The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of that runs through the city of
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, including its center (the
Chicago Loop
The Loop is Chicago's central business district and one of the city's 77 municipally recognized Community areas in Chicago, community areas. Located at the center of downtown Chicago on the shores of Lake Michigan, it is the second-largest busi ...
). The river is one of the reasons for Chicago's geographic importance: the related
Chicago Portage
The Chicago Portage was an ancient portage that connected the Great Lakes waterway system with the Mississippi River system. This connection provided comparatively easy access from the mouth of the St. Lawrence River on the Atlantic Ocean to the R ...
is a link between the
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...
and the
Mississippi River Basin
The Mississippi River is the primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, ...
, and ultimately the
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
.
In 1887, the
Illinois General Assembly
The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in ...
decided to reverse the flow of the Chicago River through
civil engineering
Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...
by taking water from
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...
and discharging it into the Mississippi River watershed, partly in response to concerns created by an
extreme weather
Extreme weather includes unexpected, unusual, severe weather, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Extreme events are based on a location's recorded weat ...
event in 1885 that threatened the city's water supply.
In 1889, the state created the Chicago Sanitary District (now the
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District) to replace the
Illinois and Michigan Canal
The Illinois and Michigan Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. In Illinois, it ran from the Chicago River in Bridgeport, Chicago to the Illinois River at LaSalle-Peru. The canal crossed the Chicago ...
with the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is a canal system that connects the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River. It reverses the direction of the Main Stem and the South Branch of the Chicago ...
, a much larger waterway, because the former had become inadequate to serve the city's increasing sewage and commercial navigation needs.
Completed by 1900,
the project reversed the flow of the main stem and South Branch and altered the flow of the North Branch by using a series of
canal lock
A lock is a device used for raising and lowering boats, ships and other watercraft between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a chamber in a permanently fixed position i ...
s and pumping stations, increasing the flow from Lake Michigan into the river, causing the river to empty into the new canal instead. In 1999, the system was named a "Civil Engineering Monument of the Millennium" by the
American Society of Civil Engineers
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a tax-exempt professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, it is the oldest national engineering soci ...
(ASCE).
The river is represented on the municipal
flag of Chicago
The flag of Chicago consists of two light blue horizontal bars, or stripes, on a field of white, each bar one-sixth the height of the full flag, and placed slightly less than one-sixth of the way from the top and bottom. Four bright red stars ...
by two horizontal blue stripes. Its three branches serve as the inspiration for the
municipal device,
a three-branched, Y-shaped symbol that is found on many buildings and other structures throughout Chicago.
Course
When it followed its natural course, the North and South Branches of the Chicago River converged at
Wolf Point to form the main stem, which jogged southward from the present course of the river to avoid a
baymouth bar
In Russian geomorphology, a peresyp (), also known as a bay-mouth bar is a narrow sandbar that rises above the water level (like a spit (landform), spit) and separates a liman (landform), liman or a lagoon from the sea. Unlike tombolo bars, a ''p ...
, entering Lake Michigan at about the level of present-day
Madison Street. Today, the main stem of the Chicago River flows west from Lake Michigan to Wolf Point, where it converges with the North Branch to flow into the South Branch, where the river's course goes south and west to empty in the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is a canal system that connects the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River. It reverses the direction of the Main Stem and the South Branch of the Chicago ...
.
North Branch

Early settlers named the North Branch of the Chicago River the Guarie River, or Gary's River, after a trader who may have settled the west bank of the river a short distance north of Wolf Point, at what is now Fulton Street. The source of the North Branch is in the northern suburbs of Chicago where its three principal tributaries converge. The
Skokie River
The Skokie River (or East Fork of the North Branch of the Chicago River) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 19, 2011 river that flows through the northern suburbs ...
—or East Fork—rises from a flat plain, historically a wetland, near
Park City, Illinois
Park City is a small city located in the Warren and Waukegan townships of Lake County, Illinois, United States, on the northern end of the Chicago metropolitan area. Per the 2020 census, the population was 7,885.
History
Park City was incorpor ...
to the west of the city of
Waukegan
Waukegan ( ) is a city in Lake County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located north of Chicago, Waukegan is a satellite city within the greater Chicago metropolitan area.
As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its popu ...
. It then flows southward, paralleling the shore of Lake Michigan, through wetlands, the Greenbelt Forest Preserve and a number of golf courses towards
Highland Park, Illinois
Highland Park is a suburban city located in southeastern Lake County, Illinois, United States, about north of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 30,176. Highland Park is one of several municipali ...
. South of Highland Park the river passes the
Chicago Botanic Gardens and through an area of former marshlands known as the
Skokie Lagoons. From the west, the Middle Fork arises near
Rondout, Illinois
Rondout is an unincorporated community in Lake County, Illinois, United States that first formed around a railroad junction. The area is located within Libertyville Township. As Rondout is an unincorporated community rather than a municipality, ...
and flows southwards through
Lake Forest and Highland Park. The two tributaries of the North and Middle forks merge at the Watersmeet Woods forest preserve west of
Wilmette. From there the North Branch flows south towards
Morton Grove. The third tributary, the West Fork, rises near
Mettawa and flows south through Lincolnshire,
Bannockburn
Bannockburn () is an area immediately south of the centre of Stirling in Scotland. It is part of the City of Stirling. It is named after the Bannock Burn, a stream running through the town before flowing into the River Forth.
History
Land in ...
,
Deerfield, and
Northbrook, meeting the North Branch at Morton Grove. In recognition of the work of
Ralph Frese in promoting canoeing on and conservation of Chicago-area rivers, the
forest preserve district of
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is the List of counties in Illinois, most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the List of the most populous counties in the United States, second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, C ...
has designated a section of the East Fork and North Branch from Willow Road in Northfield to Dempster Street in Morton Grove the ''Ralph Frese River Trail''.
The North Branch continues southwards through
Niles, entering the city of Chicago near the intersection of
Milwaukee Avenue and
Devon Avenue, from where it serves as the boundary of the
Forest Glen community area with
Norwood Park and
Jefferson Park. This stretch of the river meanders in a south-easterly direction, passing through golf courses and
forest preserves until it reaches
Foster Avenue
Foster Avenue (5200 N) is a major east-west street on the North Side of Chicago as well as the northwestern suburbs. Foster Avenue serves as the boundary line for the Chicago community areas of Edgewater to the north and Uptown to the sout ...
, where it passes through residential neighborhoods on the north side of the
Albany Park community area. In River Park the river meets the
North Shore Channel
The North Shore Channel is a 7.7 mile long canal built between 1907 and 1910 to increase the flow of North Branch of the Chicago River so that it would empty into the South Branch and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. Its water is generally tak ...
, a canal with water pumped from Lake Michigan (at
Wilmette), built between 1907 and 1910 to increase the flow of the North Branch and help flush it into the South Branch and from there to the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is a canal system that connects the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River. It reverses the direction of the Main Stem and the South Branch of the Chicago ...
.
From the confluence with the North Shore Channel south to Belmont Avenue the North Branch flows through mostly residential neighborhoods in a man-made channel that was dug to straighten and deepen the river, helping it to carry the additional flow from the North Shore Channel.

South of Belmont the North Branch is lined with a mixture of residential developments, retail parks, and industry until it reaches the industrial area known as the Clybourn Corridor. Here it passes beneath the
Cortland Street Drawbridge, which was the first 'Chicago-style'
fixed-trunnion bascule bridge built in the United States, and is designated as an
ASCE
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a tax-exempt professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, it is the oldest national engineering soci ...
Civil Engineering Landmark and a
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation by the Mayor and the City Council of Chicago for historic sites in Chicago, Illinois. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artist ...
.
At
North Avenue, south of the
North Avenue Bridge, the North Branch divides, the original course of the river makes a curve along the west side of
Goose Island, whilst the North Branch Canal cuts off the bend, forming the island. The North Branch Canal—or Ogden's Canal—was completed in 1857, and was originally wide and deep allowing craft navigating the river to avoid the bend. The 1902
Cherry Avenue Bridge, just south of North Avenue, was constructed to carry the
Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway onto Goose Island. It is a rare example of an asymmetric bob-tail swing bridge and was designated a Chicago Landmark in 2007. From Goose Island the North Branch continues to flow south east to
Wolf Point where it joins the main stem.
Main stem
Since the late 19th century, the source of the main stem of the Chicago River is Lake Michigan. Water enters the river through sluice gates at the Chicago River Controlling Works with a small additional flow provided for the passage of boats between the river and Lake Michigan through the
Chicago Harbor Lock. The surface level of the river is maintained at below the Chicago City Datum ( above mean sea level) except for when there is excessive storm run-off into the river or when the level of the lake is more than 2 feet below the Chicago City Datum. Acoustic velocity meters at the
Columbus Drive Bridge and the T. J. O'Brien lock on the
Calumet River
The Calumet River is a system of industrialized rivers and canals in the region between the south side of Chicago, Illinois, and the city of Gary, Indiana. Historically, the Little Calumet River and the Grand Calumet River were one, the former ...
monitor the diversion of water from Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River basin, which is limited to an average of per second per year over the 40-year period from 1980 to 2020.
The main stem flows west from the controlling works at Lake Michigan; passing beneath the
Outer Drive,
Columbus Drive,
Michigan Avenue,
Wabash Avenue,
State Street,
Dearborn Street
Dearborn Street is a street in Chicago, where it is 36 W in its grid system. It is the street immediately to the west of State Street, the city's north–south baseline.
Dearborn Street appears on James Thompson's 1830 plat of Chicago, and w ...
,
Clark Street,
La Salle Street,
Wells Street, and
Franklin Street bridges ''en route'' to its confluence with the North Branch at Wolf Point. At McClurg Court it passes the
Centennial Fountain, which was built in 1989 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD), originally known as the Sanitary District of Chicago, is a special-purpose district chartered to operate in Cook County, Illinois, since 1889. Although its name may imply oth ...
; between May and October the fountain sends an arc of water over the river for ten minutes every hour. On the north bank of the river, near the Chicago Landmark Michigan Avenue Bridge, is
Pioneer Court
Pioneer Court is a plaza located near the junction of the Chicago River and Michigan Avenue (Chicago), Upper Michigan Avenue in Chicago's Magnificent Mile. It is believed to be the site of Jean Baptiste Point du Sable's original residence and tr ...
, which marks the site of the homestead of
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable (; also spelled Point de Sable, Point au Sable, Point Sable, Pointe DuSable, or Pointe du Sable; before 1750 – August 28, 1818) is regarded as the first permanent non-Native settler of what would later become Chic ...
who is recognized as the founder of Chicago. On the south bank of the river is the site of
Fort Dearborn
Fort Dearborn was a United States fort, first built in 1803 beside the Chicago River, in what is now Chicago, Illinois. It was constructed by U.S. troops under Captain John Whistler and named in honor of Henry Dearborn, then United States Secre ...
, an army fort, first established in 1803. Notable buildings surrounding this area include the
NBC Tower
__NOTOC__
The NBC Tower is an office tower on the Near North Side of Chicago, Illinois located at 454 North Columbus Drive (455 North Cityfront Plaza is also used as a vanity address) in downtown Chicago's Magnificent Mile area. Completed in 19 ...
, the
Tribune Tower
The Tribune Tower is a , 36-floor Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic skyscraper located at 435 Magnificent Mile, North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The early 1920s international design competition for the tower bec ...
, and the
Wrigley Building
The Wrigley Building is a skyscraper located at 400–410 North Michigan Avenue on Chicago's Near North Side. It is located on the Magnificent Mile directly across Michigan Avenue from the Tribune Tower. Its two towers in an elaborate style ...
. The river turns slightly to the south west between Michigan Avenue and State Street, passing the
Trump International Hotel and Tower,
35 East Wacker
35 East Wacker, also known as the Jewelers' Building, is a 40-story historic building in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois, United States, located at the intersection of Wabash Avenue and East Wacker Drive, facing the Chicago Riv ...
, and
330 North Wabash. Turning west again the river passes
Marina City
Marina City is a mixed-use residential-commercial building complex in Chicago, Illinois, United States, North America, designed by architect Bertrand Goldberg. The multi-building complex on State Street on the north bank of the Chicago River o ...
, the
Reid, Murdoch & Co. Building, and
Merchandise Mart
The Merchandise Mart (or the Merch Mart, or the Mart) is a commercial building in Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, Illinois. When it opened in 1930, it was the List of largest buildings, world's largest building, with of floor space. The Art De ...
, and
333 Wacker Drive
333 West Wacker Drive is a highrise office building in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its reflection of the curves of the Chicago River on its river-facing side.
Design features
On the side facing the Chicago River, the building features a curv ...
.
Since the early 2000s, the south shore of the main stem has been developed as the
Chicago Riverwalk. It provides a linear, lushly landscaped park intended to offer a peaceful escape from the busy Loop and a tourist attraction. Different sections are named Market, Civic, Arcade, and Confluence. The plans reflect ideas first proposed by the
Burnham Plan
The Burnham Plan is a popular name for the 1909 ''Plan of Chicago'' coauthored by Daniel Burnham and Edward H. Bennett and published in 1909. It recommended an integrated series of projects including new and widened streets, parks, new railro ...
as early as 1909.
South Branch

Before reversal, the South Branch generally arose with joining forks in the marshy area called
Mud Lake to flow to where it met the North Branch at Wolf Point forming the main branch. Since reversal, the source of the South Branch of the Chicago River is the confluence of the North Branch and main stem at Wolf Point. From here the river flows south passing the Lake Street, Randolph Street, Washington Street, Madison Street, Monroe Street, Adams Street, Jackson Boulevard, Van Buren Street, Ida B. Wells Drive, and Harrison Street bridges before leaving the downtown Loop community area. Notable buildings that line this stretch of the river include the
Boeing
The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...
Company World Headquarters, the
Civic Opera House
The Civic Opera House, also called Lyric Opera House is an opera house located at 20 North Wacker Drive in Chicago. The Civic's main performance space, named for Ardis Krainik, seats 3,276, making it the second-largest opera auditorium in North ...
, the
Chicago Mercantile Exchange
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) (often called "the Chicago Merc", or "the Merc") is an American derivatives marketplace based in Chicago and located at 20 S. Wacker Drive. The CME was founded in 1898 as the Chicago Butter and Egg Board ...
,
Union Station
A union station, union terminal, joint station, or joint-use station is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway company, railway companies, allowing passengers to connect conveniently bet ...
and
Willis Tower
The Willis Tower, formerly and still commonly referred to as the Sears Tower, is a 110-storey, story, skyscraper in the Chicago Loop, Loop community area of Chicago in Illinois, United States. Designed by architect Bruce Graham and engineer F ...
.

The river continues southwards past railroad yards and the
St. Charles Air Line Bridge. Between Polk and 18th Streets the river originally made a meander to the east; between 1927 and 1929 the river was straightened and moved west at this point to make room for a railroad terminal. The river turns to the southwest at
Ping Tom Memorial Park where it passes under the Chicago Landmark
Canal Street railroad bridge. The river turns westward where it is crossed by the
Dan Ryan Expressway
The Dan Ryan Expressway, often called "the Dan Ryan" by locals, is an expressway in Chicago that runs from the Jane Byrne Interchange with Interstate 290 (I-290) near downtown Chicago through the South Side of the city. It is designated ...
; these immovable bridges have a clearance of requiring large ships that pass underneath to have folding masts.

At Ashland Avenue the river widens to form the U.S. Turning Basin, the west bank of which was the starting point of the
Illinois and Michigan Canal
The Illinois and Michigan Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. In Illinois, it ran from the Chicago River in Bridgeport, Chicago to the Illinois River at LaSalle-Peru. The canal crossed the Chicago ...
. Prior to 1983, this was where the US Coast Guard Rules of the Road, Great Lakes ended & Rules of the Road, Western Rivers began. Since 1983, there is just a single Inland Navigational Rules passed by Congressional Act in 1980 (Public Law 96-591). At the basin the river is joined by a tributary, the South Fork of the river, which is commonly given the nickname
Bubbly Creek. A bridge used to span the South Fork at this point that was too low for boats to pass meaning that their cargo needed to be unloaded at the bridge, and the neighborhood at its east end became known as
Bridgeport
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...
.
The river continues to the south west, entering the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is a canal system that connects the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River. It reverses the direction of the Main Stem and the South Branch of the Chicago ...
at Damen Avenue. The original West Fork of the South Branch, which before 1935 led towards Mud Lake and the
Chicago Portage
The Chicago Portage was an ancient portage that connected the Great Lakes waterway system with the Mississippi River system. This connection provided comparatively easy access from the mouth of the St. Lawrence River on the Atlantic Ocean to the R ...
, has been filled in; a triangular intrusion into the north bank at Damen Avenue marks the place where it diverged from the course of the canal.
From there, the water flows down the canal through the southwest side of Chicago and southwestern suburbs and, in time, into the
Des Plaines River
The Des Plaines River ( ) is a river that flows southward for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 13, 2011 through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois''American H ...
between
Crest Hill on the west and
Lockport on the east, just north of the border between Crest Hill and
Joliet, Illinois
Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County, Illinois, Will County. It had a population of ...
, eventually reaching the
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
.
Discharge
The
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...
monitors water flow at a number of sites in the Chicago River system. Discharge from the North Branch is measured at Grand Avenue; between 2004 and 2010 this averaged per second. During the winter months as much as 75% of the flow in the North Branch is due to the discharge of treated sewage from the North Side Water Reclamation Plant into the North Shore Channel. Flow on the main stem is measured at Columbus Drive; between 2000 and 2006 this averaged per second.
History
Name
The name Chicago derives from the 17th century French rendering of ''shikaakwa'' or ''chicagou'', the Native American name for
ramps (''Allium tricoccum''), a type of edible wild
leek
A leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek (synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of Leaf sheath, leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a "s ...
, which grew abundantly near the river. The river, and its region, were named after the plant.
Exploration and settlement
Louis Jolliet
Louis Jolliet (; September 21, 1645after May 1700) was a French-Canadian explorer known for his discoveries in North America. In 1673, Jolliet and Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit Catholic priest and missionary, were the first non-Natives to explore ...
and
Jacques Marquette
Jacques Marquette, Society of Jesus, S.J. (; June 1, 1637 – May 18, 1675), sometimes known as Père Marquette or James Marquette, was a French Society of Jesus, Jesuit missionary who founded Michigan's first European settlement, Sault Ste. M ...
, though probably not the first Europeans to visit the area, are the first recorded to have visited the Chicago River in 1673, when they wrote of their discovery of the geographically vital
Chicago Portage
The Chicago Portage was an ancient portage that connected the Great Lakes waterway system with the Mississippi River system. This connection provided comparatively easy access from the mouth of the St. Lawrence River on the Atlantic Ocean to the R ...
. Marquette returned in 1674, camped a few days near the mouth of the river, then moved on to the Chicago River–
Des Plaines River
The Des Plaines River ( ) is a river that flows southward for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 13, 2011 through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois''American H ...
portage
Portage or portaging ( CA: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a '' ...
, where he stayed through the winter of 1674–75. The
Fox Wars
The Fox Wars were two conflicts between the French and the Meskwaki (historically Fox) people who lived in the Great Lakes region (particularly near Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit) from 1712 to 1733.In their book ''The Fox Wars'', Edmunds and Pe ...
effectively closed the Chicago area to Europeans in the first part of the 18th century. The first non-native to re-settle in the area may have been a trader named Guillory, who might have had a trading post near
Wolf Point on the Chicago River in around 1778. In 1823 a government expedition used the name Gary River (phonetic spelling of ''Guillory'') to refer to the north branch of the Chicago River.
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable (; also spelled Point de Sable, Point au Sable, Point Sable, Pointe DuSable, or Pointe du Sable; before 1750 – August 28, 1818) is regarded as the first permanent non-Native settler of what would later become Chic ...
is widely regarded as the first permanent resident of Chicago; he built a farm on the northern bank at the mouth of the river in the 1780s. The earliest known record of Pointe du Sable living in Chicago is the diary of Hugh Heward, who made a journey through Illinois in the spring of 1790.
Antoine Ouilmette
Antoine Ouilmette (c. 1760–1841) was a fur trader and early resident of what is now Chicago, Illinois. He was of French Canadian and possibly Native American ancestry. He also married into a Métis family. The village of Wilmette, Illinois (phone ...
claimed to have arrived in Chicago shortly after this in July 1790.
In 1795, in a then minor part of the
Treaty of Greenville
The Treaty of Greenville, also known to Americans as the Treaty with the Wyandots, etc., but formally titled ''A treaty of peace between the United States of America, and the tribes of Indians called the Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanees, Ottawas ...
,
an Indian confederation granted treaty rights to the United States, to a parcel of land at the mouth of the "Chicago River". This was followed by the
1816 Treaty of St. Louis and
Treaty of Chicago, which ceded additional land in the Chicago area. In 1803,
Fort Dearborn
Fort Dearborn was a United States fort, first built in 1803 beside the Chicago River, in what is now Chicago, Illinois. It was constructed by U.S. troops under Captain John Whistler and named in honor of Henry Dearborn, then United States Secre ...
was constructed on the bank opposite what had been Point du Sable's settlement, on the site of the present-day
Michigan Avenue Bridge
The DuSable Bridge (formerly the Michigan Avenue Bridge) is a bascule bridge that carries Michigan Avenue (Chicago), Michigan Avenue across the main stem of the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, Illinois, United States. The bridge was proposed ...
. Lieutenant James Strode Swearingen, who led the troops from Detroit to Chicago to establish the fort, described the river as being about wide and upwards of deep at the place where the fort was intended to be built; the riverbanks were high on the south side and on the north.
Early modifications
Between 1816 and 1828 soldiers from Fort Dearborn cut channels through the sandbar at the mouth of the river to allow
yawl
A yawl is a type of boat. The term has several meanings. It can apply to the rig (or sailplan), to the hull type or to the use which the vessel is put.
As a rig, a yawl is a two masted, fore and aft rigged sailing vessel with the mizzen mast ...
s to bring supplies to the fort.
These channels rapidly clogged with sand requiring a new one to be cut. On March 2, 1833, $25,000 was appropriated by Congress for harbor works, and work began in June of that year under the supervision of Major George Bender, the commandant at Fort Dearborn.
In January 1834
James Allen took over the supervision of this work and, aided by a February storm that breached the sandbar, on July 12, 1834, the harbor works had progressed enough to allow a schooner, the ''Illinois'' to sail up the river to Wolf Point and dock at the wharf of Newberry & Dole.
The initial entrance through the sandbar was wide and deep, flanked by piers long on the south wall and long to the north. Allen's work continued, and by October 1837 the still unfinished piers had been extended to respectively.
In 1848, the
Illinois and Michigan canal
The Illinois and Michigan Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. In Illinois, it ran from the Chicago River in Bridgeport, Chicago to the Illinois River at LaSalle-Peru. The canal crossed the Chicago ...
linked the river to the
Illinois River
The Illinois River () is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River at approximately in length. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, the river has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins with the confluence of the Des Plaines ...
and the
Mississippi Valley
The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
across the
Chicago Portage
The Chicago Portage was an ancient portage that connected the Great Lakes waterway system with the Mississippi River system. This connection provided comparatively easy access from the mouth of the St. Lawrence River on the Atlantic Ocean to the R ...
. This canal was the farthest west, and the last, of a series of United States' government land grant canals. It provided the only water route from New York City to New Orleans through the country's interior and Chicago.
Reversing the flow

During the last ice age, the area that became Chicago was covered by
Lake Chicago
Lake Chicago was a prehistoric proglacial lake that is the ancestor of what is now known as Lake Michigan, one of North America's five Great Lakes. Formed about 13,000 years ago and fed by retreating glaciers, it drained southwest through the ...
, which drained south into the Mississippi Valley. As the ice and water retreated, a short ridge was exposed about a mile inland, which generally separated the Great Lakes' watershed from the Mississippi Valley, except in times of heavy precipitation or when winter ice flows prevented drainage. By the time Europeans arrived, the Chicago River flowed sluggishly into
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...
from Chicago's flat plain. As Chicago grew, this allowed sewage and other pollution into the clean-water source for the city, contributing to several
public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...
problems, like
typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often th ...
. Starting in 1848, much of the Chicago River's flow was also diverted across the
Chicago Portage
The Chicago Portage was an ancient portage that connected the Great Lakes waterway system with the Mississippi River system. This connection provided comparatively easy access from the mouth of the St. Lawrence River on the Atlantic Ocean to the R ...
into the
Illinois and Michigan Canal
The Illinois and Michigan Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. In Illinois, it ran from the Chicago River in Bridgeport, Chicago to the Illinois River at LaSalle-Peru. The canal crossed the Chicago ...
. In 1871, the old canal was deepened in an attempt to completely reverse the river's flow but the reversal of the river only lasted one season.
Finally, in 1900, the
Sanitary District of Chicago, then headed by
William Boldenweck, completely reversed the flow of the main stem and South Branch of the river using a series of
canal lock
A lock is a device used for raising and lowering boats, ships and other watercraft between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a chamber in a permanently fixed position i ...
s, increasing the river's flow from Lake Michigan and causing it to empty into the newly completed
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, historically known as the Chicago Drainage Canal, is a canal system that connects the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River. It reverses the direction of the Main Stem and the South Branch of the Chicago ...
. In 1999, this system was named a "Civil Engineering Monument of the Millennium" by the
American Society of Civil Engineers
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a tax-exempt professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, it is the oldest national engineering soci ...
(ASCE).
Before this time, the Chicago River was known by many local residents of Chicago as "the stinking river" because of the massive amounts of
sewage
Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewerage, sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged fro ...
and pollution that poured into the river from Chicago's booming industrial economy.
Through the 1980s, the river was quite dirty and often filled with
garbage
Garbage, trash (American English), rubbish (British English), or refuse is waste material that is discarded by humans, usually due to a perceived lack of utility. The term generally does not encompass bodily waste products, purely liquid or ...
; however, during the 1990s, it underwent extensive cleaning as part of an effort at beautification by Chicago Mayor
Richard M. Daley
Richard Michael Daley (born April 24, 1942) is an American politician who served as the 54th mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1989 to 2011. Daley was elected mayor in 1989 and was reelected five times until declining to run for a seventh ter ...
.
In 2005, researchers at the
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...
created a three-dimensional, hydrodynamic simulation of the Chicago River, which suggested that
density current
Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek language, Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' (or ''d'') ...
s are the cause of an observed bi-directional wintertime flow in the river. At the surface, the river flows east to west, away from Lake Michigan, as expected. But deep below, near the riverbed, water seasonally travels west to east, toward the lake.
All outflows from the
Great Lakes Basin
The Great Lakes Basin consists of the Great Lakes and the surrounding lands of the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada, whose di ...
are regulated by the joint U.S.-Canadian
Great Lakes Commission
The Great Lakes Commission is a United States interstate agency established in 1955 through the Great Lakes Basin Compact, in order to "promote the orderly, integrated and comprehensive development, use and conservation of the water resources of ...
, and the outflow through the Chicago River is set under a
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
decision (1967, modified 1980 and 1997). The city of Chicago is allowed to remove of water from the Great Lakes system; about half of this, , is sent down the Chicago River, while the rest is used for drinking water. In late 2005, the Chicago-based
Alliance for the Great Lakes proposed re-separating the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins to address such ecological concerns as the spread of
invasive species
An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...
.
''Eastland'' disaster
In 1915, the
SS ''Eastland'', an excursion steam-liner preparing to leave the dock on the south gangway between the Clark Street Bridge and La Salle Street Bridge, rolled over, killing 844 of the more than 2500 passengers. The roll of the heavy steamer happened very quickly and many of the passengers were trapped under water by the hull, moving objects such as pianos and tables, the crush of bodies, or their heavy clothes. Frantic if disordered rescue attempts ensued and early versions of what may be regarded as trauma teams formed to address the shocking scene. The site on the south bank at the southeast end of the
La Salle Street Bridge is now the location of a memorial first dedicated in 1989.
Chicago flood of 1992
On April 13, 1992, a flood occurred when a pile driven into the riverbed caused stress fractures in the wall of a long-abandoned tunnel of the
Chicago Tunnel Company
The Chicago Tunnel Company was the builder and operator of a narrow-gauge railway freight tunnel network under downtown Chicago, Illinois. This was regulated by the Interstate Commerce Commission as an interurban even though it operated entire ...
near the
Kinzie Street railroad bridge
The Chicago and North Western Railway's Kinzie Street railroad bridge (also known as the Carroll Avenue bridge or the Chicago and North Western Railroad Bridge) is a single leaf bascule bridge across the north branch of the Chicago River in dow ...
(not to be confused with the
Kinzie Street Bridge
The Kinzie Street Bridge is a single-leaf bascule bridge built in 1909 that spans the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, Illinois, United States.
Incidents
In April 1992, rehabilitation work on the pilings for the bridge damaged a freight tun ...
). Most of the network of underground freight railway, which encompasses much of downtown, was eventually flooded, along with the lower levels of buildings it once serviced and attached underground shops and pedestrian ways.
Bridges

The first bridge across the Chicago River was constructed over the North Branch near the present day Kinzie Street in 1832. A second bridge, over the South Branch near Randolph Street, was added in 1833. The first
moveable bridge
A moveable bridge, or movable bridge, is a bridge that moves to allow passage for boats or barges. In American English, the term is synonymous with , and the latter is the common term, but drawbridge can be limited to the narrower, historical ...
was constructed across the main stem at Dearborn Street in 1834. Today, the Chicago River has 38 movable bridges spanning it, down from a peak of 52 bridges. These bridges are of several different types, including
trunnion bascule,
Scherzer rolling lift,
swing bridge
A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that can be rotated horizontally around a vertical axis. It has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravit ...
s, and
vertical-lift bridge
A vertical-lift bridge or just lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck.
The vertical lift offers several benefits over other movable bridges such as the bascule and swi ...
s.
Pollution
The Chicago River has been highly affected by industrial and residential development with attendant changes to the quality of the water and riverbanks. Several species of freshwater fish are known to inhabit the river, including
largemouth and
smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass (''Micropterus dolomieu'') is a species of freshwater fish in the Centrarchidae, sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of the order (biology), order Centrarchiformes. It is the type species of its genus ''Micropterus ...
,
rock bass
The rock bass (''Ambloplites rupestris''), also known as the rock perch, goggle-eye, red eye, and black perch, is a freshwater fish native to east-central North America. This red-eyed fish is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (bi ...
,
crappie
Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers.
Etymology
The genus name ''Pomoxi ...
,
bluegill
The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or, in Texas, "copper nose", is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and wetlands ea ...
,
catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...
, and
carp
The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...
. The river also has a large population of
crayfish
Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...
. The South Fork of the Main (South) Branch, which was the primary sewer for the
Union Stock Yards
The Union Stock Yard & Transit Co., or The Yards, was the meatpacking district in Chicago for more than a century, starting in 1865. The district was formed by a group of railroad companies that acquired marshland and turned it into a vast cen ...
and the
meat packing industry
The meat-packing industry (also spelled meatpacking industry or meat packing industry) handles the Slaughter (livestock), slaughtering, Food processing, processing, packaging, and distribution of meat from animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep and o ...
, was once so polluted that it became known as
Bubbly Creek. Illinois has issued advisories regarding eating fish from the river due to
PCB
PCB may refer to:
Science and technology
* Polychlorinated biphenyl, an organic chlorine compound, now recognized as an environmental toxin and classified as a persistent organic pollutant
* Printed circuit board, a board used in electronics
* P ...
and
mercury contamination, including a "do not eat" advisory for carp more than 12 inches long. There are concerns that
silver carp
The silver carp or silverfin (''Hypophthalmichthys molitrix'') is a species of freshwater cyprinid fish, a variety of Asian carp native to China and eastern Siberia, from the Amur River drainage in the north to the Xi Jiang River drainage in ...
and
bighead carp
The bighead carp (''Hypophthalmichthys nobilis'') is a species of cyprinid freshwater fish native to East Asia, and is one of several Asian carps introduced into North America. It is one of the most intensively exploited fishes in fish farming ...
, now
invasive species
An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...
in the Mississippi and
Illinois River
The Illinois River () is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River at approximately in length. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, the river has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins with the confluence of the Des Plaines ...
s, may reach the
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...
through the Chicago River. A program on the north channel next to
Goose Island seeks to increase wildlife habitat through the use of floating plant islands. The program is managed by the non-profit conservation group
Urban Rivers with assistance from the
Shedd Aquarium
Shedd Aquarium (formally the John G. Shedd Aquarium) is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago. Opened on May 30, 1930, the aquarium holds about 32,000 animals. It is the third largest aquarium in the Western Hemisphere (after the Georgia Aquariu ...
. As with some other bodies of water in the United States, the river has seen several successful efforts to improve water quality since the passage of the
Clean Water Act of 1972
The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the primary respo ...
and related state and local efforts.
Recreation
Despite the pollution concerns, the Chicago River remains a very popular target for freshwater recreational fishing. In 2006, the Chicago Park District started the annual "Mayor Daley's Chicago River Fishing Festival", which has increased in popularity with each year. Between 2013 and 2016, the
Chicago Park District
The Chicago Park District is one of the oldest and the largest park districts in the United States. As of 2016, there are over 600 parks included in the Chicago Park District as well as 27 beaches, 10 boat docking harbors, two botanic conservat ...
opened four boat houses, two on the south branch and two on the north, for river recreation.
Mouth of the river
File:Fort Dearborn 1831 Kinzie.jpg, Near the mouth of the Chicago River 1831
File:Chicago1838.jpg, Near the mouth of the Chicago River 1838
File:Chicago River 1893.png, Near the mouth of the Chicago River 1893
File:Mouth of Chicago River from Rush Street bridge, by Carbutt, John, 1832-1905.jpg, Near the mouth of the Chicago River c. late 1800s
File:Mouth_of_the_Chicago_River,_Chicago,_Ill._(front).tif, Mouth of the river in the early 20th century
Dyeing the river
Saint Patrick's Day
As part of a more than sixty-year-old Chicago tradition, the Chicago River is dyed green in observance of
Saint Patrick's Day
Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick (), is a religious and cultural holiday held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patron saint of Ireland.
Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Chris ...
.
Cook County
Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40 percent of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. ...
, of which Chicago is the county seat, had the highest number of
Irish Americans
Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry.
Irish immigration to the United States
From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...
by county in the United States according to 2023 census data. The event occurs on the Saturday on or before March 17, when large celebratory crowds gather to watch the dyeing of the river, and then many go downtown to attend one of the holiday parades.
The tradition of dyeing the river green arose by accident in 1961 when plumbers were using
fluorescein
Fluorescein is an organic compound and dye based on the xanthene tricyclic structural motif, formally belonging to Triarylmethane dye, triarylmethine dyes family. It is available as a dark orange/red powder slightly soluble in water and alcohol. ...
dye to trace sources of illegal pollution discharge into the river. The plumbers then proposed a continuing celebration to the administration of the city's Irish-American mayor
Richard J. Daley
Richard Joseph Daley (May 15, 1902 – December 20, 1976) was an American politician who served as the mayor of Chicago from 1955, and the chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party from 1953, until his death. He has been called "the last of ...
.
The dyeing of the river is still sponsored by the local plumbers union. Environmental concerns disallowed the use of fluorescein for this purpose, since it was shown to be harmful to the river.
The parade committee switched to a mix involving forty pounds of powdered vegetable dye. Though the committee closely guards the exact formula, they insist that it has been tested and verified safe for the environment.
The environmental organization Friends of the Chicago River disapproves of dyeing the river, saying the practice "gives the impression that it is lifeless and artificial", adding "Friends doesn't think that the river should be treated as a decoration for an annual holiday, but treasured and cared for as the wonderful natural and recreational resource it deserves to be".
In 2009 First Lady
Michelle Obama
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama ( Robinson; born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United Stat ...
, a Chicago native, inspired by the river tradition, requested that the water in the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
fountains be dyed green to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day.
Chicago Cubs rally
For the
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
rally and parade for their
2016 World Series
The 2016 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2016 season. The 112th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Chicago Cubs and the American Leag ...
Championship celebrations, the river was dyed Cubs blue. Friends of the Chicago River executive director Margaret Frisbie told the ''
Chicago Sun-Times
The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...
'', "We do not want to set a precedent where, every time we want to celebrate, we dye the river a different color and potentially hurt the aquatic life that lives in it. While it may seem festive, it's actually potentially harming a natural resource."
File:ChicagoStPatricksDay2015.jpg, The river dyed green for Saint Patrick's Day
Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick (), is a religious and cultural holiday held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patron saint of Ireland.
Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Chris ...
in 2015
File:Blue River (30665514442).jpg, The river dyed blue during the Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
' 2016 World Series
The 2016 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2016 season. The 112th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Chicago Cubs and the American Leag ...
celebration
McCormick Bridgehouse and Chicago River Museum
The southwest bridgehouse of the
DuSable Bridge
The DuSable Bridge (formerly the Michigan Avenue Bridge) is a bascule bridge that carries Michigan Avenue across the main stem of the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, Illinois, United States. The bridge was proposed in the early 20th century ...
(Michigan Avenue) serves as a museum on the river, its history, its challenges, and its renaissance. The McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum is a 5-floor, 1,613-square-foot (149.9 m
2) museum that opened on June 10, 2006; it is named for
Robert R. McCormick, formerly owner of the ''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'' and president of the Chicago Sanitary District. The Robert R. McCormick Foundation was the major donor that helped meet the $950,000 cost to open the museum. It is run by the Friends of the Chicago River, a non-profit environmental organization. Visitors are also allowed to access the bridge's gear room; during the spring and fall bridge lifting visitors can see the bridge gears in operation as the leaves are raised and lowered. Due to its small size and tight access stairway only 79 people are allowed inside the museum at any one time. In October 2019,
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
cultural arts writer Steve Johnson profiled the museum, calling its gear room where the DuSable Bridge mechanics can be viewed "a little chamber of heaven for infrastructure nerds".
Monitoring the impact of extreme weather events on the Chicago District
The
US Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...
have monitored the development of harbors and channels for navigation on the Great Lakes since the early 1800s. They began monitoring hydrological conditions and lake levels in 1918. A December 26, 2012 report revealed that Chicago District navigation infrastructure did receive significant impacts from
Hurricane Sandy
Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...
with some areas experiencing severe shoaling. Chicago Shoreline Project mitigated the damage of the storm event.
The same report noted that the low Great Lakes levels were drought-induced, caused by a very hot, dry summer and a lack of a solid snowpack in the winter of 2012. At the time of the report, December 2012, Lake Michigan-Huron was 28 inches below its long-term average which is near the record lows of 1964.
Historic lake levels for Lake Michigan reported from 1918 to 1998 show that the low levels observed in 1964 were the lowest since 1918.
In 2012 Lake Michigan-Huron's seasonal rise was about 4 inches where it usually is about 12 inches. Normally the Chicago River water level is two feet lower than the lake and therefore does not flow into the lake. If the lake level falls too low threatening to reverse the river flow, the
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD), originally known as the Sanitary District of Chicago, is a special-purpose district chartered to operate in Cook County, Illinois, since 1889. Although its name may imply oth ...
would be forced to close locks between the lake and river for longer periods of time, limiting navigation. A reversal flow of the Chicago River into Lake Michigan would have a negative impact on navigation and on the quality of Lake Michigan water, which is the source of drinking water.
Chicago's raw sewage in the river is normally carried upstream toward the Mississippi River which flows south towards the Gulf of Mexico. On January 9, 2013, Chicago meteorologists announced 320 days without at least one inch of snowfall. Water levels in the lake started to level off with the river and sewage was visible at the cusp of the locks, just a few hundred feet from Lake Michigan. David St. Pierre, executive director of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago warned the low lake levels were nearing a point of real concern. However, the District maintains that it is not possible for the river to reverse due to low lake level alone.
Measurements taken by the US Army Corps in January 2013 revealed that both Lake Michigan and Lake Huron had reached their "lowest ebb since record keeping began in 1918, and the lakes could set additional records over the next few months, the corps said. The lakes were 74 centimetres (29 inches) below their long-term average and had declined 43 centimetres (17 inches) since January 2012".
See also
*
Bubbly Creek
*
Centennial Fountain
*
Ogden Slip
*
Illinois Department of Transportation
The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is a state agency in charge of state-maintained public roadways of the U.S. state of Illinois. In addition, IDOT provides funding for rail, public transit and airport projects and administers f ...
*
*
List of rivers of Illinois
This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of Illinois:
By drainage basin
Gulf of Mexico
*Mississippi River
**Ohio River
*** Lusk Creek
*** Saline River
***Wabash River
**** Little Wabash River
***** Skillet Fork
***** Elm River
***** Fox River
* ...
Notes and references
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Chicago River Live Camera Stream; Provided by TravelTV, hosted atop the Fox News Chicago BureauFriends of the Chicago River*
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago*
; News
*
{{Authority control
Central Chicago
Geography of Chicago
Rivers of Illinois
Rivers of Cook County, Illinois
Tributaries of the Mississippi River