Chicago Maritime Museum
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Chicago as a Trading Post

​During the 18th and 19th centuries, Chicago evolved from being merely a portage for the fur trade canoes, to the site of an important trading post.  Jean Baptist Pont Du Sable, a merchant of mixed African and French parentage, was the first to appreciate the business value of Chicago. By 1779, he had established a successful trading post in cooperation with the Potawatomi Indians, who lived along the North Branch of the Chicago River. Other fur traders followed, and by the 1820s Chicago was the most successful trading area on Lake Michigan.
Chicago Maritime Museum is a 501(C)(3) Nonprofit registered in the US under Tax ID 36-3205719
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Chicago Maritime Museum®. ​Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
  • Home
  • VISIT
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
  • Events
  • SUPPORT US
    • Donate >
      • Donate to the CMM Recovery Fund
      • Donate to the CMM General Fund
      • Sponsor
    • Join
    • Volunteer
  • EDUCATION PROGRAMS
    • MODEL BUILDING >
      • WOOD CARVING CLASS
      • MODEL BUILDING CLASS
      • SHIP-IN-A-BOTTLE CLASS
    • SCHOOL VISITS
    • CHICAGO HISTORY CURRICULA
  • History
    • Commerce and the Waterways
    • Military Training
    • Shipwrecks
    • Recreation and Tourism
  • Collections
    • Artifacts >
      • Lyle Gun
      • Wells Light
    • Canoes >
      • Tete-de-Boule Birchbark
      • Canadian Birchbark Canoe
      • Eskimo Caribou Skin Kayak
      • Greenland Eskimo Kayak
      • U.S. Coast Guard Rescue Craft
    • Images >
      • Chicago Lighthouse
      • Lady Elgin
      • Rush Street Bridge
      • Fort Dearborn
    • Model Watercraft >
      • Le Griffon
      • Lady Elgin
      • Challenge
      • Subchaser 1943
      • USS Wolverine
  • News
  • Online Stories