Long before it was a city, Chicago was a portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi, and this 1913 history follows the place from 1673 to 1835. At its heart is Fort Dearborn: its founding, nine years of garrison life, the outbreak of war in 1812, the battle and defeat, the fate of the captives and the building of a new fort.
Scholarly yet readable, it remains a key source for the early history of Chicago and the frontier Midwest. Download the free EPUB.