An Inland Voyage to the Sea

Taking a start at the yacht harbor in Wilmette, a beautiful little haven created by the Sanitary District at the mouth of the North Shore channel on Lake Michigan, a moderate-sized launch might begin a voyage to the sea in two different directions. It would be possible to pass through the chain of lakes and the St. Lawrence river and thus reach the Atlantic Ocean, or by taking the direction in which the North Shore channel flows the voyagers might pass through the various waterways of the Sanitary district, eventually entering the Gulf of Mexico by way of the Mississippi river. Let us choose the channal roots and proceed by easy stages along the interior waterways on th voyage to the gulf.
First we will enter the lock at the barrier of the North Shore channel, situated almost directly underneath the Sheridan road viaduct, and after being raised by this means about two feet up to the level of the channel we will find ourselves on the bosom of the "raging canal," down which we sail on the gently flowing current to its end home eight miles away. The scenery her is not very attractive, confined as it is by a succession of spoil banks of clay which the brick makers are slowly turning into useful building material. At Devon avenue, we cross the city limits of Evanston and enter Chicago territory, for it must be remembered that the limits at this point are not the same east and west line of Howard street (formerly Howard avenue) as they are at Clark street, but are placed at a line a mile and a half furter south along Devon avenue.
Having reached a point almost a mile form the end of the channel we find ourselves opposite the site of the ancient Indian villages where have been found such extensife remains of the flint-using savages in the shape of stone axes, hoes, and arrowheads, which in th flight of time show no trace of decay. As sthe philosopher Threau, writing of arrowheads, says, they "will never cease to wing their way through the ages to eternity." The old village of Bowmanville, now engulfed in the vast area of the grat city, near where the channel passes, possesses many interesting specimens of these remarkable objects, and has furnished quantities of them for the numerous collections in the various museums throughout the country.
We reach the end of the channel at Lawrence avenue, having passed under twenty-five bridges and viaducts which span it throughout its course, and enter the waters of the North Branch of the Chicago River which is here much increased in volume by the addition of the flood from the channel. From the east the flow from the Lawrence avenue conduit adds a heavy volume of clean Lake Michigan water tothe stream. On the west bank the naturally small stream of the North Branch is seen trickling over a dam built by the engineers with suitable gates to control its flood in seasons of freshets; otherwise a dangerous mass of water would rush into the river below and cause damage along its banks. At Fullerton avenue another conduit brings its contribution of lake water, so that with these various additions to its volume the North Branch becomes quite a majestic river. We have now a considerable stretch of river navigation ahead of us before reaching the main drainage canal.
At North Avenue we are confronted with a divided stream, for here we are at the head of Goose Island. Over towards teh west are the great rolling mills with their numerous smoke stacks and sounds of clanging iron. Goose Island was formed by the cutting of a canal in the early days of Chicago's commerce through from Chicago Avenue to the point we have arrived at, a distance of about a mile. The natural course of the North Branch here bends some distance to the west and this canal furnishes a short cut and a convenient waterway for vessels to its upper waters, besides providing a considerable increase of dockage space. The island is redolent of the agreeable odors of the vast piles of lumber piled up on its surface and the less agreeable ones of the tanneries located here. Coal yards and lofty grain elevators also occupy considerable space along the water fronts on both sides of the island. We are constantly passing under bridges for street traffic and railroad tracks, but after every imaginable design, turning bridges, "jack knife" bridges, float bridges and one further along on the journey we shall see the roadway of which is lifted two hundred feet in the air: for the Chicago river throughout its several branches is a navigable stream and every bridge must be so designed as to permit of the passage of vessels with masts or funnels.
We have chosen the canal on the east side of Goose Island for our passageway rather than the longer course by the natural channel towards the west. This brings us to Chicago avenue at the southern end of the island, and we now pursue our journey along the original course of the North Branch. More bridges are met with, but our craft being a small one readily passes under them, except at one or two railroad bridges which are hung very low over the surface of the water, and we must wait until the brige tenders open them for us to pass.
In the early times before Fort Dearborn was erected at the mouth of the Chicago river there was an Indian trader by the name of Guarie who had built a log cabin on the west bank of the stream near where Fulton street now abuts upon it. Here he carried on a trade with the Indian tribes of the vicinity, and for that reason the stream was known as the "River Guarie," a name frequently met with in the old histories. The name "Chicago River" originally only applied to the main branch, the South Branch, as it is known today, being called in the early times the "Portage river."
Now having arrived at the place where the north and south branches of the river meet and form the main branch, we may pause a few moments and look about us; for here is indeed a locality abounding in historical interest. On the west bank, now covered with dingy freight houses and extensive railroad yards, there was to be seen in the early times a communiyt engaged in all the activities of life, and second only in importance to the settlement springing up under the walls of Forth Dearborn, from which it was separated by a stretch of open country on the south and by timbered lands on the north sides of the river. This spot was known as Wolf point and from this place could be seen in the distance, a short mile away, the white-washed stockade enclosing Fort Dearborn, with its two square block houses placed at its diagonally opposite corners, in the portholes of which could be seen the muzzles of several cannon; and over all barracks, stockade and blockhouses--there floated the stars and stripes from a lofty mast rising form the parade ground within the fort enclosure.
At Wolf point situated on the west side of the river about where Lake street bridge stands there were two taverns, one of them called the Wolf tavern, the other Green Tree taverrn. The latter stood on Milwaukeke avenue near Lake street up to quite recentl years. IN fact, many of the old buildings now standing in that vicinity date from the time whan Chicago was just emerging from its condition as a frontier settlement, for it should be remembered that the great fire of 1871, which consumed so many old relics of that kind, did not reach the neighborhood of which we are speaking. Whoever is disposed to indulge in reveries concerning that distant period of history can still find many of the old, ramshackle and patched up buildings standing on their original sites, and he can here reconstruct in his imagination the scenes and personages of the "long ago." Between wolf point and Lake street on the south side of the river there was maintained a ferry for the use of passengers, and this in time was supersided by a float bridge. On the north side of the river nearly opposite Wolf tavern, stood the Miller tavern, constructed of logs and boards. On the south side of hte river, at the present corner of Lake and Market streets, stood the "Sauganash," a famous stopping place for travelers in those days. It was on the site of hte Sauganash that the Wigwam was built where Abraham Lincoln was nominated. The site is now occupied by the building of a large jobbing house, and the ground beneath it is owned by the Garrett Biblical Institute of Evanston. Wolves were numerous in all the region roundabout, and the swinging sign in front of Wolf tavern bore a rude picture of a wolf dashing forth upon his prey, as one might say, a pictorial representation of the common expression, "the wolf at the door." General Winfield Scott, when he came here at the head of a small army of United States troops at the time of the Black Hawk war, made his headquarters at Wolf tavern. We have lingered so long at this place that we shall be obliged to defer the description of the remainder of our imaginary voyage to another article.