History of Cook County, Illinois

 In the summer of 1803, Capt. John Whistler, stationed with his company of United States troops at Detroit, was ordered to proceed to "Chicago" with his command and there to build a fort and occupy the post thus established. The company came here by land under the command of Lieut. James S. Swearingen. Captain Whistler, his wife, his two sons, Lieut. William and George and the young wife of William went as far as St. Joseph in the schooner "Tracy" and thence came to Chicago in a row boat. Upon their arrival there were here, according to Mrs. Lieut. William Whistler, but four Indian traders' huts or cabins all occupied by Canadian Frenchmen and their Indian wives, three of them being Le Mai, Ouilmette and Pettell. In 1804 John Kinzie, then residing near Niles, Michigan, bought the Le Mai property here, and with his wife and young son, John H., came on and occupied the same. Gradually, as time passed, the old cabin was changed, improved and extended until it became an attractive home for that period. The house stood on the north side at the bend where the river turned south before entering the lake. John Kinzie became known, and justly so, as "The Father of Chicago." He came here as an Indian trader in the employ of the American Fur Company, and in the end was much beloved by the Indians, whose friend he was. In addition to his Indian trade, he became sutler for the garrison in Fort Dearborn. No doubt the officers at Fort Dearborn were concerned in the Indian trade. At times John Whistler, Jr., and Thomas Forsyth were interested in business with Mr. Kinzie. In the spring of 1812, in an encounter, Mr. Kinzie killed John Lalime, Indian interpreter here. The officers at the fort investigated the case and acquitted Mr. Kinzie "justifiable homicide."

It is highly probable that from 1804 to 1812 the few log cabins here were occupied by traders. The Indian outbreaks in 1812 broke up the little settlement, and after an absence of four years Mr. Kin-zie returned with his family and occupied his former residence probably in the Fall of 1816. He resumed his trade with the Indians, not as a representative of the American Fur Company, but as an independent trader. However, in 1818, he sent his son John to Mackinac to become an apprentice of the American Fur Company. This company owned the only schooner on Lake Michigan; it registered about forty tons and came here regularly with supplies for the company's agency. Upon the arrival in 1818 of Gurdon S. Hubbard there resided here two families those of John Kinzie and Antoine Ouilmette, both living on the North Side, the latter about two blocks west of the former. Ouilmette was a French trader with an Indian wife and several half-breed children. A trader named M. Du Pin lived here a little later. At this date Captain Bradley was a commander at Fort Dearborn. Upon the formation of Pike county in 1821, Mr. Kinzie was recommended for justice of the peace, but there does not appear any record that he was commissioned at that date. He was one of the sub-agents of the government when the treaty of August 29, 1821, was concluded here with the Indians, having been appointed in 1816. The agency was established in 1804 and reestablished in 1816 when Charles Jouett became agent, under whom Mr. Kinzie served. He was sub-agent under Dr. Alexander Wolcott also and at the same time served as Indian interpreter. On July 28, 1825, Mr. Kinzie became justice of the peace at this point for Peoria county, and the same year became agent of the American Fur Company. He died here suddenly January 6, 1828.

Table of Contents - Volume 1

French, Spanish And English Claims ; Exploration, Etc.
The Indians; Treaties ; Reservations ; Incidents, Etc.
Cook County Before Its Formation; The Northern Boundary; Huron County; Land Surveys, Etc.
Early Cook County And Chicago ; Settlement, Commerce, Etc.
Cook County And Chicago 1840-1850; Commerce; Manufactures; ExPansion, Transportation, Etc.
Cook County And Chicago 1850-1866; Commerce; Newspaper Influence; Labor, Etc.
Politics Of Cook County 1823-1866; Elections; Campaigns, Newspapers, Statistics, Etc.
Runaway Slaves And The Underground Railroad
The War With Mexico; Cook County Volunteers
The Civil War 1861-1865 ; Record Of Cook County
Cook County Organization; Townships Formed; Towns And Villages Organized, Etc.
Early Amusements; Debates; Theatres; Men's Associations; Libraries; Music; Art; Racing; Baseball; Cricket; Skating, Etc.
The Infirmary; World's Fair; Spanish-American War; Late Banking; Chicago Seal; Marquette Club; Hamilton Club, Etc.
Municipal, Juvenile And Other Courts
Early Beef And Pork Packing ; Recent Statistics, Etc.
Biography; Homes; Domestic Influences; Religious Training; School Facilities, Etc.

Biography And Reminiscence

Ambrozaitis, Rev. Casimir
Amling, Albert F.
Angus, John
Angus, William J.
Armbruster, Charles Andrew
Atwood, Harry F.
Bagdziunas, John
Bailey, Edward W.
Ballinger, John Ralph, M. D.
Barmore, Nathaniel L.
Bartley, Charles Earl
Bassett, Nelson M.
Belinski, Joseph J.
Benson, Dr. Emanuel O.
Bentley, Frank Taggert
Berezniak, Leon A.
Bishop, Edward P., Jr.
Blaha, Joseph C.
Blahnik, Vencel L.
Bolen, John L.
Busch, Alexander
Buss, George J.
Busse, John, Jr.
Busse, William
Byrne, Dr. John Henry
Caldwell, Henry P.
Carr, Robert Franklin
Castle, Perley D.
Chicago Sash, Door & Blind Mfg. Co.
Childs, Frank Hall
Clark, Will H.
Clarke, George Washington
Cmejla, Ferdinand A.
Collins, Dr. Lorin C.
Connery, John T.
Connery, William M.
Copeland, Dr. William L.
Crandall, James A.
Crosby, George H.
Crossette, Charles H.
Cunningham, John T.
Curtis, DeWitt H.
Dal, John Wesley, M. D.
Danisch, Frank P.
Daprato Statuary Company
Decker, John E.
Dickinson, Arthur W.
Dierking, Frederick
Dierking, William Henry
Dillon, William
Doctor, Charles
Drach, Edmund A.
Duntley, William Obed
DuPlessis, Dr. Charles Orpha
Dwight, Walter E.
Eckhart, Col. B. A.
Euwema, Herman
Fahrney, Peter
Farwell, Arthur Burrage
Fleming, Dr. Geoffrey J.
Flizikowski, John S.
Forbes, Daniel
Foster, Frederick E.
Frees, Benjamin Marsh
Fritts, David H.
Gash, Abram Dale
Gauger, John A.
Glaser, Benjamin J.
Glowacki, John Bartosz
Gould, Frank
Gronkowski, Rev. Casimir
Guthier, Lprenz
Haggard, John D.
Haldeman, Robert Sheridan
Hankermeyer, Henry J.
Hanreddy, Joseph
Hawley, Henry Stephen
Heafield, Lincoln S.
Healy, Daniel D.
Hellmuth, Joseph A.
Hibner, Edward J.
Higginson, George, Jr.
Hill, Frederick A.
Hill, John W.
Horak, Henry
Hotchkiss, Charles W.
Howland, Thomas S.
Hughes, Dr. John Owen
Humiston, Dr. Charles Edward
Humphrey. Senator John
Hurlbut, William Daniels
Husak, Joseph
Hyink, William
Jackson, Philip
Jackson, William John
Jagielski, Rev. Francis J.
Jones, Dr. Charles E.
Kaspar, William
Kavanagh, John E.
Keller, Albert W.
Kikulski, John
Klaus, Vincent J.
Klicka, Emil
Kolacek, William
Kolkema, Joseph M.
Kopecky, Joseph
Kornaszewski, Valdimir C.
Kosinski, Very Rev. John J.
Kreft, John
Krygowski, Anthony, M. D.
Kvitek, Rev. Bartholomew
Kyle, Thomas D.
Lake, William H.
Lakemeyer, Adolph, M. D.
Lange, Rev. Francis
Latimer, Henry Horace, M. D.
Leigh, Edward Baker
Levy, David Rose
Lockwood, Willoughby Starr
Loebe, Albert C.
Loebe, John G.
Loeffler, William
Longhi, Emilio
Lorimer, William
Lukoszius, Rev. Norbert
Luster, Max
Marcinkiewicz, Stanislaus
Masterson, Frank Lawrence
McComb, James Julius
McEnery, John T.
McMaster, William
Meyer, J. H.
Miers, Daniel Kirkwood
Miller, John S.
Miroslawski, Witold S.
Moore, George C.
Muensterman, Dietrich
Noelle, Joseph Burton
Novak, Charles, Sr.
Novak, Dr. Frank J.
Novak, John L.
Nowicki, John M.
O'Brien, Dr. Edward J.
O'Gara, Thomas Joseph
Obvrtacz. Rev. John
Oughton, Charles M., M. D.
Papailiou, Gregory A., M. D.
Peterson, Charles Edward
Peterson, Ellis C.
Philbrick. George Albert
Pierce, Dr. Oscar F.
Pigall, Dr. Joseph S.
Plagge, John C.
Plocinski, Andrew J.
Poklenkowski, Tohn
Polak. Joseph F.
Pyplatz, Rev. Dr. Michael C.
Rehm, Jacob
Rhodes. Carey W.
Ricker, Konrad
Rixon. Hans A.
Roberts, Roscoe L.
Robertson, Albert L.
Robertson, John
Rushkiewicz, Joseph
Russo, Andrea
Salat, Joseph J.
Sanclig, Alfred
Savers, Jobe H.
Schmitz, Dr. Henry
Schroeder, Conrad H.
Seneff, Edward H.
Senne, Henry C.
Sharp, William Nye
Sieminowicz, Waldimir J., M. D.
Sojar, Rev. Anton
St. John, Dr. Leonard
Stafford, John W.
Stansfield, James Howard
Stary, John J.
Stotz, Dr. Charles F.
Stratford, Henry Knox, M. D.
Straus, Simeon
Strawn, Silas H.
Stromberg, Charles J.
Stuve, Henry
Swierczek, Rev. Stanislaus, C. R.
Swift, George B.
Swinscoe, George E.
Szczypta, Rev. John, C. R.
Thornton, Dr. Francis E.
Triner, Joseph
Uczciwek, Hipolit
Vawter, William Arthur
Wachowski, Albert
Wachowski, John George
Wachowski, Joseph T.
Warner, Thomas R.
Webster, Dr. John C.
Wells, Willis J.
Wengierski, Felix J.
Wente, Frederick
Wheeler, Albert Gallatin
White, Carleton
Wilkerson, James H.
Wilson, Johnson
Witkowski, Leo J., M. D.
Zajicek, Frank
Zaleski, Boleslaus
Zelezny, John V.

Photographs

Anderson, John
Atwood, Harry A.
Ball, L. C.
Billings, C. L.
Bosch, Henry
Breidt, H. H.
Brown, Taylor E.
Brown, W. M.
Brundage, L. A.
Byford, Dr. W. H.
Camp Douglas, 1862
Carolan, Joseph
Caverly, John R.
Chambers, Jerome B.
Chicago, Original Town, 1830
Chindblom, C. R.
Clark, A. C.
Clarke, G. W.
Colburn, W. E.
Cook County, Map of, 1831
Courthouse and Jail
Courthouse, second
Courthouse, third
Courthouse, fourth
Courthouse, fifth
Courthouse, present
Courthouse, ruins of
Davies, Will T.
Decker, J. E.
Dennis, J. M.
Duntley, W. O.
Eastman, Col. F. A.
Elias, J. J.
Erickson, Alfred
Etelson, S. A.
Gauger, John A.
Glackin, E. J.
Grain Shipped, First
Harmon, Dr. E. D.
Harris, Madison R.
Hazard, Paul A.
Hillstrom, O. R.
Horse Railways, 1865
Jandus, C. R.
Jones, W. Clyde
Juul, Niels
Lundberg, Carl
Mastroianni, Pasquale
Morrison, Clyde A.
Nightingale, A. F.
Olsen, Peter B.
Peters, Charles W.
Plagge, John C.
Powell, Isaac N.
Rainey, E. J.
Rhode, Rev. Paul P.
Fitch, Edward C.
Frercks, Henry J.
Schmidt, G. K.
Schmitt, F. P.
Schrojda, W.
Senn, Dr. Nicholas
Spears, Henry
Strassheim, Christopher
Sullivan, J. J.
Umbach, W. J.
Wamsley, D. H.
Wheeler, Albert G.
Table of Contents - Volume 2

Incidents; East And West Boundary; Canal; Dearborn Park; Memorial Building; River And Harbor Convention; Historical Society; Relief Society; Commerce; Wards; Drainage; Railways; Marine Hospital; Stock Yards; Horse Railways; Tunnels; Park Boards; Lake Front; Twelve Labors Of Hercules; Legislative Acts, Etc.
Miscellany; Canal; Major Long's Report; Captain Graham's Report; Statistics; Commerce; Land Grants; Captain Cram's Report; Fort Dearborn Reservation; The Harbor; Commercial Houses; Sewerage; Hydraulic Company, Etc.
Early Schools Of Cook County; Teachers; Statistics
Early Banking Operations; Shinplasters; Panics; National Banks; Clearing House, Etc.
Courts; Judges; Lawyers; Changes, Etc.
Country Towns; Schools; Churches; Manufactures; Commerce; Villages; Settlement; Newspapers; Sports And Hunting; Merchandising; Labor; Homes; Domestic Influences; Incidents; Statistics, Etc.
Epidemics; Physicians; The Practice Of Medicine; Societies, Etc.
Common Council Of Chicago, 1866-1909
County Board, 1668-1909
Politics Of Cook County, 1866-1909

Biography And Reminiscence

Abbott, Dr. W. C.
Brand, Rudolph
Arnold, Oswald James
Brand, Virgil M.
Babcock, Adolph B.
Branen, Dr. Frank
Barr, Robert C.
Brown, Walter Z.
Becker, John W.
Buchanan, James Nelson
Beifeld, Joseph
Buchanan, Nelson
Bell, Oscar F.
Buchanan, Ellen Maria (Paine)
Biggio, Frank
Buchanan, Dr. Charles Henry
Birk, Edward J.
Buchanan, Edward Paine
Birk, Jacob
Burns, William Henry
Birk, William A.
Byford, Dr. Wm. H.
Bishop, Fred W.
Caldwell, Charles Edwin, M. D.
Blase, Hans
Carr, George R.
Blum, Meyer
Condee, Leander Devine
Boland, Patrick J.
Conley, Dr. Thomas J.
Bosch, Henry
Converse, Clarence Myron
Boussoulas, Sotirios
Cooley, Lyman E.
Brand, Alfred
Cooper, Edwin
Brand. Armin W.
Cooper, James
Brand, Philip R.
Cooper, John T.
Cooper, Albert H.
Cooper, Edgar H.
Cooper, George H.
Cooper, Abijah
Countiss, Fred D.
Czaja, Peter
Czajkowski, Rev. B.
Damiani, Dr. Joseph
Davis, George Mortimer
Davis, Nathan S.
Decker, Theodore F.
De Stefano, Gaetano S.
Dettmer, Rev. John
De Vries, Sietz J.
Dierssen, Ferdinand W.
Donat, Joseph L.
Donlon, Stephen E., M. D.
Donovan, Col. James
Dunphy, John M.
Dyniewicz, Casimir W.
Dyniewicz, Wladislaus
Earle, Johnson
Erkenswick, Rev. Charles A.
Farnham, Harry J.
Fenger, Christian
Folsom, Richard Sweet
Formusa, Vincent
Forward, Henry W.
Fraser, Norman D.
Furey, Charles La Tour
Geocaris, Angelos
Gialloreti, Dr. Vincenzo
Golombiewski, John
Gordon, Rev. Francis, C. R.
Gormley, Charles F.
Gottfried, Carl M.
Grudzinski, Rev. Louis W.
Hahn, Frank
Hallberg, Lawrence G.
Harris, Mark G.
Hart, Harry Stillson
Harwood, Frederick H.
Hastings, Samuel M.
Hess, Frederick A., M. D.
Hollander, Albert H.
Holmes, Dr. Edward M.
Jaeger, George J.
Jaeger, Philipp
Jarzembowski, Joseph
Jenson, William
Jerozal, Stanley J.
Johnson, Albert Mussey
Kapela, Joseph W.
Karabasz, Rev. Francis J.
Keely, Edward S.
Klein, Albert S.
Koch, Edward John
Koester, George Frederick
Kott, John M.
Kowalewski, Bruno F.
Krause, Frederick E.
Lagona, B. J.
Lambros, Peter S.
Laskowski, Charles
Lemmon, Thomas A.
Llewellyn, Joseph C.
Lovell, Arthur W.
Lyford, W. H.
Lyman, David B.
Madsen, Jens B.
Marriott, Abraham R.
Marsh, Philip L.
Mastroianni, Pasquale
Matz, Otto Herman
McBurney, Dr. Benjamin A.
McElligott, Hon. Thomas G.
McFell, Judson
McHugh, Dr. John A.
McKay, Robert James
Melcher, Frank O.
Mercola, Arcangelo
Milaszewicz, Vincent
Miller, Harry Irving
Miller, Kempster B.
Mudge, Henry U.
Mulvihill, William F.
Newkirk, Chauncey F.
Page, Samuel S.
Paine, James S.
Palt, Frank J.
Pease, Fred M.
Pickard, Wilder A.
Piechowski, Rt. Rev. John
Powell, Norman
Randak, Frank
Reed, Lawrence Joseph
Reichmann, Frank Joseph
Rice, Patrick Henry
Roach, William F.
Robinson, Dr. Byron
Rodatz, Jacob
Romano, Antonio
Romanowicz, John
Rouse, Harry B.
Runge, George
Rybcinski, John A.
Sackett, Robert E.
Sayers, Benjamin F.
Sankar, Louis Joseph
Scharringhausen, Lewis B.
Schwarz, Edward
Schiavone, Michael
Scott, Elwin D.
Senne, William
Sheppard, George W.
Skrypko, Rev. Alexander
Slomski, John J.
Smith, Edwin M., M. D.
Spalding, Charles F.
Spalding, Jesse
Stamm, J. Charles, M. D.
Starzynski, Edward
Stearns, Dr. William M.
Steiskal, Frank
Stromberg, Alfred
Stuchlik, William
Stuchlik, William A.
Walther, Frederick E.
Stuchlik, Edward
Ware, Dr. Lyman
Szajkowski, Edmund
Wayman, John S.
Thompson, George F., M. D.
Weber, Frank C.
Thornton, Everett Austin
Weiss, John H.
Tilden, William A.
Wengierski, Frank
Troch, Herman J.
Wilder, Dr. Loren
Tuma, Josef
Wilkowski, John P.
Van Arsdale, Robert L.
Zamorski, Leon
Wachowski, Michael J.
Zander, Henry G.
Walker, George W.
Zwierzchowski, Rev. John
Waller, Edward C.

Illustrations

Ap Madoc, W. T.
Arnold, Victor P.
Carr, Robert F.
Carr, George R.
Chicago Extensions, north
Chicago Extensions, south
Converse, C. M.
Day, Edward S.
De Vries, S. J.
Donovan, James
Fetzer, W. R.
Fort Dearborn Addition, 1839
Fulton, H. D.
Gash, Abram Dale
Gordon, Fr. Francis, C. R.
Harbor of Chicago, 1834
Hawley, Henry S.
Healy, Daniel D.
Hebel, Oscar
Hill, John W.
Hoffheimer, Zach
Hruby, J. O., Jr.
Keeney, Albert F.
Kleeman, B. F.
Lake Front Wearings, 1839
Land Accretions, Lake Shore, 1837
Lantz, Walter A.
Lewis, Harry A.
Loeffler, William
Longhi, Emilio
Lorimer, William
Lundgren, W. E.
Luster, Max
Marshall, Thomas
McLaughlin, J. J.
McMillen, C. S.
Michels, Nicholas
Miller, A. W.
Mills, Matthew
Moody, Walter D.
Northrup, John E.
Olson, O. D.
Poorhouse, Cook County, new
Poulton, J. J.
Rhodes, Carey W.
Rittenhouse, W. A.
River Mouth, Chicago, 1834
Roe, Clifford G.
Schmidt, Walter E.
Shanahan, D. E.
Smejkal, E. J.
Smith, Claude F.
Sollitt, Oliver
Stromberg, Alfred
Sullivan, Jeremiah
Ton, C. J.
Troyer, W. H.
Wayman, John E. W.
Weber, W. H.
White, George H.
Wilkerson, J. H.
Wolf, Adam

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Goodspeed, Weston Arthur. History of Cook County, Illinois: being a general survey of Cook County history, including a condensed history of Chicago and special account of districts outside the city limits: from the earliest settlement to the present time. Published Chicago, Goodspeed Historical Association, c1903

 

First Settler of "Chicago"

With the exception of the French cabin at Lee's place, occupied by Father Marquette many years before, the Garay (or Guarie) cabin or stockade on the North Branch at an early date, and a possible fort or stockade at a subsequent period, it seems clear that the first resident of the present site of Chicago was a colored man named Jean Baptiste Point De Saible, who lived in Chicago as early as 1779, as shown by the following extract from a letter dated July 4, 1779, and written by Col. Arent Schuyler De Peyster, a British commander at Michilli-mackinac : "Baptiste Point De Saible, a handsome negro, well educated and settled at Eschikagou (Chicago), but much in the French interest." His cabin was located on the north bank of Chicago river near its mouth and near the point where it turned south just before entering the lake. The fact that De Saible lived in Chicago is still further verified by Augustus Grignon, of Wisconsin. Perish Grignon, brother of Augustus, saw De Saible and said that he was large, a trader, pretty wealthy and drank freely, and that he had a commission of some sort, probably from the French government. In 1796 De Saible sold his cabin to a French trader named Le Mai, from Peoria, who occupied it as a home and trading house until 1804. Chi-cago was referred to by William Burnett, an Indian trader of St. Joseph, Michigan, in a letter dated May 14, 1786, and addressed to George Mildrum, a merchant at Mackinac. Again, on May 6, 1790, he referred to this place. On August 24, 1798, he wrote saying that he expected a garrison would be stationed at Chicago "this sum-mer." Other references to Chicago were made. It is probable, also, that an Indian trader named Guarie, as before stated, lived on the west side of the North Branch before the year 1800. Traders spoke of the North Branch as "River Guarie."