Bridge Evolution in Chicago -slide 28

The N. Lake Shore Dr opens for a tall ship in 2006

Beginning September 18 and continuing through October 30, the bridges on the Chicago River are scheduled to operate for sailboats leaving Lake Michigan. Scheduled lifts occur on Wednesdays (beginning 9:30 AM @ the N. Lake Shore Dr bridge) and Saturdays (beginning 9:00 AM @ the N. Lake Shore Dr bridge). These lifts provide a great opportunity to see these beauties in action.

The video below shows the N. La Salle St bridge raising and lowering.

One last item presented is the map shown below. This map summarizes the length of time a specific river crossing has been in use (not the age of the current bridge). The superscripts show the different types of crossings (bridges or tunnels) that have been used at each location. For example, the W. Van Buren St. crossing has been in service for 161 years. In that time there have been floating (F), swinging (S), rolling lift (R), and fixed trunnion bascule (B) bridges used.

The 1834 drawbridge installed at Dearborn St. was not included, because it was not long lived. The first movable bridge used for the purposes of this map was the floating bridge installed at Clark St in 1840. The newest river crossing (not newest bridge) is at Columbus, opened in 1982, thus the "142 years" in the title.