1937 Chicago Lake Front - Wilmette ILL. to Gary IND.
DESCRIPTION
This is a large and uncommon nautical chart of the Chicago lakefront, published in 1937 by the War Department, Corps of Engineers, as part of their “Survey of the Northern and Northwestern Lakes” series. Covering the shoreline of Lake Michigan from Wilmette, Illinois, to Gary, Indiana, it offers a technical yet historically significant record of the Great Lakes’ busiest urban waterfront during the interwar period.
Cartographic Detail and Manuscript Annotations
The chart presents the full Chicago shoreline with precision, extending from the North Shore suburbs through downtown Chicago and south to Calumet, Indiana Harbor, East Chicago, Buffington, and Gary. Depth soundings, shoals, and hazards are carefully plotted offshore, while lighthouses, buoys, and crib lights are highlighted in red. Insets show detailed layouts of Buffington Harbor and Gary Harbor, and compass roses record both true and magnetic north, noting variation for 1935. A particularly notable printed feature is the notation that the Chicago Harbor Lock was under construction, a reference to the major Corps of Engineers project completed in 1938 that still regulates the flow between the river and Lake Michigan today.
Adding to its uniqueness are manuscript annotations in red and blue pencil drawn across the lake surface. Rather than random plotting, these carefully connect the lighted buoys and crib lights along the approaches to Chicago Harbor. The result is a practical pilotage aid, likely used for night navigation, when illuminated beacons served as critical reference points for mariners. The use of two colors suggests either alternative routes under differing conditions or notations from different voyages.
Purpose and Historical Context
Charts of this type were indispensable to shipping companies, harbor pilots, and industrial carriers navigating the southern reaches of Lake Michigan. Chicago, with its vast port network, was a hub for coal, ore, steel, and manufactured goods in the 1930s, while nearby harbors at Gary and East Chicago served the steel industry. The Corps of Engineers issued such charts to ensure safe passage, but they also updated them with ongoing construction projects like the Chicago Harbor Lock. This dual role, both mapping the existing waters and signaling transformative infrastructure, reflects the Corps’ central importance to navigation, commerce, and public works during the Depression era.
CONDITION
1200 W. 35th Street #425 Chicago, IL 60609 | P: (312) 496 - 3622