Chicago Harbor

ClarkStreet

Looking down the Chicago River from Clark Street Bridge
The marine interests of Chicago, at the time of the fire of 1871, were in an extremely flourishing condition, and although the Custom-house records were destroyed, an accurate estimate of the business done that year has been made. This shows 1871 as comparing favorably with all preceding years, as also with those succeeding, there having been, down to 1885, only one year when a larger number of vessels was owned in the district, and two years in which the tonnage has been larger. Navigation opened in 1871 on April 3, the earliest date then known in the history of the port. By December, 12,330 vessels, with 3,096,101 tonnage had arrived, and 12,312, with tonnage of 3,082,235, had cleared; vessels with a sail capacity of 2,406,300 tons, and steam capacity of 394,000 tons laying up at this port for the winter. The number of vessels owned in the district was 650, with tonnage aggregating 95,395.95, divided among 84 steam vessels, 333 sail vessels, and 233 canal-boats and barges. During the ensuing fourteen years, numerous transfers of vessels were made to other districts, so that the ownership list was reduced nearly fifty per cent. This is shown in the following table:

Year
Vessels Owned
in District
Tonnage
1871
650
95,396
1872
654
99,403
1873
646
104,827
1874
434
83,894
1875
410
78,760
1876
387
73,824
1877
389
72,934
1878
368
68,647
1879
364
67,988
1880
360
69,939
1881
366
71,671
1882
368
67,535
1883
357
63,899
1884
372
60,942
In this table, a decrease is shown in the number and tonnage of vessels owned in Chicago in 1884, as compared with 1871, of 278 vessels and 34,454.39 tonnage ; although, during the intervening period, there had been built in this district 126 vessels, with a tonnage of 13,025.45. Of these, there were 32 schooners, 23 propellers, 21 steam canal-boats, 27 tug-propellers, twelve tugs, one scow schooner, three steamers, and one sloop-yacht. Whatever increase in the tonnage these additions to the marine made, was more than offset by the loss of vessels from this port by burning and sinking, of which there were 119 schooners, two propellers, one scow, two tugs, one steam canal-boat, one steamer, one sloop, five brigs and five barks, a total of 137 vessels with 27,413.91 tonnage. Following is a record by years of the ships built and lost, with their tonnage :

Year
Vessels
Built
Tonnage
Vessels
Lost
Tonnage
1872
19
4,470
1873
10
3,380
8
1,548
1874
14
2,011
5
1,074
1875
10
1,246
13
2,561
1876
10
725
13
3,421
1877
8
1,099
11
1,943
1878
12
478
7
1,944
1879
3
59
10
1,714
1880
3
85
9
2,184
1881
14
1,926
8
2,273
1882
15
1,010
9
2,528
1883
15
507
16
4,355
1884
12
499
9
1,867
The largest tonnage represented was in 1873, when ten large schooners were built; and the largest number constructed in one year was in 1882, when ten tug-propellers were built. In 1883, the list of marine disasters exceeded that of any year since 1872, and one steamer and more tug-propellers than had been built in 1882, were wrecked and destroyed, at a loss of $191,000, with an insurance of $129,100. Fifty persons lost their lives by the destruction of the vessels represented.

The commercial sailing business ended in Chicago during the spring of 1926 when the Mary A. Gregory, which was built in 1875, entered the Chicago docks with a cargo of potatoes and fruit.