The Skokie subdivision was a railroad bypass built in 1891 by the Chicago and Northwestern R.R. as an alternative to the freight route between Chicago and Milwaukee.  For a portion of its route it paralleled the tracks of North Shore Line.  Over the years, the  Skokie subdivision saw less use and poor maintenance.   It was about the same time 1963 that the North Shore Line sought to abandon its track.  The Northwestern purchased the better maintained North Shore line that parallel its route.  It connected to the North Shore at River Junction and Northbrook.  Portion of the original Skokie subdivision line was subsequently abandoned.

     Freight traffic along the newly reconstruced line decreased.    It was downgraded to local use serving only a few businesses.  CNW ceased service along the line in 1995.  The Union Pacific (which merged with the Northwestern) filed for abandonment of the line in 2001.  Most of the track was removed in 2004-2005

     

The two traffic bridges in the watered segment are LaSalle Street and Columbus Street.

Story dated July 13, 2021. Apparently, the rewatered section of the I and M in Ottawa, Il has hit a snag. There has been an overgrowth of cat tails and algae. There has also been compromise of the sump pump. This issue has got to the point that the canal has to been drained.

The earliest reference to a paper mill product plant in Morris was the Allen Paper Car Wheel Works 1881. Paper Car Wheels were composite of railway carriages. It was a steel rim bolted to an iron hub with an inter layer of laminated paper. They were able to damp rail/wheel noise resulting in a quiet and smooth ride. Unfortunately, over time, it was found that the wheels would fail faster than the all metal wheel.

     The Allen Paper Car Wheel Works operated until 1890. The plant in Morris subsequently was operated under many names during the next two decades including the Morris Box Board Company.

     In October, 1915, the company was reorganized under a new name Morris Paper Mills. The business flourished and by the 1920’s, it was one of the largest employers in the town of Morris. It produced cardboard boxes of various sizes and shapes. It shipped its products throughout the United States.

    In 1956, stockholders approved the merger of Morris Paper Mills with Federal Paper Board Company. The Morris plant was to operate as a division of Federal Paper Board. Federal produced paper and paper board products. The plant closed in 1980.

  This area has been in the news lately due to a fire burning for days. Apparently, the abandoned building that in the past was Morris Fiber Board company and the Federal Paper Board Company was being used by a company called Superior Battery. They apparently had been storing thousand of lithium batteries unknown to officials of Morris, Illinois.

     Burton Memorial Park is located at 1502 NE.3 Terrace, Cape Coral.  It is 8.5 acres. It is the home of the Cape Coral Girls Softball League. In addition to 4 little league softball fields, there are tennis courts, basketball courts, concession stand and picnic shelters.  There is also playground equipment.

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The above pictures were taken.on 6/25/2021 They demonstrate no significant progress in the project.

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Plaque is dated 1933

Secretary of the Treasury William Woodin

Postmaster General James Farley

Assistant Secretary Treasury Lawrence W. Robert

Acting Supervising Architect James Wetmore

Architect Nat Gaillard Wetmore

This house was built in rural Rockford, Illinois.  It was designed in 1949 by Frank Lloyd Wright for Kenneth Laurent and his wife Phyllis.  Kenneth was a paraplegic World War 2 vet.  It was the only house Wright designed for a client with physical disabilities.

This was a single story home.   The inside color scheme is orange, red and green.  Most of the furniture was build by Wright and his interns.   The Laurent’s lived in the house for  60 years.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.

Currently, the home is open  to the public for tours

     This home was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1958. It is located on Mirror Lake near the Wisconsin Dells. It is 880 square feet. It is perched on a steep hill. It has Wisconsin stone buttresses and walls.  There is a large chimney and a central fireplace.  There is an interior frieze showing stylized pine trees cut from plywood.

     Mr. Peterson commissioned  Wright to build the cottage for himself and his wife. He died before it could be built.

     The house is currently owned by Mirror Lake State Park. It is opened for tours and overnight stays.