Lemont Area Historical Society and Museum

10/15/2026

Looking for a good home for this TV and stand. Please I M John Quinn if you’re interested. It would look great in your basement!
FREE!!

10/13/2026

Did you catch LAHS on WGN Morning News 9@9 this morning? No autographs, please, but we're excited to offer this Abraham Lincoln-signed document on display in the near future! Please pardon our temporarily-closed normal public hours as we prepare this document for display!

https://www.instagram.com/p/DeZidsEkcfz/?img_index=2&exln=cDZ4MjFsY3Q4YTAy

Here’s the link if you don’t have Instagram, we are featured right after the musical feature.
https://wgntv.com/morning-news/wgn-morning-news-9-at-9/99-we-bet-you-didnt-find-anything-this-cool-while-cleaning-out-your-attic/

10/03/2026

10/03/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/1ENyunHt6p/?mibextid=wwXIfr

The Day Chicago Reversed Its River (1900)

On January 2, 1900, Chicago engineers accomplished something extraordinary: water began flowing through the newly completed Sanitary and Ship Canal, reversing the direction of the Chicago River.

The enormous engineering project was designed to carry wastewater away from Lake Michigan and toward the Des Plaines River system. Engineers, workers and politicians watched as the new channel altered the flow of water on which the city depended.

The project became one of the most remarkable engineering achievements in Chicago's history. Chicago had effectively changed the direction of its river.

09/30/2026

Here’s a few pics that will get your memory working! The original Al & Jack’s & Blue Hill Inn. McCarthy & Sobieski Streets.

09/29/2026

Come to St. Matthew's Cemetery on Saturday, October 3 at 1 o'clock for the LAHS first ever Living Cemetery: Bringing Ancestry to Life. Free program!

Step beyond the gates of St. Matthew’s Cemetery and into the pages of Lemont’s history. Join the Lemont Area Historical Society for an unforgettable journey through the past as the voices of long-ago residents echo once again among the historic gravestones.

09/26/2026

Have you ever wondered why there is an extra set of bridge foundations west of the bridge where the BNSF railroad travels over the DesPlaines River?

Those unused concrete/stone piers sitting in the river adjacent to the active BNSF (former Santa Fe) railroad bridge date back to the late 1890s, tied directly to the construction of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. They belong to a temporary bypass alignment used while the region's rail infrastructure was being completely re-engineered.

Construction of the Canal (1892–1899)

When the Sanitary District of Chicago (now the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District) excavated the Sanitary & Ship Canal in the 1890s, it cut through existing railroad rights-of-way, including the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe (ATSF) mainline.

To keep rail traffic moving without interrupting excavation, engineers built a temporary alignment and timber/masonry bridge immediately west of the original track bed. This allowed Santa Fe trains to detour around the active construction zone while workers dug the canal channel, regraded the banks, and built the permanent double-track swing bridge (completed in 1898–1899).

What You See Today

Once the permanent bobtail swing bridge over the canal was completed and the Santa Fe tracks were elevated to their permanent position on the new embankment, the temporary superstructure was dismantled.

Because removing underwater masonry piers from the bedrock was costly and served no practical purpose once the river channel was diverted, the Sanitary District left the piers intact. The remaining foundations stand right next to the active BNSF Chillicothe Subdivision bridge as "ghost piers".

The Chillicothe Subdivision (or "Chilli Sub") is a major 229-mile railway line operated by BNSF Railway. Serving as a key segment of BNSF’s Southern Transcon route between Chicago and Los Angeles, it is one of the highest-density intermodal rail corridors in North America.