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: Uncategorized
Maine Coon Cats and Marie Antoinette
The Maine Coon Cat is the only show cat breed that originated in the United States. What does that have to do with Marie Antoinette? The origin of the breed is speculative, but one legend has it that prior to … Continue reading
Exciting Announcements
Blog Posts will resume shortly, but I’ve been busy! Below are three exciting announcements to explain why the March post is delayed! Announcing: The Mystery at Black Partridge Woods The Lost Town of Sag Bridge lecture The History & Anecdotes of … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Comments Off on Exciting Announcements
Happy Holidays – The Best Christmas Gift
The best Christmas present I ever received was a painting set. I was twelve years old that Christmas. Perhaps you remember how intensely a twelve-year-old can focus on a wanted item. It was all I could think of, yet I … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
2 Comments
Lemont Waterways – Admiral Dewey and the Battle of the Ship Canal
I promised you a story about the opening of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The truth is, not everyone was in favor of the canal. St. Louis filed a lawsuit in 1899 to prevent the opening, fearing it … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Admiral Dewey, Illinois, local history, Lockport dam, Sanitary Canal
2 Comments
Lemont Waterways: The Sanitary Canal
Picture of men in crane basket during construction of the Canal in Lemont, 1895. Photo courtesy the Lemont Area Historical Society. This is my favorite canal—okay, I know—that’s strange, to have a favorite canal. But what a canal! The ambition … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Comments Off on Lemont Waterways: The Sanitary Canal
The I & M Canal – Part Two
The Lemont section of the I & M canal was dug initially by French and Irish men who were recruited from Canada, where jobs for unskilled laborers were scarce. Later they were joined by Irish and German immigrants. Irish men … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Comments Off on The I & M Canal – Part Two
Lemont Waterways – The I & M Canal
Following a smattering of frontiersmen, explorers, and fur traders who moved through the area, early non-native settlers were predominantly farmers and tradesmen who settled here after the War of 1812 until the early 1830s. The construction of the Illinois and … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Comments Off on Lemont Waterways – The I & M Canal
Lemont Waterways: The River – How it Got Its Name
This is a view of the Des Plaines River taken in August 2015, when the water was low. Note the calm ripples and vegetation mid-river. Note the shallow banks. Imagine how this same spot would look with the river at … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
2 Comments
The Lost Golf Course of Sag
In an earlier post about Al Capone’s connections with Lemont, I mentioned a lost golf course. There has been a lot of recent interest in this topic, so I’m going to tell you more about it. The photo on the … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
7 Comments