The Illinois and Michigan Canal connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. In Illinois, it ran from the Chicago River in Bridgeport, Chicago to the Illinois River at LaSalle-Peru. The canal crossed the Chicago Portage, and helped establish Chicago as the transportation hub of the United States, before the railroad era. It was opened in 1848. Its function was partially replaced by the wider and deeper Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in 1900, and it ceased transportation operations with the completion of the Illinois Waterway in 1933. Illinois and Michigan Canal Locks and Towpath, a collection of eight engineering structures and segments of the canal between Lockport and LaSalle-Peru, was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964. Portions of the canal have been filled in. Much of the former canal, near the Heritage Corridor transit line, has been preserved as part of the Illinois and Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor. Significance Canals, in the 1800s, were important modes of transport
El Canal de Illinois y el Canal de Michigan conectaron los Grandes Lagos con el río Mississippi y el Golfo de México. En Illinois, corrió desde el río Chicago en Bridgeport, Chicago hasta el río Illinois en LaSalle-Peru. El canal atravesó la Portage de Chicago, y ayudó a establecer Chicago como el centro de transporte de los Estados Unidos, antes de la era del ferrocarril. Se abrió en 1848. Su función fue parcialmente reemplazada por el Canal Sanitario y de Buques de Chicago más amplio y más profundo en 1900, y cesó las operaciones de transporte con la finalización de la Waterway de Illinois en 1933. Los Locks y Towpath del Canal de Illinois y Michigan, una colección de ocho estructuras de ingeniería y segmentos del canal entre Lockport y LaSalle-Peru, fueron designados como Landmark Nacional en 1964.