Chicago Portage National Historic Site Volunteers

06/03/2026

About this time in June 1673 Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette stopped at an Indian village on a river that flowed into Green Bay. He called them the people of the wild oats (F***e Avoine) and went on to describe in detail the wild rice they harvested from the waters near their village.
When he told them what he and Joliet were attempting, they warned the explorers of the dangers ahead:

"I told these peoples of the f***e avoine of My design to go and discover Those Remote nations, in order to Teach them the Mysteries of Our Holy Religion. They were Greatly surprised to hear it, and did their best to dissuade me. They represented to me that I would meet Nations who never show mercy to Strangers, but Break Their heads with. out any cause; and that war was kindled Between Various peoples who dwelt upon our Route, which Exposed us to the further manifest danger of being killed by the bands of Warriors who are ever in the Field. They also said that the great River was very dangerous, when one does not know the difficult Places; that it was full of horrible monsters, which devoured men and Canoes Together; that there was even a demon, who was heard from a great distance, who barred the way, and swallowed up all who ventured to approach him; Finally that the Heat was so ,excessive In those countries that it would Inevitably Cause Our death.

I thanked them for the good advice that they gave me, but told them that I could not follow it, because the salvation of souls was at stake, for which I would be delighted to give my life; that I scoffed at the alleged demon; that we would easily defend ourselves against those marine monsters; and, moreover, that We would be on our guard to avoid the other dangers with which they threatened us." - from The Journal of Père Jacques Marquette

Hear the rest of the story of Joliet & Marquette's dramatic journey to discover the Mississippi and pass through the old Chicago Portage this Saturday, June 6, when Friends of the Chicago Portage presents a free interpretive tour of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site. The tour begins at 10am in Portage Woods Forest Preserve (4800 S. Harlem Av.) front of the statue of Joliet, Marquette and their Native American guide. More at:
http://drupal.library.cmu.edu/chicago/tours

05/01/2026

Tomorrow, Saturday May 2, Friends of the Chicago Portage kick off our 25th year of leading free public interpretive tours at the Chicago Portage National Historic Site in Portage Woods Forest Preserve in Lyons, Illinois. Veteran tour guides tell the birth stories of Chicago on the first Saturday of each month until October. More here: http://drupal.library.cmu.edu/chicago/tours

04/18/2026

Friends of the Chicago Portage proudly announce the start of their 25th year of conducting free monthly interpretive tours of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site.

The first tour begins Saturday, May 2nd, at 10am in Portage Woods Forest Preserve in Lyons. Free tours will continue on the 1st Saturday of the month until the last tour on Saturday, October 3rd.

Chicago owes its very existence to the location of the Chicago Portage. National Historic Site status protects a small unremarkable ditch on the west side of Harlem just north of the Stevenson Expressway, in Portage Woods Forest Preserve. Short and shallow, Portage Creek is a key link in Chicago’s largely unknown birth story. Once a month, experienced Friends of the Chicago Portage tour guides lead visitors back through time to discover how the portage formed, used, and how it led to the birth of Chicago.

The first European explorers, Jolliet & Marquette, passed through the ancient Chicago Portage in 1673. It provided an easy connection between the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico by linking Lake Michigan with the Mississippi River. Since that time, nearly every site of Chicago’s origins has been destroyed.

The remains of Fort Dearborn are buried under three layers of Wacker Drive. The Portage Trail is completely paved over, and Old Mud Lake is now the site of the world’s largest sewage treatment plant. The Chicago Portage National Historic Site is the only major remnant of the discovery and settlement of Chicago. The late Tribune columnist John Husar, after touring the site called it “Our sacred ground”. It is certainly Chicago’s “Plymouth Rock”.

The Portage Woods Forest Preserve (4800 S. Harlem, Lyons, IL) is on the west side of Harlem Ave. just 2 blocks north of the Stevenson Expressway (I55). Meet at the monumental statue of Joliet and Marquette and their Native American Guide at 10am.

Tours are approximately 1 ½ hour and 1/2 mile in length on asphalt and dirt paths through the woods.
Wear long pants and walking shoes or boots. All tours are free and open to the public. Tours run rain or shine. Reservations for are not required.

More info here:

The Chicago Portage archive is available for download as a single .zip file from here. The archive includes copies of The Chicago Portage Ledger, photographs of the site, and the video "Connected Worlds: The Story of the Chicago Portage. Furthermore, this December, we are launching a new platform fo...

12/03/2025

Happy 207th Birthday Illinois!

Use code thehistoryguy at https://incogni.com/thehistoryguy to get an exclusive 60% off.The “land of Lincoln” is famous for its politics, and that began at t...

11/04/2025

Vote Early! Vote Often! Vote NOW because this poll is closing soon.

Cast Your Vote! After months of community input, five new names have been selected to rename the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, a waterway that transformed Chicago 125 years ago and continues to shape our region today. Now it’s time to give this historic canal a name that reflects its ecological comeback, cultural value, and a bright future. 🌊 Vote by November 7 at this link: https://www.boldpastbrightfuture.org/naming-committee

06/05/2025

Over the last few years local author and Riverside resident Ben Sells and John Williams Nelson, a historian and professor, teaching at Texas Tech University, have both written books about the Chicago Portage. Both books provide new insights and expanded context to the early history of Chicago.
This Saturday, June 7th, starting at 10 am veteran tour guide Gary Mechanic will lead a free public interpretive tour of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site in Portage Woods Forest Preserve in Lyons, Il. The tour will include new stories taken from these books that provide a window into the interactions between native tribes and the various European powers around the lower Great Lakes in the 17th century. More tour information here:
http://drupal.library.cmu.edu/chicago/tours

04/28/2025

FREE! LIVE! Friends of the Chicago Portage proudly announce our 23rd year of offering free, guided interpretive tours of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site in Portage Woods Forest Preserve (4800 S. Harlem Lyons, IL)

Tours begin at 10am on the 1st Saturday of each month starting this coming Saturday, May 3rd and continuing until the last 2025 tour on Saturday, November 1st.
Experienced guides tell the birth stories of Chicago at the birthplace of Chicago.
Learn how the Chicago area's geology and geography have made it a transcontinental short cut and a meeting place for more than two thousand years.
Learn about the 1st humans to walk along the Des Plaines River and the great civilizations that rose and fell before the first Europeans crossed the Chicago Portage.
Learn why Europeans came here and why, of all the animals they found in the Illinois Country, they liked the beaver best.
Learn what a league is, who the voyageurs were, and how the fur trade through the Chicago Portage led to the creation of Chicago as a world class trading, transportation and financial center.
More here...
http://drupal.library.cmu.edu/chicago/tours

10/02/2024

Friends of the Chicago Portage will host the last free public tour of the year this coming Saturday, Nov. 5th, of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site in Portage Woods Forest Preserve (4800 S. Harlem in Lyons) beginning at 10 am.
It looks like great fall weather to take a walk in the woods back to the 17th Century. Learn how and why Chicago began.
More here: http://drupal.library.cmu.edu/chicago/tours

09/04/2024

It's going to be a great weekend to catch the next free public tour of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site beginning at 10 am this Saturday (9/7/24) in Portage Woods Forest Preserve, 4800 S. Harlem, Lyons, IL.
We promise you'll learn something important about the world you live in. More info here:
http://drupal.library.cmu.edu/chicago/tours

08/01/2024