Friends of the Chicago Portage Tell City's "Birth Story" on Walking Tour

The Southwest Chicago Post tagged along for the first 40 minutes of a free walking tour of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site, 4800 South Harlem, on Saturday, June 2.

Video we shot is posted on the Southwest Chicago Post's YouTube channel:

www.youtube.com/SouthwestChicagoPost.

Commemorative statue at the Chicago Portage.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Chicago Portage historical group, the tour was led by veteran tour guide Jeff Carter, who talked about the “Birth Story of Chicago” from the geological beginnings of the Portage to how it is still functioning in Chicago today.


The tour was approximately a half mile in length on a gravel path through the woods. It took about two hours.

One of only two national historic sites in Illinois, the Chicago Portage National Historic site is said to be the only place where people today can stand on the same ground walked by all the early explorers, early settlers and creators of Chicago.

The late Chicago Tribune columnist John Husar, after touring the site, called it “Our sacred ground."

The group conducts regular tours of the site. To learn details about future events, visit www.chicagoportage.org.

Friends of the Chicago Portage promotes the historic interpretation, ecological restoration and appropriate development of the Chicago Portage National Historic Site through volunteer advocacy, public events and other projects that raise public awareness of the site’s history and significance.

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