Railways
"The Illinois and Michigan Canal declined in importance in the 1890s, and by 1914 the last commercial trip went down the canal. By then only the lower two-thirds was useable, since after 1906 the stretch between Lockport and Chicago had been cut in two. By the 1950s the canal was filled in the Chicago area."
-Professor J.M. Lamb
-Professor J.M. Lamb
"But with the growth of the railway net, speed and convenience passed from the steamboat and canal barge to the railway train... The increasing efficiency of the railways gradually led to the neglect of the waterways and of their transportation facilities." -James Putnam |
"The canal never achieved the heights its proponents projected because the railroads came along soon after it opened and took away some of its most profitable business. ...For example, the new Chicago & Rock Island railroad lured away passengers and shipments of package freight." -David Young |
Video Clip Source: Illinois During the Gilded Age, 1866-1896: Settlement and Immigration
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The Illinois and Michigan Canal was abandoned after only 66 years of commercial operation. However, the essence of the canal lived on in railway routes and the Sanitary and Ship Canal, which were built parallel to the I&M Canal.