Recondite? Random? Both? Lake Michigan Water Cribs

This is the type of esoterica (NOT the skin lotion) that I absolutely adore:

Did you know that those funny little squat structures out in Lake Michigan near Chicago are water intake “cribs”? They kinda look like boats or short stubby lighthouses.

There are four of them: the Wilson Avenue crib, the Four Mile Crib, the William E. Dever Crib and the 68th Street crib.

The Dever Crib is named after William Emmett Dever, who was mayor of Chicago from 1923 to 1927.

What is cool about these structures is that they are the source of fresh water for Chicago. They are each connected to a really long underground pipe that brings water into the city from out under the lake.

The very first crib built was the Two-Mile Crib, in 1865. Ellis Chesbrough came up with the idea in 1863 to solve the problem caused by everybody in Chicago dumping their wastewater into the river and therefore into the lake.

Chesbrough’s plan called for a two-mile-long tunnel under the lake out to the crib. The tunnel was five feet wide and lined with brick. It took several years to complete and here, for me, is the kicker: a couple of guys digging, a couple of guys laying brick, and two small mules, working six days a week for about three years, dug a tunnel 10,567 feet long UNDERNEATH the lake.

Oh my gosh does that gives me the heebity-jeebities. I get claustrophobic if my sheets are tucked in too tightly.

Can you imagine digging a tunnel two miles long and five feet wide, 200 feet under the lake? Just you and a couple other guys and two mules?

Anyway, the original Two-Mile Crib was replaced by the Carter H. Harrison crib in 1900. Carter H. Harrison was mayor of Chicago from 1879 to 1887. The William E. Dever Crib was built in 1935 as a replacement for the Harrison crib, but the two cribs ended up working side-by-side until 1997 because of increased demand for water.

As demand grew, three more cribs were built. On January 20, 1909 a fire at the 68th Street crib killed 70 workmen.

Originally there were "Crib Tenders", like lighthouse keepers, that stayed on the cribs. The four-man crews worked week rotations, changing light bulbs, doing water testing and breaking up ice dams.

Each crib had a bunkroom, shower, and kitchen.

Kinda like a tiny, weird summer camp.

Nowadays the cribs are monitored by computers and cameras, and a crew goes out about once a week to do chores and then comes right back.

In 1998 the city decided to empty the tunnel leading from the Carter Harrison Crib to shore in order to inspect it. Part of the tunnel collapsed and had to be rebuilt.

So next time you are down on the beach or cruising Lake Shore Drive, squint a little out to the east and see if you can spot one or more of the water cribs, now that you know what they are.

Recondite? Maybe. Random? Probably. Awesome? Definitely.

Crib tunnel images from:
The Tunnels and Water System of Chicago: Under the Lake and Under the River. Chicago: J.M. Wing & Co., 1874.