History of Chicago. From the earliest period to the present time, Part 13

Author: Andreas, Alfred Theodore
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago, A. T. Andreas
Number of Pages: 1340

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On the 4th, he says: "We started well to reach Port- age [Little Calumet] River, which was frozen half a foot thick." No entry is made in his journal from the 4th to the 12th. On the latter day he writes: " As they be-

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SECTION OF CAREY'S MAP. (ISO1.)

gan to draw [their boats on the ice] to get to the port- age, the Illinois having left, the Pottawatomies arrived [at the portage] with much difficulty." On the 4th, he says: " Being cabined near the portaget two leagues up the river we resolved to winter there, on my ina- bility to go further." This would take him up the Lit- tle Calumet to " Indian Ridge " and near Calumet Lake.

" Being cabined near the portage " "two leagnes up Portage River " and subsequently, after making a port- age and going up another river three leagues " without finding any portage," suggests that there were two port- ages, and therefore there must have been three distinct 'streams or bodies of water on which he traveled. Now it is assumed that these were the little Calumet, the Grand Calumet and the Desplaines rivers. From the Little to the Grand Calumet there was a portage of about one mile, and from the Grand Calumet, in those days, the route was up the Grand Calumet to Stony

* Major S. H. Inne, who visited Chicago in 1827, says: " The extent of the sand-hanks which are found on the eastern and wuthern shore by prevailing north and northwesteriy winds, will prevent any important works from being undertaken to improve the post at Chicago." (Long', Exprd. to st. l'eter s Kiver. "el t. p. Ing.)

+ From the Little to the Grand Calumet, as will he shown presently.

extensive high Plain

HISTORY OF EARLY CHICAGO

Brook near Blue Island, then up Stony Brook to the Desplaines River, and probably by way of the " Sag "- . an old river bed or slough that extends nearly the entire distance from Stony Brook to the Desplaines, and through which the " Feeder " now runs from the Calu- met to supply water for the Illinois and Michigan Canal.

On the old maps prior to 1800 there were repre- sented two distinct rivers, the Grand and Little Killi- mick. The Grand Calumet (Killimick) took its rise near La Porte, Indiana, and ran a westerly course to near Blue Island, about forty-two miles, then turning north and receiving from the west a tributary, Stony Brook, it turned nearly east and running nearly paral- lel with itself, in an opposite direction, and about three

UPPER

CANADA.

A MAP

- NORTH WESTERN

KENTUCKEY.

M- Vel-4

100

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MORSE'S MAP

miles distant 'see Morse's and Carey's maps' it entered Lake Michigan at its extreme southern limit-near what is now the northeastern corner of Lake County, Indiana. At the mouth of this stream " Indiana City was " founded." To-day the month is closed by drift- ing sands. The Grand Calumet has no outlet there ex- cept in high water. " Indiana City " is a thing of the past. There was also a Little Calumet. It was simply an outlet of Calumet and Wolf lakes, only about six miles in length. There is now but one Calumet river.

Among the okl papers of General Hull, who was stationed at Detroit from :805 to 1812, his grandson. the. late William H. Clark, of this city, found a manuscript map-a fac-simile of which is published here-on which the Grand and Little Killmick are delineated with a straight line uniting them, on which the word " Canal " is written : as though the two rivers were thus united. The writer has visited the two streams and the " canal." and carefully examined them. The former are wide, and as a rule, very shallow near the banks, and in them is an abundance of aquatie vegetation, such as pond lilies, lotuses, water-grass, mens, etc. On the banks of

what was the Grand Calumet there is a heavy growth of wood and underbrush on each side from where the "canal " leads from it. The " canal," which is about one mile in length, and much narrower than either stream, has abrupt banks, which appear to be washed wider each year. The boatman who took the writer over these streams was a hunter-and fisherman, and had fished in them for over twenty-five years. He said the "canal" was much wider than when he first saw it. On the bottom of it there is neither lily, lotus nor water-grass visible its entire length. There are no trees or underbrush on its banks. It has all the appearance of being a new stream. All the water from the Grand Calumet now runs through this new stream, or "canal," into the Little Calumet, reach- ing the latter stream not far from the outlet of Cal- 10 umet Lake. The slough, 30 or old river bed, of what was once the Grand Cal- umet, east of this "canal," in times of high water, has a current from the east that finds an outlet R through the " canal " and the Little Calumet. It is not definitely known who LARES made this "canal." It may have been cut through by the water, without the aid of man. It is the nearest point between these streams, LOWER CANADA and may have been the portage, over which loads of furs and boats- were dragged. This travel may have killed the grass, and thus in high water afforded it a chance to cut a channel in this road between the high IRGINIA. grass on either side. The banks of what was the Grand Calumet are ser- - 20 eral feet higher than 55 those of the Little Cal- umet where the "canal" enters it. About the year 1800 many canals were projected in the United States, and some were made. Possibly this was the one referred to by Major Long in his report to the Secretary of War, wherein he says : " The Chicago and Desplaines rivers are connected by means of a kind of canal, which has been made partly by the current of the water and partly by the French and Indians, for the purpose of getting their boats across in that direction in time of high water." There does not appear to have been any such canal made at the place named, and possibly it may re- fer to the " canal " under consideration. The influx of a body of water like the Grand Calumet into the Little Calumet and at nearly right angles with the stream, would be likely to produce changes in the latter stream. It has done so. The northern bank has been encroached upon, and the river-bed is moving north. Again, there is a much greater volume of water than before. The outlet from Wolf Lake was formerly into the Little C'alu'net. The bed is still visible. Gurdon S. Hubbard, now living, subsequently to 1819 was having boats loaded with furs and merchandise, drawn up by men along the lake shore, when they were surprised to find that a " new

EARLY CHICAGO AND THE NORTHWEST.

river" had been made to enter the lake, which was so deep and the sides so steep that they could not cross it. It was an outlet from Wolf Lake. Colonel Hubbard speaks positively on this point, and says he knows there was no river there before the spring of that year, as he had previously passed over the ground. Major Long, in speaking of his journey on the lake shore, from the " Big Calamick " to the " Little Calamick," says: "There are near to this place two streams, one of which, nanied Pine River, was opened last year (1822) ; the other was formed a short time before."*

The excess of the water in the Little Calumet had

Schoolcraft's map a portage is marked from Chicago to the Desplaines River, also from Milwaukee to Rock River. But up to the time of the cutting through of the canal, portages marked on the old maps are at the south or extreme southwest end of Lake Michigan. For evidence of this see Le Hontan's, Du Pratz's and other maps.

The last map of Marquette's suggests that the route was from the southwest corner of the lake, and from the fact that his line is continuous and nearly straight from the lake to the Illinois, it suggests that the " sag " was then filled with water and there was a nearly con-

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from 1805 to 1812

evidently stopped the outflow, and raised the volume in Wolf Lake. The "new rivers " were the results. By the abrupt turning of the Grand Calumet, about sixteen miles from its mouth, so that its waters reached the lake nearer than they would have done by following its original channel, the country above the outlet would, in a measure, become drained, and the mean height of the water in the stream be less than it was before such diver- sion was made. Stony Brook would be affected by the change, and the part of the stream that once filled the " sag " would be drained off. The length of the port- age would be increased. This was probably the case, for since about the time of the opening of the ' canal -probably about iSoo-the line of travel was changed, and the Chicago River was the route usually taken after that date. Major Long, Mr. Schoolcraft and others of their time went by way of the South Branch of the Chicago River ; and thence to the Desplaines. On

tinuous water communication after he had "dragged half an arpent " and entered the Grand Calumet. He represents several streams on the west side of the iake, but not one of them has the peculiar north and south "branches" of Chicago River. Nor does the one from the southwest end of the lake have any branches. Chicago River is peculiar in this respect. It does not exceed a mile in length. The two branches extend for miles north and south of the forks.

By referring to the first map of Marquette, it will he seen that the "portage " there marked is between two streams, both of which run in a southerly direction-the Desplaines and Stony Brook. In some old maps the. portage between the Desplaines and the forked Chicago River is from the North Branch of the latter .* It would seems from this that the portage was not from the Chi- cago River of a later date, for that was made from the

* >re Sir Robert D. Vagondy, Map of 1753 where the " B. & P. de Chicas- you" are shown at the southwest part of the lake ; Mitchell's of 1755 ; alvi Bellin's map of 1725.

* Major Long's Second Expedition, vol. I. p. 159.

R. Des KOR AP

I forrige i generally for

HISTORY OF EARLY CHICAGO.

South Branch. It would seem more probable that the forked river was the Calumet and Stony Brook. The portage from the South Branch of the Chicago River to the Desplaines, which some claim was the route of Mar- quette, would be between that stream, which runs north-

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SECTION OF LA HONTAN'S MAP OF 1703.

erly, and the Desplaines, which runs in an opposite direction.

We will now return again to Marquette where we left him in his little cabin on the Little Calumet, near the portage. During his sojourn he saw many Indians passing his cabin. On the 30th of December, 1674. he says : " Jacques arrived from the Illinois village, which is only six leagues from here, where they are starving."

The next entry is made January 16, 1675. It ap- pears that about eighteen leagues distant some French- men resided, and one of them was a surgeon, who vis- ited Marquette. "An Indian came and brought whortle- berries and bread, for the men to eat. Jacques return- ed with the surgeon, and went on to the village of the Illinois which was about five miles beyond that of the French." On the 24th he says : " Jacques returned with a bag of corn and other refreshments that the French had given him for ine. " 26th. Three Illinois brought

us from the head men [of the Illinois] two bags of corn, some dried meat, squashes and twelve beavers. * * * They had come twenty leagues." On the 20th of Feb- ruary he writes : "We had time to observe the tide which comes from the lake, rising and falling, although there appears no shelter on the lake. We saw the ice go against the wind." These phenomena must have been witnessed by him from his cabin, as he looked to the west upon the Calumet lake. It was not upon Lake Michigan, for he was two leagues up the river and con- fined by sickness. He had previously spoken of tides in other inland bodies of water he had visited He was of opinion that there were tides in the lakes.

"On the 28th [March] the ice broke and choked above us. "On the 29th the water was so high that we had barely time to uncabin in haste, put our things on trees and try to find a place to sleep on some hillock, the water gaining on us all night ; but having frozen a little, and having fallen a little. * we are going to embark to continue our route.'

"31. Having started yesterday we made three leagues on the river, going up [on Grand' Calumet and Stony Brook ] without finding any portage. We dragged for half an arpent " [from the Little to reach the Grand Calumet]. "Besides this outlet " [to Lake Michigan the route they went] "the river has another [outlet] by which we must descend." The Grand Calumet then emptied into the extreme south end of Lake Michigan. He probably did descend that stream, and finding him- self so far east he chose to go back to Michilimackinac by an unknown route along the east shore of the lake, rather than turn and go up the west side over a portion of the way he had previously traveled. Had this trip been by way of what is now known as Chicago River, it is not probable that he would have turned to the . south upon entering the lake and gone by an unknown route, when his point of destination was to the north, over a route, which he had previously traveled. And that he and Joliet took the same route from the Des- plaines by way of what is now called " the Sag " and down Stony Brook to the Calumet, is evidenced by the following entry in his journal : "Here [on the east side of the Desplaines] we began our portage, more than eighteen months ago." April 1, he is detained at the same place " by a strong south wind." "We hope to- morrow to reach the spot where the French are, fifteen leagues from here." The strong south wind would im- pede his progress down the Desplaines River.

"6 The high winds and cold prevent us from pro- ceeding. The two lakes [Michigan and Calumet] by which we have passed are full of bustards, geese, ducks cranes and other birds that we do not know. We have just met the surgeon, with an Indian, going up with a canoe load of furs; but the cold being too severe for men who have to drag their canoes through the water, he has just made a cache of his beaver, and goes -to the village [the French village where the surgeon lived] with us to-morrow." It was on this day, the 6th of April, 1675, that Marquette made his last entry in his journal. It is said by some writers, that he reached the town of Kaskaskia on the 8th of April, and after having several times assembled the chiefs of the nation, hie took possession of that land in the name of Jesus Christ, and gave the name of the Immaculate Concep- tion of the Blessed Virgin, to a mission, which he estab- lished there. Now this may all be true, but it looks as though a fancy sketch had found its way into sober his- tory. Marquette made no mention of any such event. If he had been able to collect the different tribes and found a mission, it is likely he would have made men- . tion of it. In just forty-two days after he made his last entry, he died, at the mouth of the Marquette River, upon the northwestern shore of Lake Michigan. In that time, he had traveled from the Desplaines River to the Illinois town, and from thence. back to and down to the mouth of the Grand Calumet, and thence up the east side of the lake to the place of his death-where Ludington now is-a journey of at least four hundred and forty-five miles. Allouez went to " Kachkachkia " in 1676, and again 1677. In his journal he says :*

"In spite of our efforts to hasten on, it was the 27th of April before I reached Kachkachkia, a large Illinois town. I immedi- ately entered the cabin where Father Marquette bad lodged, and the Sachems, with all the people, being assembled. I told them the object of my coming among them, namely, to preach to them the true, living and immortal God, and his son Jesus Christ. They listened very attentively to my whole discourse, and thanked me for the trouble I took for their salvation. I found this village much increased since last year. They lodged in three hundred and fifty-one cabins."

* Dice. Mme. Riv., p. 74.

EARLY CHICAGO AND THE NORTHWEST.

After giving a history of the people, their manner of living, etc., he proceeds :

"As I had but little time to remain, having come only to ac- quire the necessary information for the perfect establishment of a mission, I immediately set to work to give all the instruction I could to these eight different nations, to whom, by the help of God I made myself sufficiently understood. I would go to the cabin of the chief of a particular tribe that I wished to instruct, and there. preparing a little altar with my chapel ornaments, I exposed a cru- cifix, before which I explained the mysteries of our faith. I laid the foundation of this mission by the baptism of thirty-five children and a sick adult, who soon after died, with one of the infants, to go and take possession of heaven in the name of the whole nation. And we, too, to take possession of these tribes in the name of Jesus Christ, on the 3d of May, the Feast of the Holy Cross, erected in the midst of the town, a cross twenty-five feet high, chanting the Varilla Regis in the presence of a great number of Illinois of all tribes, of whom I can say in truth, that they did not take Jesus Christ crucified for a folly nor for a scandal ; on the con- trary, they witnessed the ceremony with great respect, and heard all I had to say on the mystery, with admiration. The children even went to kiss the cross, through admiration, and the old earnestly commended me to place it well so that it could not fail. The time of my departure having come, I took leave of all these tribes, and left them in a great desire of seeing me as soon as possible, which 1 more willingly induced them to expect,"

In a letter from Father Marest, dated November 9, . 1712, he says :

" This mission owes its establishment to the late Father Gra- vier. Father Marquette was, in truth, the first who discovered the Mississippi, about thirty-nine years ago ; but not being acquainted with the language of the country, he did not remain. Some time afterward he made a second journey, with the intention of fixing there his residence, and laboring for the conversion of these people ; but death, which arrested him on the way, left to another the care of accomplishing this enterprise. This was Father Allouez, who charged himself with it. He was acquainted with the language of the Oumiamis, which approaches very nearly to that of the Illinois, He, however, made hut a short sojourn, having the idea while there, that he should be able to accomplish more in a different country, where indeed, he ended his apostolic life. Thus Father Gravier is the one who should properly be regarded as the founder of the mission of the Illioois."*

Having now given the reason for believing that Father Marquette did not establish the mission of Kaskaskia, and that he did not preach to the Straat van Anian Miamis at the site of Chicago, additional evi- dence. will now be ad- vanced to show that the Chicagou and the Chica- gou River of the early writers, did not refer to the location of the Chica- DE RO go and its river of the present time. In the "WEST early part of the eight- eenth century, the Eng- lish as well as the French, were endeavoring to ac- quire a knowledge of the Northwest, and secure a foot-hold there. English DE ZUYD commissioners were ap- Linea Aquinoctinlis. pointed to examine, and report upon it. In their ZEE. report made to the King, September 8, 1721,t they allude to the communica- tion between Montreal and the Mississippi River, and say : "From this lake [Erie] to the Mississippi, they [the French] have

three different routes ; the shortest by water is up the river Miamis, or Ouamis [Maumee] on the south- west of Lake Erie," etc., by way of a portage on the Wabash, and thence down to the Mississippi River. " There are likewise two other passages much longer than this, which are particularly pricked down in Hen- nepin's map, and may be described in the following manner." These routes were round by way of the lakes. "From the Lake Huron they pass by the Strait Michillimackinack four leagues, being two in breadth and of a great depth, to the Lake Illinois [Mich- igan] ; thence one hundred and fifty leagues on the lake to Fort Miamis, situated on the mouth of the river Chigagoe [St. Joseph]. From hence came those In- dians of the same name, viz : Miamis, who are settled on the forementioned river that runs into Lake Erie [Mau- inee]. Up the river Chigagoe, they sail but three leagues to a passage of one-fourth of a league; then enter a small lake of about a mile, and have another very small portage, and again, another of two miles to the River Illinois (Kankakee', thence down the stream one hun- dred and thirty leagues to the Mississippi."* This evi- dently means the St. Joseph River, and not the Chicago of to-day. By referring to Hennepin's map, a reduced copy of which is here given, it will be seen that the portage (draag-plaats, was between the St. Joseph and Kankakee rivers of the present time. The other route alluded to by the commissioners, was by way of Green Bay, Fox and Wisconsin rivers, and down the latter stream to the Mississippi. By reference to Hennepin's map, it will be seen that the portage (draag-plaats) is marked between the Fox and Wisconsin rivers. Charle- voix also alludes to Chicago in 1721, as follows :

"Fifty years ago the Miamis were settled at the south end of Lake Michigan, in a place called Chicagou, from the name of a small river which runs into the lake, and which has its source not far from the river of the Illinois. They are divided into three vil- lages, one on the River St. Joseph ; the second on another river

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HENNEPIN'S . MAP OF 1683.

* Mr. A. Coquillard, the founder of South Bend, Ind., about the year 1837. at an expense of alenit $15.000, had a canal or mill race dux. from the head . waters of the Kankakee to the St. Joseph, a distance of ahout four miles, through the little lake alluded to in this description of that portage. What was then a series of ponds and swamps is now comparatively dry land, and under cultivation

* Disc. Miss. Riv., p. 20-30. . + N. V. Col., vol. 5. p. 621-2,

HISTORY OF EARLY CHICAGO.

which bears their name and runs into Lake Erie, and the third upon the Ouabache (Wabash), which runs into the Mississippi."*

That this place was at the south end of the lake, and not upon its west side, appears evident. The map of 1679-82, recently found in Paris and reproduced by Margry, has the name of Chikagoue applied to the Grand Calumet. That and the St. Joseph River were evidently known as Chicagou River at times, prior to 1700. The name was also frequently applied to the Desplaines River, which was also called Divine River. It is named Chicago on the maps of DeLisle, Paris, 1719; Sieur D' Anville in 1746; Jeffreys, London, 1761 ; Franquelin, Paris, 1684; Sieur De Rouge, Paris, 1755.

The map of the United States, published by W. Win- terbotham, in London, 1795, to accompany his history of the United States, suggests that the Chicago of that date was not on the river now known by that name. " Little Fort " on that map marks the site of Waukegan -so named from "Little Fort." South of Waukegan to the Little Calumet, only one stream enters the lake- the Chicago River. This is shown upon the map as a stream with no name, while Chicago, upon no stream, is still further south. The same is to be seen on Cary's map of a later date. Both these maps show the outline of the Grand Calumet very correctly.

Many references are made by early writers to Chica- go, but except those of recent date it is spoken of as be- ing the home of the Miamis, or at the south end of the lake, or at a place where there is a fort. Neither of these descriptions would apply to Chicago.

In a translation in Magazine of American History t LaSalle, in one of his letters, says: "I sent M. de 'Tonty in advance, with all my people, who, after march- ing three days along the lake and reaching the division line called Checagou," etc. * * * This was the 2d and 3d of January, 1682. .. " I -remained behind to direct-the making of some caches in the earth," etc. The Checa- gou here spoken of is, by some, thought to refer to the Chicago of to-day.

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History of Chicago. From the earliest period to the present time, Part 13

Author: Andreas, Alfred Theodore Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Chicago, A. T. Andreas Number of Pages: 1340

Author: Andreas, Alfred Theodore
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago, A. T. Andreas
Number of Pages: 1340