Why has Chicago grown so rapidly? Location, Location, Location. The map below shows water way links in the United States. Chicago is near the south end of Lake Michigan.
The Great Lakes provide a great water way to transport people and cargo around the Lakes and down the St Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean. This was important to the Native Americans and French, and it is important today.
And the Great Lakes were only a short portage to the DesPlaines River connecting to the Illinois River and then the Missississipi. So a very large portion of North America was connected by water, with Chicago in the central Hub.
Lake Michigan and the Great Lakes also form a very large barrier. All the trails and later roads and railroads north of the south end of Lake Michigan had to move to the south to get around Lake Michigan.
The Great Lakes provide a great water way to transport people and cargo around the Lakes and down the St Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean. This was important to the Native Americans and French, and it is important today.
And the Great Lakes were only a short portage to the DesPlaines River connecting to the Illinois River and then the Missississipi. So a very large portion of North America was connected by water, with Chicago in the central Hub.
Lake Michigan and the Great Lakes also form a very large barrier. All the trails and later roads and railroads north of the south end of Lake Michigan had to move to the south to get around Lake Michigan.
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| All Roads Lead to Chicago - Or at Least a Lot of Them do |
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