The Illinois Central Railroad is entwined in Chicago's history, particularly the eventual shape of the downtown lakefront. A Senate bill sponsored by Stephen A. Douglas would create a railroad funded through the sale 11,500,000 acres of public land in the state. The railroad would sell the lands granted to it as financing for its construction. Signed in 1850 by President Millard Fillmore, the act called for construction of a railroad from the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to the western end of the Illinois & Michigan Canal at Peru or LaSalle. Two branches from that point would lead to Dubuque, Iowa and Chicago. At 705 miles, the charter would create a railroad twice as long as any other in the country.
When the Chicago branch was planned it was 200 mile route was in a virtually straight line from Effingham County to the southern border of Cook County at Richton. A route to Chicago was planned around the western shore of Lake Calumet then north to the dock facilities on the Chicago River. In the meantime a fight had broken out between rival railroads Michigan Southern and Michigan Central who were trying to extend into Chicago from the east. As there were no provisions for granting out-of-state railroads operating charters each road joined forces with an existing railroad; The MIchigan Southern and the Rock Island and the Michigan Central and the IC. The construction race was on, and the Rock Island trumped the IC by obtaining much of the route they had planned on using. The MC and RI reached the city on February 20, 1852.The IC was not to be deterred and began looking for a suitable alternative. This route eventually brought the railroad along the lakefront to the city limits, then at 23rd Street. The next step was access to the downtown itself. The route along the lakefront would not be popular amongst citizens and politicians, but in 1852 the railroad was the solution to a persistent problem of lake storms washing away the shoreline along Michigan Avenue. The railroad would build and maintain break walls and dikes to protect their tracks, and in turn protect the shoreline. On June 14, 1852 an ordinance was passed, granting the IC a 300 foot right-of-way to construct the necessary landfill and trestles.
Michigan Ave. looking north.
IC lakefront trackage looking south from near Randolph Street.
IC's first passenger station with elevators in the background.
Map of IC's riverfront facilities.
Lake Front Park later renamed Grant Park
The next great change to the lakefront was the Great Fire of 1871. Debris from the fire was used to fill in the area between Michigan Avenue and the IC tracks, which eventually became known as Lake Front Park. The IC's station and freight structures were destroyed by the fire. Enough of the station walls were left standing to incorporate them into a new structure. With the coming of the World's Fair in 1893 the IC was confronted with a traffic dilemma. Being the only railroad with a direct route into the fairgrounds meant it would handle a larger volume of passengers than ever before. The IC already had a robust commuter service that began in 1856. A new main passenger terminal was built at Park Place (12th Street) and commuter service was beefed up with new cars and locomotives.
IC Central Station, Cass Gilbert architect. Photo circa 1893.
Below grade track depression at 11th Place
Electric cars replace steam locomotives in 1926
The next big change for the lakefront was the depression of the tracks below street grade between 47th Street and Randolph Street as part of Chicago's track separation ordinances in 1909 and the lakefront smoke abatement ordinance of 1919. The latter forced the IC to electrify their commuter and lakefront freight yards. While the commuter service was completely electrified, the freight electrification was short lived due to the introduction of diesel locomotives. The downtown Congress Street yard was the location of the IC's high speed produce service, and was part of a larger complex known as the South Water Street Market. The city would relocate the market to modern facilities and for a while the land became a sea of surface parking.
South Water Market (left). Surface automobile parking on the site of the old yard (right).
Prudential Towers (left). Illinois Center (right).
Millennium Park
Lake Front Park, now known as Grant Park, was expanded east of the tracks with additional landfill as part of the Burnham Plan of Chicago. Air rights development over IC land began in 1955 with the completion of the Prudential Building. The IC itself located its headquarters in the Illinois Center complex following demolition of Central Station. An area that had once been covered with freight yards, warehouses and grain elevators is now home to tony condos and high rise office buildings. To the south, Millennium Park and its iconic 'Bean' sculpture now rest over some of the existing suburban tracks. The demolition of the Central passenger station and removal of the tracks opened land for a residential development known as Central Station.
Central Station residential development on the site of the IC Central Station (demolished).
The railroad that helped make Chicago and define its lakefront has faded into history, merged into the Canadian National Railroad. On its old bones, new developments have blossomed that are remaking the city. The electric commuter trains still run every day, now under the operation of Metra, the commuter rail agency.
Metra Electric train pulls into Van Buren Street Station, a remnant of the track depression project. Photo credit Jim Watkins
