Chicago, Illinois

Chicago, Illinois

History

Early days

During the mid 1700s, the Chicago area was inhabited primarily by Potawatomis, who took the place of the Miami and Sauk and Fox who had controlled the area previously. The name Chicago originates from "Checagou" (Chick-Ah-Goo-Ah) or "Checaguar," which in the Potawatomi language means "Garlic not onions" or "skunk." The area was so named because of the smell of rotting marshland wild leeks (ramps) that once covered it.

Related Topics:
1700s - Potawatomi - Miami - Sauk and Fox - Garlic - Skunk - Wild leek

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The first non-native settler in Chicago was Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, a Haitian of African descent, who settled on the Chicago River in the 1770s and married a local Potawatomi woman. In 1795, following the War of the Wabash Confederacy, the area of Chicago was ceded by the Native Americans in the Treaty of Greenville to the United States for a military post. In 1803, Fort Dearborn was built and remained in use until 1837, except between 1812 and 1816 when it was destroyed in the Fort Dearborn Massacre during the War of 1812.

Related Topics:
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable - Haiti - African - Chicago River - 1770s - 1795 - War of the Wabash Confederacy - Native American - Treaty of Greenville - 1803 - Fort Dearborn - 1837 - 1812 - 1816 - Fort Dearborn Massacre - War of 1812

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Incorporation and growth

On August 12, 1833, the Town of Chicago was incorporated with a population of 350. The first boundaries of the new town were Kinzie, Desplaines, Madison, and State streets, which included an area of about three-eighths of a square mile (1 km²).

Related Topics:
August 12 - 1833

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Within seven years the primarily French and Native American town had a population of over 4,000. Chicago was granted a city charter by Illinois on March 4, 1837. The opening of the Illinois and Michigan Canal in 1848 allowed shipping from the Great Lakes through Chicago to the Mississippi River and so to the Gulf of Mexico. The first rail line to Chicago, the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, was completed the same year. These projects foreshadowed Chicago's eventual development into the transportation hub of the United States. Chicago also became home to national retailers, including Montgomery Ward and Sears, Roebuck and Company, offering catalog shopping using these connections.

Related Topics:
French - Native American - March 4 - 1837 - Illinois and Michigan Canal - 1848 - Great Lakes - Mississippi River - Gulf of Mexico - Galena & Chicago Union Railroad - Montgomery Ward - Sears, Roebuck and Company

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The geography of Chicago presented early citizens with many problems. The prairie bog nature of the area provided a fertile ground for disease-carrying insects. Early on, Chicago's population and commerce growth was stymied by lack of good transportation infrastructure. During spring, Chicago was so muddy from the high water that horses would be stuck past their legs in the street. One dirt road was so hazardous that it became known as the "Slough of Despond". Comical signs proclaiming "Fastest route to China" or "No Bottom Here" were placed to warn people of the mud.

Related Topics:
Geography - Spring - Slough of Despond - China

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To address these transportation problems, the Board of Cook County Commissioners decided to improve two country roads toward the west and southwest. The first road crossed the "dismal Nine-mile swamp" and Des Plaines River to the west, then continued southwest to Walker's Grove, now known as Plainfield. The second road headed south, but its exact route is disputed.

Related Topics:
Cook County - Plainfield

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Early Chicago was also plagued by sewer and water problems. Many people described it as the filthiest city in America. To solve the problems, the city initiated the creation of a massive sewer system. In the first phase sewage pipes were laid across the city above-ground, with gravity moving the waste. The second phase, executed in 1855, involved raising the level of the city by four to seven feet (one to two meters); this was done by jacking up buildings and placing fill in order to raise streets above the swamp and the newly-laid sewer pipes.

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By 1857 Chicago was the largest city in what was then known as the Northwest. In a period of 20 years, Chicago's population grew from 4,000 to over 90,000 people.

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The 1860 Republican National Convention in Chicago nominated home-state candidate Abraham Lincoln for U.S. president.

Related Topics:
1860 Republican National Convention - Abraham Lincoln

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At the election of April 23, 1875 the voters of Chicago chose to operate under the Illinois Cities and Villages Act of 1872. Chicago still operates under this act in lieu of a charter. The

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Cities and Villages Act has been revised several times since, and may be found in Chapter 65 of the Illinois Compiled Statutes.

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Great Chicago Fire

In 1871, most of the city burned in the Great Chicago Fire. The damage was immense: 300 people died, 18,000 buildings were destroyed and nearly 100,000 of the city's 300,000 residents were left homeless. One of the factors contributing to the fire's spread was the abundance of wood: the streets, sidewalks and many buildings were built of wood. Because of the extensive damage, city planners had a clean slate and the chance to fix problems of the past. In the following years, Chicago architecture would become influential throughout the world. The world's first skyscraper, the Home Insurance Building, was constructed in 1885 using novel steelskeleton construction.

Related Topics:
1871 - Great Chicago Fire - Chicago architecture - Skyscraper - Home Insurance Building - 1885 - Steel

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20th century

Lake Michigan, the primary source of fresh water for the city, became highly polluted from the rapidly growing industries in and around Chicago. Needing a new source of clean water, the city built tunnels below Lake Michigan to new water inlet stations ("cribs") two miles (three km) offshore. However, spring rains and the Chicago River still carried pollution to the inlet stations. In 1900 the water-supply problem was solved by an engineering project that switched the flow of the Chicago river away from the lake and into the new Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.

Related Topics:
Lake Michigan - Chicago River - 1900 - Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

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During Prohibition, Chicago was arguably the organized-crime capital of the nation. Infamous crime lords, including Frank Nitti, George "Bugs" Moran, and Al Capone, thrived in Chicago, virtually unchallenged by the city's police force. The most famous incident attributed to Chicago's crime syndicates is the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, in which Capone's men gunned down seven unarmed rivals in a warehouse on the North Side. The only group that was ever able to threaten Capone and his fellow gangsters was The Untouchables, a special taskforce led by U.S. Treasury Officer Elliot Ness. Although organized crime in Chicago is no longer as active as it was during Prohibition, the Chicago chapter of the Italian-American Mafia, known as "The Outfit," is still considered to be very powerful.

Related Topics:
Prohibition - Frank Nitti - George "Bugs" Moran - Al Capone - St. Valentine's Day Massacre - The Untouchables - Elliot Ness

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In 1955, the head of the city's Democratic political machine, Richard J. Daley, was elected mayor. His twenty-one year tenure until his death is arguably one of the most powerful and impacting mayoralties in the city's history. Under Daley's rule, Chicago's Loop had a building boom that continues to this day while many residential neighborhoods became impoverished, some extremely so. O'Hare International Airport, many skyscrapers including the Sears Tower, and most of Chicago's expressway system were built or expanded during his tenure.

Related Topics:
1955 - Democratic - Political machine - Richard J. Daley - Chicago's Loop - O'Hare International Airport - Sears Tower

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The late 20th Century was also witness to a massive construction of new skyscrapers, especially in the downtown area. The newest of these buildings is the Trump Tower Chicago, which is being built by billionaire Donald Trump on the site of the Chicago Sun-Times building on the Chicago River. A recent plan by developer Fordham Co. to build a 2,000 foot tall tower (with spire) along Lake Shore Drive has been proposed but will have to clear major political and financial hurdles before it is approved.

Related Topics:
Trump Tower Chicago - Donald Trump - Chicago Sun-Times

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Related topics

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• Organized crime in Chicago