Kankakee River State Park
Encyclopedia
Kankakee River State Park is an Illinois state park on 4000 acres (1,619 ha) primarily in Kankakee
and Will
Counties, Illinois
, United States
. Originally, 35 acres (14.2 ha) of land was donated by Ethel Sturges Dummer for the creation of the state park in 1938. Another 1715 acres (694 ha) was donated by Commonwealth Edison
in 1956, and again donated more land in 1989. The islands of Smith, Hoffman, Langham, and Willow are all located inside the park on the Kankakee River
.
and Miami Indians in the 1670s and 1680s. By 1685 the Miami were sufficiently numerous that the Kankakee River was called the River of the Miami. Kickapoo and Mascouten
also frequented the river valley in the 18th century. By the 1770s, the Council of Three Fires
—the Chippewa, Ottawa
and Potawatomi
nations—dominated the area. The most extensive village was "Rock Village
" or "Little Rock Village
" inside the present-day park near the mouth of Rock Creek. In 1830 it was the site of the last great Indian Council. After 1832, the Potawatomi ceded all of their land along the Kankakee and Illinois rivers to the United States. Most Potawatomi left the area by the end of the decade, except for Chief Shaw-waw-nas-see, whose grave is commemorated by a boulder along the nature trail at Rock Creek.
Noel Le Vasseur
and other fur traders, including Hubbard Chabare and Francois Bourbonnais
, traded with the Potawatomi along the Kankakee and Iroquois rivers in the 1820s. When the Potawatomi left the area in 1838, Le Vasseur persuaded a number of his fellow French Canadians to emigrate from Quebec to the Bourbonnais Township area. Because of his settlement efforts, he is called "the father of Kankakee."
The Kankakee & Iroquois Navigation Company - later known as the Kankakee Company - was chartered in 1847 to provide water power and a navigable waterway from the Illinois & Michigan Canal to Warner's Landing, along the site of the present-day Warner Bridge Road. The company failed shortly after the Wabash Railroad arrived in the 1880's. At the Chippewa Campground, hand-cut limestone pillars mark where a railway bridge was to have been built before financiers ran out of money.
A major industry in the area in the 1890s was the Custer Bowery Amusement Park, which drew crowds from Chicago. The park was gone by the 1920s, and the river was a popular for summer cottages. In 1938 Chicago resident Ethel Sturges Dummer donated 35 acres (141,640.1 m²) of land for a state park. Commonwealth Edison turned over another 1715 acres (6.9 km²) to the state in 1956. With the company's additional grants in 1989, the park now roughly totals 4000 acres (16.2 km²).
, with places to sit along the river, others go into the forests or along Rock Creek
, a tributary of the Kankakee River that cuts through the ground, creating a gorge with cliffs. The trails are very diverse.The site is very good for mushroom hunting.
The park's trails stretch along both sides of the river. Hiking, biking and cross-country ski trails are on the river's north side. Horse and snowmobile trails can be found on the south. A 3 miles (4.8 km) route along Rock Creek lets hikers take in the beauty of limestone canyons and a waterfall. A bicycle trail begins at Davis Creek Area and travels 10.5 miles (16.9 km) of trails in the form of a linear trail along the river and a loop in the west end of the park. When there's snow cover of 4 inches (101.6 mm) or more, the park is open from sunrise to sunset for snowmobiling. Directional signs for trails are posted and maps are available at the park office.
Kankakee County, Illinois
Kankakee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 113,449, which is an increase of 9.3% from 103,833 in 2000. Its county seat is Kankakee....
and Will
Will County, Illinois
As of the census of 2000, there were 502,266 people, 167,542 households, and 131,017 families residing in the county. The population density was 600 people per square mile . There were 175,524 housing units at an average density of 210 per square mile...
Counties, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Originally, 35 acres (14.2 ha) of land was donated by Ethel Sturges Dummer for the creation of the state park in 1938. Another 1715 acres (694 ha) was donated by Commonwealth Edison
Commonwealth Edison
Commonwealth Edison is the largest electric utility in Illinois, serving the Chicago and Northern Illinois area...
in 1956, and again donated more land in 1989. The islands of Smith, Hoffman, Langham, and Willow are all located inside the park on the Kankakee River
Kankakee River
The Kankakee River is a tributary of the Illinois River, approximately long, in northwestern Indiana and northeastern Illinois in the United States. At one time the river drained one of the largest wetlands in North America and furnished a significant portage between the Great Lakes and the...
.
History
Before the arrival of Europeans, native Americans occupied the Kankakee River valley in the area that is now the state park. This region was historically occupied by IlliniIlliniwek
The Illinois Confederation, sometimes referred to as the Illiniwek or Illini, were a group of twelve to thirteen Native American tribes in the upper Mississippi River valley of North America...
and Miami Indians in the 1670s and 1680s. By 1685 the Miami were sufficiently numerous that the Kankakee River was called the River of the Miami. Kickapoo and Mascouten
Mascouten
The Mascouten were a tribe of Algonquian-speaking native Americans who are believed to have dwelt on both sides of the Mississippi River adjacent to the present-day Wisconsin-Illinois border....
also frequented the river valley in the 18th century. By the 1770s, the Council of Three Fires
Council of Three Fires
The Council of Three Fires, also known as the People of the Three Fires, the Three Fires Confederacy, the United Nations of Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi Indians, or Niswi-mishkodewin in the Anishinaabe language, is a long-standing Anishinaabe alliance of the Ojibwe , Ottawa , and Potawatomi...
—the Chippewa, Ottawa
Odawa people
The Odawa or Ottawa, said to mean "traders," are a Native American and First Nations people. They are one of the Anishinaabeg, related to but distinct from the Ojibwe nation. Their original homelands are located on Manitoulin Island, near the northern shores of Lake Huron, on the Bruce Peninsula in...
and Potawatomi
Potawatomi
The Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire" and that was applied...
nations—dominated the area. The most extensive village was "Rock Village
Little Rock Village
Little Rock Village was a Native American village of the Potawatomi people located on the north bank of the Kankakee River, at a site close to the current boundary between Kankakee and Will counties of the state of Illinois in the United States. The location now lies within the present-day...
" or "Little Rock Village
Little Rock Village
Little Rock Village was a Native American village of the Potawatomi people located on the north bank of the Kankakee River, at a site close to the current boundary between Kankakee and Will counties of the state of Illinois in the United States. The location now lies within the present-day...
" inside the present-day park near the mouth of Rock Creek. In 1830 it was the site of the last great Indian Council. After 1832, the Potawatomi ceded all of their land along the Kankakee and Illinois rivers to the United States. Most Potawatomi left the area by the end of the decade, except for Chief Shaw-waw-nas-see, whose grave is commemorated by a boulder along the nature trail at Rock Creek.
Noel Le Vasseur
Noel Le Vasseur
Noel Le Vasseur was a trader and merchant born in St. Michel d`Yamaska, Canada and died in Bourbonnais Grove, Illinois....
and other fur traders, including Hubbard Chabare and Francois Bourbonnais
Bourbonnais, Illinois
Bourbonnais is a village in Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,256 at the 2000 census, but it was estimated to have grown to 19,119 in 2009...
, traded with the Potawatomi along the Kankakee and Iroquois rivers in the 1820s. When the Potawatomi left the area in 1838, Le Vasseur persuaded a number of his fellow French Canadians to emigrate from Quebec to the Bourbonnais Township area. Because of his settlement efforts, he is called "the father of Kankakee."
The Kankakee & Iroquois Navigation Company - later known as the Kankakee Company - was chartered in 1847 to provide water power and a navigable waterway from the Illinois & Michigan Canal to Warner's Landing, along the site of the present-day Warner Bridge Road. The company failed shortly after the Wabash Railroad arrived in the 1880's. At the Chippewa Campground, hand-cut limestone pillars mark where a railway bridge was to have been built before financiers ran out of money.
A major industry in the area in the 1890s was the Custer Bowery Amusement Park, which drew crowds from Chicago. The park was gone by the 1920s, and the river was a popular for summer cottages. In 1938 Chicago resident Ethel Sturges Dummer donated 35 acres (141,640.1 m²) of land for a state park. Commonwealth Edison turned over another 1715 acres (6.9 km²) to the state in 1956. With the company's additional grants in 1989, the park now roughly totals 4000 acres (16.2 km²).
Camping
There are camping facilities located inside the park. Potawatomi Campground, offers Class A amenities with 110 sites and two Rent-a-Cabins in a wooded setting. The Chippewa Campground, offers 105 sites with Class B electric and C facilities. Reservations are taken for Kankakee River Class A, B, and C campgrounds. All campsites share a picnic table and a campgrill. Camping is only allowed in the campgrounds. The Equestrian Campground off Illinois Route 113 is open only from April 1 through October 31.basisHiking
There are plenty of hiking trails throughout the park that go through different ecosystems and different park features. While some go along the Kankakee RiverKankakee River
The Kankakee River is a tributary of the Illinois River, approximately long, in northwestern Indiana and northeastern Illinois in the United States. At one time the river drained one of the largest wetlands in North America and furnished a significant portage between the Great Lakes and the...
, with places to sit along the river, others go into the forests or along Rock Creek
Rock Creek (Illinois)
Rock Creek is a tributary of the Kankakee River in the U.S. state of Illinois. It empties into the Kankakee River in Kankakee River State Park which is just north west of the city of Kankakee. It starts in higher land and then drops into the Kankakee River Valley. Because of this, the river has...
, a tributary of the Kankakee River that cuts through the ground, creating a gorge with cliffs. The trails are very diverse.The site is very good for mushroom hunting.
The park's trails stretch along both sides of the river. Hiking, biking and cross-country ski trails are on the river's north side. Horse and snowmobile trails can be found on the south. A 3 miles (4.8 km) route along Rock Creek lets hikers take in the beauty of limestone canyons and a waterfall. A bicycle trail begins at Davis Creek Area and travels 10.5 miles (16.9 km) of trails in the form of a linear trail along the river and a loop in the west end of the park. When there's snow cover of 4 inches (101.6 mm) or more, the park is open from sunrise to sunset for snowmobiling. Directional signs for trails are posted and maps are available at the park office.