In 1889 the State created the Chicago Sanitary District to replace the Illinois-Michigan Canal which had become inadequate to carry the city's increasing sewage and commercial navigation needs, with the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, a much larger waterway.
The Chicago River had flowed into Lake Michigan.
The District reversed the flow of the river using a series of canal locks, and increasing the river's flow from Lake
Michigan, causing it to empty into the new Canal and eventually into the DesPlaines, Illinois, and Mississippi Rivers. In 1999, this system was named a 'Civil Engineering Monument of the Millennium' by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).
This effort ensured the safety of the water supply by keeping sewer discharges out of Lake Michigan from where the city drew its water. Of course the cities downstream from Chicago - Joliet, Peoria, St Louis and many others - were likely not so fond of this effort.
This effort ensured the safety of the water supply by keeping sewer discharges out of Lake Michigan from where the city drew its water. Of course the cities downstream from Chicago - Joliet, Peoria, St Louis and many others - were likely not so fond of this effort.
Chicago River - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_River
Jump to Reversing the flow – By the time Europeans arrived, the Chicago River flowed sluggishly into Lake Michigan from Chicago's flat plain. As Chicago ...
PHOTOS: What Re-Reversing The Chicago River's Flow Does To ...
chicagoist.com/2013/04/19/photos_what_re-reversing_the_chicag.php
Apr 19, 2013 – As we wrote yesterday, the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal was built over a century ago to reverse the flow of the Chicago River so that ...
Chicago River Flow Re-Reversed To Alleviate Flooding: Chicagoist
chicagoist.com/2013/04/18/chicago_river_flow_re-reversed_to_a.php
Apr 18, 2013 – The City of Chicago “re-reversed” the flow of water from the Chicago River into Lake Michigan to help alleviate flooding to homes and streets ...
The Chicago River Is Now Running in the Opposite Direction - Sara ...
www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2013/.../chicago-river.../5337/
Apr 18, 2013 – Heavy rain in Chicago has maxed out storm water storage facilities and caused officials to "re-reverse" the Chicago River into Lake Michigan, ...
Chicago history, Chicago Flashback: Reversing the Chicago River ...
Jan 1, 2012 – At the dawn of the 20th century, Chicago reversed its river with massive earthmovers — and a bit of Windy City chutzpah that made the razing of ...
How'd Engineers Reverse the Chicago River? | NBC Chicago
www.nbcchicago.com/.../Reversing_The_Flow_Of_The_Chicago_River...
It's one of the greatest engineering feats of all time, and the process to make it happen hasn't changed in more than 100 years.
January 2, 1900: Reversing the Chicago River - WBEZ
www.wbez.org/blog/.../january-2-1900-reversing-chicago-river-95172
Jan 2, 2012 – In case you hadn't noticed, the Chicago River flows backwards. It's been doing this for over a hundred years. Like any normal river, the Chicago ...News for reversing the chicago river
- Orbert Davis' jazz symphony looks at Chicago River's momentous reversal
Chicago Tribune - 5 days agoChicago trumpeter Orbert Davis and his Chicago Jazz Philharmonic will play the world premiere of The Chicago River, his jazz symphony, ...
Reversing The Chicago River Again? Asian Carp Threat Leaves ...
www.huffingtonpost.com/.../reversing-the-chicago-riv_n_930789.html
Aug 18, 2011 – CHICAGO — The city was in a predicament. By the late 1800s, the slow-moving Chicago River had become a cesspool of sewage and factory ...