Welcome to Chicago!
But how do you and your goods get there safely? In the early years following Chicago’s incorporation in 1837, it was likely by boat. And boats need lighthouses to safely navigate.
The first lighthouse in Chicago commenced operation on land near the mouth of the Chicago River in 1833. That’s Fort Dearborn in the center of the engraving.
First Chicago Lighthouse Constructed 1832
Northeasterly gales caused sand bars to form. The city constructed piers out into the harbor to control them. By 1847, the piers jutted out 3,900 feet into Lake Michigan to form a harbor. To help mariners navigate into and out of the harbor, several wooden pier lights were constructed.
A new tower was placed into service in 1859 near the mouth of the Chicago River. It was of the constructed from prefabricated cast iron pieces designed to hold up the lantern room.
The 1859 Pier Light
Growth of the city brought more and more factories. And the smoke from the factories started obscuring the tower light.
In 1893, a new lighthouse to mark the Chicago Harbor was constructed near the mouth of the Chicago River. Coincidentally, an award winning, red and white paneled third order Fresnel lens was on exhibition at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. The Lighthouse Board kept the lens in Chicago after the Fair and installed it in the lantern room of the new lighthouse.
1914 View of the 1893 Lighthouse
Larger and larger ships made navigating the Chicago River increasingly difficult. This led to the development of the outer harbor. An area of Lake Michigan was enclosed with a protective break wall near the mouth of the Chicago River.
Boat Traffic Near Rush Street on the Chicago River Circa 1900
A municipal pier, known today as Navy Pier, was completed in 1916 to handle the loading and unloading of these larger ships. To finish the new outer harbor, the 1893 Chicago Lighthouse was moved to a concrete foundation at the end of the north pier to become the Chicago Harbor Lighthouse. A new attached fog signal room and boathouse were also built.
The lighthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 19, 1984. In 2005, the light was declared excess by the Coast Guard. United States Secretary of the Interior Kenneth Salazar transferred the lighthouse to the City of Chicago on February 24, 2009.
The Shot
Fellow photographer Jon Christofersen and I drove downtown several weeks ago hoping to find a good drone shot. I flew my drone beyond the Chicago Harbor Lighthouse and turned 180 degrees to catch the setting sun glowing behind the skyline.
Thanks for looking,
Chuck Derus