The Masked Man of the River

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June 2018 Local maritime news, events and history from the Chicago Maritime Museum The Masked Man of the River Two hundred years ago, on December 3, 1818, Illinois became the 21 st State in the Union.

This month read about The Fox, an ecological super-hero and his efforts to protect the Fox River. By Theodore J.

It is a memorial to a man known to a generation of junior-high-school students as a mild-mannered science teacher. To his neighbors he was an unassuming fellow often seen walking his dog.

1 June 2018 Local maritime news, events and history from the Chicago Maritime Museum The Masked Man of the River Two hundred years ago, on December 3, 1818, Illinois became the 21 st State in the Union. CMM has been officially endorsed by the Office of the Illinois Bicentennial for promoting the proud history of our statehood. This month read about The Fox, an ecological super-hero and his efforts to protect the Fox River. By Theodore J. Karamanski, CMM Operations Board member and Loyola University Professor In a park in Oswego, Illinois, sits a boulder inscribed with one word, Fox. It is a memorial to a man known to a generation of junior-high-school students as a mild-mannered science teacher. To his neighbors he was an unassuming fellow often seen walking his dog. However, Jim Phillips was much more than he seemed at first glance. He was in fact an ecological super-hero who assumed the nom-de-guerre The Fox to save the environment of the Chicago area. His secret life began in 1969 when a walk along the banks of the Fox River was interrupted by the sight of several dead baby ducks. Pollution from an Armour Corporation plant producing Dial soap appeared to be the culprit. When complaints to both the government and the company yielded no remediation, Phillips resorted to covert action. He stuffed shut the drain pipe that spewed the pollution, and before retreating, drew the face of a fox on the drain cover. Phillips then secretly began a multistate campaign to attach warnings to Dial soap bars in pharmacies and grocery stores. They read Dial Kills our Water.

2 In the years that followed The Fox took on corporate giants such as U.S. Steel and Cargill, and pressured both local government and the Environmental Protection Agency to become proactive protectors of our air and water. Lake Michigan was a frequent beneficiary of his actions. Over time he recruited a small army of supporters, many of them former students, to increase public awareness, and to fight litter pollution. The Fox took direct action, breaking windows, spilling polluted water on to the floors of corporate offices, depositing road-kill on the doorsteps of executives, but he was careful to never physically hurt another person. Jim Phillips first love was the Fox River and much of his work focused on protecting its woods and waters. In the 1970s he joined with Chicago Maritime Museum co-founder Ralph Frese to promote paddling the river. Frese supplied one of his patented 21-foot replica voyageur canoes and together, with a band of fellow environmentalists, dressed as 17th century explorers to publicized the recreational potential of the lower Fox River. In 1970 he told Newsweek, Nobody ever stuck up for that poor, mistreated stream, so I decided to do something in its name. Today, the Fox River today is still a waterway in need of citizen-caretakers. The Fox flows 185 miles from its source in southeastern Wisconsin to its junction with the Illinois River. The river drops 470 feet as it makes its journey, creating a considerable current. Fifteen dams were built in the Illinois section of the river; many once powered grist mills and were critical to the development of the area s pioneer agriculture. Later this water power helped to attract industry to the Fox Valley, notably in Elgin and Aurora. Dams also were employed to create stretches of flat water for parks or to control flood waters. However, today the dams are worse than redundant. While the work of Jim Phillips and others led to a significant increase in the water quality of the Fox River, the dams prevent the return of natural habitats to the valley. They also are a danger to swimmers and boaters who periodically are drowned when they get caught in the powerful undertow created by the falling water. Jim Phillips died in He was only 70 years-old but he made a lasting mark on the Chicago area, well deserving of the river bank memorial that was placed in his honor in His work continues through the Friends of the Fox River, who advocate for the river with local and state government. Better still, the group has trained hundreds of students and citizen volunteers to monitor the river s quality and undertake projects to restore its habitat. Through their work the legacy of The Fox endures.

Third Friday on June 15 Presents Documentary Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes The feature-length documentary, Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes, takes viewers below the surface of the

3 Third Friday on June 15 Presents Documentary Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes The feature-length documentary, Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes, takes viewers below the surface of the world s largest freshwater ecosystem, and into the middle of a complex war for survival. For more than a century, non-native species of plants, fish, invertebrates, and microscopic organisms have been silently invading the Great Lakes, leaving devastation in their wake. These invasive species are transforming the ecosystem from top to bottom, pushing some native species to the brink of extinction, and costing the region hundreds of millions of dollars in control expenses and lost revenue each year. With more than 180 invasive species in the Great Lakes watershed, and new invasives on the radar, the future of the Great Lakes is at stake. Narrated by Bill Curtis, Making Waves is the winner of four Emmys. Written, produced and edited by Brendan and Jessica Walsh and with original music by Gabriel Jaskowiak, the film was made possible in part by: The Nature Conservancy, Fortune Brands, Boat US Foundation, and the Chicago Marine Heritage Society. See a preview of this documentary The Open House is from 7 to 10 p.m on Friday, June 15. Presentation begins at 7:30 p.m. The museum is located at 1200 W. 35th, inside the Bridgeport Art Center. Parking is free on the north side of the building. Museum entrance is free on Third Fridays, but the presentation is $5 for members and $10 for non-members at the door. The Operations Board of CMM will continue supporting Third Friday Open House with a light food and beverage table.

the Curator s Corner by Don Glasell The Story Behind CMM s Canvas Covered Dinghy Do you know the story of this boat at the museum?

Called The Old Town Dinghy, the boat was purchased new in 1953 and donated to the museum in 1987 to help illustrate the recreational use of the waterways.

The origins of using canvas covering as water proofing the outside of canoes and kayaks can be traced to Maine and its early canoe makers.

4 the Curator s Corner by Don Glasell The Story Behind CMM s Canvas Covered Dinghy Do you know the story of this boat at the museum? It s located in the recreational section by the west door to Bubbly Creek. Called The Old Town Dinghy, the boat was purchased new in 1953 and donated to the museum in 1987 to help illustrate the recreational use of the waterways. This boat was made by The Old Town Dinghy Company in Old Town Maine, a company established in 1898 that still exists today making cloth covered canoes and kayaks. The origins of using canvas covering as water proofing the outside of canoes and kayaks can be traced to Maine and its early canoe makers. It s still used today as a technique and, if you re willing, you can even order a complete kit from Old Town to build a boat just like the one at the museum. Illinois Department of Natural Resources Scraps License for Non-mortorized Watercraft If it doesn t have a motor, you don t need a state license to float it on an Illinois lake, river, or pond. Read more here: news/local/illinois-dropsboating-license-forrafts-kayaks-canoes/ article_ba3a045a-5dba- 11e8-ae2c-d73d7768a1fe. html#utm_campaign=blox- &utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social

com/entertainment/watch-pedal-along-the-chicago-river/3484267/ Mackinac Island Named No.

5 Cycleboats Offers New Way to See Chicago River Passengers sit on bicycle seats and continuously bike, in turn driving a large paddle wheel that pushes the boat along. Read more here: abc7chicago.com/entertainment/watch-pedal-along-the-chicago-river/ / Mackinac Island Named No.1 Summer Destination in America The vacation planning website TripAdvisor has named Mackinac Island the No. 1 summer travel destination in America for Read more here:

6 SOUTH BRAN CH CHICAGO RIVER ASHLAND AVENUE BUBBLY CREEK 55 BRIDGEPORT PARKING LOT NORTH ENTRANCE CHICAGO MARITIME MUSEUM RACINE AVENUE HALSTED AVENUE Making your way to the Chicago Maritime Museum! 35TH STREET NOT TO SCALE MARITIME EVENT CALENDAR Check out local maritime events at the Chicago Maritime Museum website calendar page: Submit maritime events in the Chicagoland area to Mary Ann O Rourke at maorourke@ameritech.net. We hope you ve enjoyed our monthly e-newsletter, On the Move. If you have a Chicago maritime story idea please forward it to maorourke@ameritech.net.

The Canoe and Checagou

The Canoe and Checagou From exploration, to trade and recreation, the enduring canoe connects Chicago to its history by Mary Ann O Rourke Chicago Maritime Museum (c) December 2012 page 1 The Canoe and