracted a large number of people to the city, with most sources claiming at least several hundred thousand attendees. Large events were held throughout the area, at locations including Soldier Field, Holy Name Cathedral, and the Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary. Some sources claim that approximately 1 million people attended the closing day mass held at the seminary in nearby Mundelein.

The congress is considered a major event in the history of Chicago, with some historians comparing the size of the event to the city's world's fairs. It is also regarded as an important occurrence in the history of the Catholic Church in the United States, as it demonstrated the size and power of the church in the historically Protestant United States. (Read more...)