Follow the rise of President Barack Obama through the eyes of Tribune staff photographers, starting with his years as an Illinois senator and finishing with his final presidential speech in Chicago.
U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama speaks to reporters in his downtown Chicago Hyatt hotel suite with his family March 16, 2004.
(Milbert O. Brown / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, huddle Aug. 4, 2004, at the Matteson Holiday Inn.
(Candice C. Cusic / Chicago Tribune)
Aiden Stenczo, 7 months, has “Baby 4 Obama” on his forehead and is held by Senate candidate Barack Obama on Aug. 1, 2004, in at a rally in DeKalb following the Democratic National Convention.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
Barack Obama campaigns for a U.S. Senate seat on Aug. 9, 2004.
(Heather Stone / Chicago Tribune)
On Chicago’s Far North Side, U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama dances with Sameer Khan as a passing float plays music Aug. 15, 2004, at the India Independence Day Parade at Devon and Western avenues.
(Chuck Berman / Chicago Tribune)
Senate candidate Barack Obama and wife Michelle march with hundreds of supporters Aug. 14, 2004, in the Bud Billiken Parade on Chicago’s South Side.
(Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama addresses the Democratic National Convention on July 27, 2004, at the Fleet Center in Boston, Mass.
(Bill Hogan / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama attends a worship service Oct. 31, 2004, at St. Sabina Church in Chicago. Obama made stops at six South Side churches to encourage voter turnout.
(E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama waits in the kitchen Nov. 1, 2004, at Hotel Allegro in downtown Chicago prior to his last campaign rally on a final swing through Illinois, with seven stops across the state.
(E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Democrat Barack Obama wins Illinois’ open U.S. Senate seat and waves to his supporters Nov. 2, 2004, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Chicago.
(Nuccio DiNuzzo / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Sen.-elect Barack Obama, with daughter Malia, wife Michelle and daughter Sasha, wave to supporters at his victory celebration Nov. 2, 2004, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Chicago.
(E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
The day after winning a U.S. Senate seat, Barack Obama walks down Adams Street on Nov. 3, 2004, to greet commuters at Union Station in Chicago.
(Scott Strazzante / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama recites a ceremonial oath of office with fellow members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Jan. 4, 2005, at the Library of Congress in Washington.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Sen. Barrack Obama walks from the U.S. Capitol with wife Michelle and daughters Malia, 6, left, and Sasha, 3, to a reception Jan. 4, 2005, after he was sworn in.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Sen. Barrack Obama kisses his daughter Sasha, 3, with his other daughter Malia, 6, while he eats lunch Jan. 4, 2005, in his temporary Capitol Hill office.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
In his temporary Capitol Hill office, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama listens Jan. 5, 2005, during a meeting with members of his staff. The temporary office, with no windows, is in the basement of a Senate building.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama listens to Condoleezza Rice during her nomination hearing Jan. 18, 2005, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to become secretary of state for the second Bush administration.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama talks with some of his Democratic colleagues from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during a break in the second day of confirmation hearings for Condoleezza Rice on Jan. 19, 2005. From left are U.S. Sens. John Kerry, Bill Nelson, Joe Biden and Christopher Dodd.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama listens during a meeting Nov. 17, 2005, in his Senate office.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
U.S. Senator Barack Obama looks at a statue of James Madison with his daughter Malia, 6, on Jan. 4, 2005, at the Library of Congress. Obama was attending a reception in his honor.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama heads up the Senate steps to vote on a bill Nov. 17, 2005, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama meets with Kenyan Paul Tergat, who won the New York City Marathon, on Nov. 16, 2005, in Sen. Dick Durbin’s office at the U.S. Capitol.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama goes through his notes Nov. 15, 2005, in his office on Capitol Hill.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
Sen. Barack Obama eats a slice of pizza during lunch with his interns Nov. 17, 2005, on Capitol Hill.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Grabbing for his BlackBerry, Sen. Barack Obama listens to Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., on the Senate subway Nov. 18, 2005, as they head to the U.S. Capitol. Obama is ranked 99th in seniority in the U.S. Senate; Salazar is 100th.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama takes a call Nov. 18, 2005, as he walks through O’Hare International Airport in Chicago following a flight home from Washington.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama peers out of Nelson Mandela’s prison cell Aug. 20, 2006, on Robben Island off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., addresses the crowd during a visit Aug. 27, 2006, to Kibera, the largest slum in Africa, within the city of Nairobi, Kenya.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama dances with one of the grandmothers who care for orphaned grandchildren Aug. 26, 2006, at a CARE project that he partially funded in Siaya, Kenya.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama waves after his speech announcing his candidacy for U.S. president Feb. 10, 2007, at the Old State Capitol in Springfield.
(Pete Souza / Chicago Tribune)
Supporters of Sen. Barack Obama, a Democratic presidential candidate, make the letter “O” with their arms before his speech Jan. 3, 2008, at Hy-Vee Hall in Des Moines, Iowa.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
Sen. Barack Obama, Democratic candidate for president, visits students and voters Jan. 4, 2008, at Concord High School in Concord, N.H.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Ray Noland displays his Obama street poster Feb. 4, 2008, at a gallery on Madison Street in Chicago.
(Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
In Chicago, Barack Obama hugs his wife, Michelle, as they celebrate his Super Tuesday victory Feb. 5, 2008. He would win the presidency in November.
(Nuccio DiNuzzo / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama meets with the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board on March 14, 2008.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
Independent vendors sell Obama stickers March 28, 2008, before an event at the Soldiers and Sailors Military Museum and Memorial in Pittsburgh.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama announces Aug. 23, 2008, in Springfield that Sen. Joe Biden will be his running mate.
(Nuccio DiNuzzo / Chicago Tribune)
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama pats Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley on the back June 6, 2008, during an unscheduled stop at the Chicago 2016 Olympic Rally at Daley Plaza.
(Heather Stone / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama walks with daughter Sasha Oct. 31, 2008, along Greenwod Avenue in Hyde Park to a Halloween party.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
Sen. Barack Obama has a presidential campaign rally Oct. 8, 2008, at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama poses March 14, 2008, at the Chicago Tribune.
(Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama gives his wife, Michelle, a kiss at a rally April 22, 2008, at Roberts Stadium in Evansville, Ind., on primary night in Pennsylvania.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Sen. Barack Obama is greeted by wife Michelle and children Sasha and Malia on Nov. 1, 2008, on arrival to Pueblo, Colo.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
Sen. Barack Obama speaks at a presidential campaign rally Nov. 1, 2008, in Pueblo, Colo.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Motorcade security for Sen. Barack Obama heads to downtown Chicago on Nov. 4, 2008, after he visited a West Side gym where he played basketball with friends.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Obama supporters line the fence near the stage during the election night rally for President-elect Barack Obama on Nov. 4, 2008, in Chicago’s Grant Park.
(Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)
President-elect Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, and daughters, Sasha and Malia, greet supporters after Obama gave his acceptance speech Nov. 4, 2008, in Grant Park.
(Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
President-elect Barack Obama hugs Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs director Tammy Duckworth after laying a wreath Nov. 11, 2008, at the Bronze Soldier Memorial near the Field Museum and Soldier Field in Chicago.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
A man walks past one of Chicago’s many Barack Obama murals Nov. 12, 2008, in the 2500 block of North Halsted Street.
(Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
Oretha Carpenter, from left, the Rev. Thelma Johnson and Thelma Smith, all of Cleveland, react after President Barack Obama is sworn in as the 44th president Jan. 20, 2009, in Washington.
(Scott Strazzante / Chicago Tribune)
Michelle Obama holds a Bible as Barack Obama takes the oath of office to become president Jan 20, 2009, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington.
(Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
People gather for the opening inaugural celebration Jan. 18, 2009, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington.
(Scott Strazzante / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama wave to the crowd Jan. 20, 2009, during the inaugural parade in Washington.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama dances with first lady Michelle Obama on Jan. 20, 2009, at The Neighborhood Ball in Washington.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama walks through the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 27, 2009, after meeting separately with the House Republican Conference and Senate Republican Conference.
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President Barack Obama gives pens away as he signs the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act bill with a large Congressional delegation witnessing it Jan. 29, 2009, in the East Room of the White House.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama addresses a joint session of Congress on Feb. 24, 2009, on Capitol Hill in Washington.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama enters to deliver remarks Feb. 27, 2009, to Marines at Camp Lejeune Field House in Jacksonville, N.C.
(Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama talks on the phone with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan on Nov. 2, 2009, in the Oval Office inside the White House.
(Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
President Barack Obama prepares to leave the Oval Office on Nov. 2, 2009.
(Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama meets with a small crowd of supporters Aug. 11, 2012, after arriving at O’Hare International Airport.
(Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
Former President Bill Clinton speaks in support of President Barack Obama on Sept. 5, 2012, at the Democratic National Convention at Time Warner Cable Arena in downtown Charlotte, N.C.
(Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune)
People react to the victory speech of President Barack Obama, cast onto a giant screen, during a CNN election watch rally Nov. 6, 2012, outside the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago.
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President Barack Obama celebrates his re-election early Nov. 7, 2012, with first lady Michelle Obama and daughters Sasha and Malia at McCormick Place in Chicago.
(Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Michelle and Malia Obama share a moment Jan. 21, 2013, during the ceremonial inauguration of President Barack Obama at the U.S. Capitol.
(Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama and wife Michelle lead the inaugural parade Jan. 21, 2013, through the streets of Washington.
(Chris Walker/Chicago Tribune)
People wave to Michelle and Barack Obama in their limousine during the inauguration parade Jan. 21, 2013, along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington.
(Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
President Barack Obama waves from his car Jan. 21, 2013, during the inauguration parade along Pennsylvania Avenue.
(Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama delivers remarks Feb. 13, 2013, at Hyde Park Academy in Chicago.
(Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama walks with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, left, his first White House chief of staff, after landing May 29, 2013, in Chicago for two Democratic fundraising events.
(Anthony Souffle/Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama speaks on behalf of Gov. Pat Quinn on Oct. 19, 2014, at Chicago State University to help Quinn’s re-election campaign.
(Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)Advertisement
President Barack Obama casts his early vote Oct. 20, 2014, at the Dr. Martin Luther King Community Center.
(Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama arrives Nov. 25, 2014, at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.
(Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)
After a speech at the Illinois State Capitol, President Barack Obama stops Feb. 10, 2016, at the Hoogland Center for the Arts in Springfield. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, left, introduced the president.
(Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
President Barack Obama walks off Marine One before boarding Air Force One on Oct. 9, 2016, at O’Hare International Airport.
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President Barack Obama boards Air Force One before taking off Oct. 9, 2016, at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.
(Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)