History blog from Pat Camalliere Books- For Halloween: The Ghosts of the Quarries! October 26, 2023Halloween is almost here! A good time to rell you about the Ghosts of the Quarries! Ghost hunters sometimes describe a phenomenon called the “stone tape theory.” The theory proposes that certain rocks have the ability to imprint—or “record” —energy … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- Submarines on the Chicago Sanitary Canal – No kidding! September 18, 2023My last post revealed some amazing information about the building of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. If you missed that post, you can read it here: The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal | Pat Camalliere – The Cora Tozzi … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal August 6, 2023In last month’s blog, I spoke about the construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal and its tremendous importance to not only the Chicago area and Illinois, but to the opening to settlement of the entire United States west of … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- Illinois and Michigan Canal Celebrates 175th Anniversary. July 6, 2023In April of 1848, the I & M Canal officially opened. From April of 2023 through March of 2024, the I & M Canal Corridor Association is having a year-long celebration of this event. Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- The Des Plaines River June 6, 2023I get excited when I talk about Lemont’s waterways, because they are so important not only to the growth of Chicago, but to westward expansion across the entire continent. The only place all these important waterways come together is Lemont. … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- Train Wreck in Lemont, July 1905 May 9, 2023Last month’s post was about a train wreck in Lemont on the Alton-Chicago Railroad in 1873. Today we continue the subject of train wrecks with the Santa Fe derailment that also occurred in Lemont in 1905. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- Lemont Train Wreck: August 16, 1873 April 17, 2023Is history repeating itself? Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- Admiral Dewey and the Battle of the Sanitary Canal March 1, 2023The I & M Canal had been a tremendous success in opening up shipping and transportation between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River. However, during dry periods the level wasn’t sufficient to float the barges and boats, and during heavy … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- Lemont Streetcars – The Joliet and Chicago Electric Line February 19, 2023NewsOn Sunday, February 26, at 2 p.m. I will be speaking at the Lemont Historical Society about the “Lost Town of Sag Bridge.” If you have not already attended this talk, I hope you will come. If you have attended … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- The Ghosts of Sag Bridge January 29, 2023Recently I’ve been speaking at libraries and other local organizations about the history of Sag Bridge, a town that once existed near Archer Avenue, where Route 83 makes a turn from a north-south road to an east-west road. Although it … Continue reading →Pat Camalliere
- For Halloween: The Ghosts of the Quarries! October 26, 2023
Category Archives: Lemont History
Early Days, Potawatomi, and Archer Avenue
Did you ever wonder what it was like here before Lemont was settled, before Illinois was a state? Start by imagining you are walking one of the trails in our beautiful forest preserves, but look at what surrounds the trail … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged Archer Avenue, Chicago, History, Illinois, Lemont, local history, Potawatomi, Sag Bridge, St. James at Sag Bridge, Trails, Waterfall Glen
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Banking in the early days of Northern Illinois
Contrary to what one might expect, early settlers of Northern Illinois, beginning in the 1830s, were not all poor. Some left eastern states for expected greater opportunity in Illinois and arrived with sufficient means to purchase land. They brought food, … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged bank failure, bank heist, bank robbery, banking, banks, History, Illinois, Lemont, local history, Northern Illinois, Tom Huston
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Cops and Robbers – Lemont Style
Bank robberies are a serious business, but the robbery of the Clearing State Bank that took place on July 9, 1921, definitely had comic aspects ala Keystone Cops, although in this case Lemont cops got the upper hand in the … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged 1921, bank heist, bank robbery, History, Lemont, Martin Sicks, Michael Geary
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History for Halloween – The Ghosts of Sag Bridge
The late 1890s seems to be when ghost activity peaked in the area of Sag Bridge, Illinois, now the northeast corner of Lemont. Many ghostly tales, some well documented, began here. In late December, 1897, a rash of new sightings … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged Ghosts, Halloween, History, Lemont, local history, Sag Bridge, St. James at Sag Bridge
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Prohibition Days In Lemont, Illinois – An Amusing Anecdote
Previous posts have told of both Lemont’s Smokey Row and relations to the Chicago mob. You might say today’s story embellishes on that theme. The story is part of Lemont lore, and likely is essentially true, as the original versions … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged Chicago, History, Lemont, local history, prohibition, raids
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Railways Promote Recreation
When I walked through Dellwood Park in Lockport for the first time, I came across a crumbling staircase and the remnants of an old dam. Only after I checked on-line did I realize what I had stumbled across, a unique … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged Chicago and Joliet Electric Train, Dellwood Park, electric trains, History, Lemont, local history, Romeo Beach, Trains
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Lemont Street Cars
I find it amazing that, over a hundred years ago, before the automobile was in general use, transportation to and from Lemont offered more options than today. In the year 1905, for example, the following options were available: A few … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged electric train, History, horse car, Lemont, railroad, street cars, transportation, trolley cars
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Lemont and Chicago’s Lincoln Park
Did you know that land and plants from Lemont went into the creation of Chicago’s Lincoln Park? And that you can walk the Keepataw Trail that traversed through that property? On the north bluff of the Des Plaines River Valley, … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged Chicago, Lemont, Lincoln Park, local history, Waterfall Glen
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The Women of Smokey Row
Of the hundred or so “establishments” that composed Lemont’s Smokey Row between 1893 and 1897, some called themselves saloons, clubs, gambling halls, brothels, or dance halls. Typically, in addition to liquor and gambling, women were part of the “trade”, and entertainment … Continue reading
Posted in Lemont History
Tagged History, Lemont, local, Smokey Row, women
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Local History – Lemont’s Smokey Row, Beginnings and Growth
News I thought I’d lead off with the picture I promised you of my new granddaughter, Mia Elena. She is 15 days old today, and was 5 days old when this picture was taken. Grandma is very proud, of course, … Continue reading