CHICAGO, Ill., the second city in the Union, is in Cook County, and lies on the south western shore of Lake Michigan. The dome of the courthouse is in north latitude 41° 53' 2" and longitude 87° 36' 47" W. The city has a shore line on the lake of 24.5 miles and ex tends 10 miles inland. The city area, 198.997 square miles, covers a great part of the alluvial plain formed by the Chicago and Calumet rivers. The Chicago River is formed by the junction of two small rivers, the north and south branches, thus dividing the city into three portions commonly known as the North, South and West sides, respectively. Calumet River is the outlet by which the shallow sheet of water known as Calumet Lake empties into Lake Michigan. The land on which the city is built is level and lies quite low, the elevation above Lake Michigan being only 25 feet. The two rivers form natural harbors, which have been improved by dredging. The shore of Lake Michigan is broken by few bays or inlets, and harbors are infrequent, and, as a rule, not commodious. Wherever, therefore, a river is found, navigators eagerly use it, so far as its depth permits, as a refuge from the storms of the great lake. Still, rivers so small as these afford inadequate facilities for the commerce of such a city as Chicago has grown to be, and one of the needs of the early future is provision for a commodious harbor, with sufficient depth of water, proper dockage and protection from storms.
Early the early days of French exploration it was found that the Indians used the Chicago River as one line of travel by which the Mississippi could be reached. Passing up the river and its south brinch, a portage of only four or five miles brought the traveler to the Desplaines River, down which his canoe passed to the Illinois River, and so to the Mis sissippi. This route seems to have been used by white men for the first time in 1673, when Joliet and Marquette, returning from the Illi nois River, were shown by the Indians the Chicago portage. It may be that they descended to Lake Michigan by the Calumet. Pere Mar quette spent the winter of 1674-75 in a cabin on the south branch of the Chicago River, being unable on account of physical weakness to pros ecute his journey to the Illinois villages. It
was in the following springtime that the devoted missionary died, while endeavoring to make his way to Mackinac by the east shore of Lake Michigan.
The French seem later to have had a fort at the Chicago portage, although it was prob ably a mere stockade, and no regular garrison was kept in it. This fort is mentioned by Logan in his report to the governor of ennsylvania in 1718, and also in the Treaty of Greenville, 1795. However, the Chicago portage was not much used by the French, as they found other routes of travel safer and more convenient.
About the time of the Revolutionary War a colored man from San Domingo, Jean Bap tiste Point de Saible (or au Sable), made his way to the Chicago River and established him self there as an Indian trader. Here, about 1777, he built a house of squared logs which may be regarded as the beginning of continuous settlement at Chicago. This house he sold in 1796 to a French trader, who in turn sold it in 1803 to John Kinzie. the first American set tler. The house, known as the old Kinzie mansion, stood on the north bank of the river opposite the site on which Fort Dearborn was later built, and was in existence until 1837.
Kinzie was an Indian and no doubt thought the Chicago a convenient centre for his business. He brought his family to his new home in 1804, the same year in which the fort was built, and thereafter continued his residence there until his death (1828).
Fort Dearborn was a mere stockade, with two blockhouses. The quarters for the garri son were enclosed in the stockade. It was sit uated on the south bank of the river, not far from the lake. At that time the river took a sharp turn to the south just east of the fort, and made its way into the lake over a heavy sandbar not far from what is now the eastern end of Madison street. The bar was not capable of being crossed by anything larger than a small boat, and the schooner•which, in 1804, brought the stores for the garrison had to anchor and land passengers and cargo in boats. The first garrison consisted of one company of infantry (of the First regiment). The site of the fort was on a reservation of six square miles, ceded to the United States by the Indians in Wayne's treaty made at Greenville in 1795.