Chicago Fourth of July Navy Pier Fireworks 2011 | Photo gallery

Skies above neighborhoods all over Chicago were ablaze with July Fourth fireworks last night—from sources of varying legitimacy. Authorities have been encouraging attendance of the big show downtown for some years now as an alternative to blowing up your own stuff near the house— the idea is that mass fireworks shows such as the sole official Chicago show at Navy Pier will ultimately reduce accidents and emergencies around the city. And yet last night's Navy Pier show wasn't the only show in town—anyone with a roofdeck can tell you that the multitude of semi-official and improvised neighborhood firework's shows still extends for miles in any direction.