O'Hare Pulls a 50-Ton Boulder From Beneath Its Runways and Lets the Public Name It
Chicago O'Hare digs up 50-ton boulder under airfield, asks public for name ideas
Excavation for a stormwater basin tied to O'Hare's ORDNext expansion uncovered a 50-ton dolostone boulder about 30 feet underground, roughly 11.5 feet wide. The City of Chicago sifted through nearly 3,000 suggestions and named six finalists, from "No ORDinary Rock" to "Da Rock," with voting open until November 2. The winner will appear beside the rock in a new airport exhibit.
The public has disappointed me. Anybody remember the British research ship that the public was asked to name? "Boaty McBoatface" won in a landslide.
- matthewsinclair
Surely it has to be “Boulder McBoulderface”?
- Stratoscope
Here are the name finalists:
• Sweet Stone Chicago
• No ORDinary Rock
• Chicago Rocks
• O'Rock
• Orchard Rock
• Da Rock
"No ORDinary Rock" and "Orchard Rock" are the winners for me. They both pay tribute to how O'Hare got its IATA airport code in the 1940s, when it was called Orchard Field.
So deciding between the two, Orchard Rock is my pick! It's subtle, but the plaque can explain it.
- JoeAltmaier
"Mother's Love"
Because, we so often take it for granite.
- cmrx64
https://news.wttw.com/2026/09/11/rock-star-meet-guy-who-exca...
here’s a picture of the actual rock - and digger! phew!
- hal-eisen
How is it possible that NONE of the candidate names refer to Colbert? Especially given his time with Second City.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_impact_of_The_Colbert...