McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum

The McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum celebrates the Chicago River and its world-famous movable bridges.

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Drawbridges Open and Close - Author Read Aloud and Visit

Thursday, June 9, 2016

3:30pm  5:00pm

Leading up to the Chicago Tribune Printers Row Lit Fest the McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum is having a special children's author read aloud and visit. On Thursday, June 9 at 3:30 and again at 4:30 pm, bridge historian and children's author Patrick McBriarty will be at the McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum to read his picture book Drawbridges Open and Close. Attendees will then go into the museum gear room to see and learn how a Chicago drawbridge works. Talk about hands-on learning and a great introduction to STEM/STEAM topics! This is an exciting way for kids to visit this one of a kind bridgehouse museum and introduce kids to how things work. The event is recommended for 3 - 10 year olds, but open to kids of all ages. Weather permitting the reading will occur on the Riverwalk on the west side of the Michigan Avenue Bridge in front of the museum. Otherwise we will be on the ground floor of the museum in the SW tower of the Michigan Avenue Bridge.

http://www.bridgehousemuseum.org/news-and-features/2016/6/9/drawbridges-open-and-close-author-read-aloud-and-visit

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Canoeing all the way down the Chicago River to the Gulf of Mexico! 

Here are images of Mikaylo canoeing all the way from Wilmette harbor to the Gulf of Mexico!

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The Chicago River Day 2016 experince of  Katherine McKeough

I signed up to volunteer after watching Geoffrey Baer's River Tour on PBS. During the plea for donations, they mentioned friends of the river and Chicago River day. I knew I wanted to volunteer bc I love kayaking on the river and I knew that sewage flows into the river when it rains. I signed up for the museum site bc it was along the route I like to kayak, and I just assumed I'd be picking up trash. I have seen so many weird pieces of garbage in the river - one day there was a trail of about 20 whole lemons floating along from DuSable to Jackson. It was so bizarre. I'm very happy I ended up at the museum working inside talking to people because I am a people-person who enjoys that sort of thing, I learned a lot about the river (especially it's pre-white-settler days and how the whole sewage thing works), and I got to see the bridge go up from below, which I've never seen before!!

Photos taken by Katherine McKeough

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Chicago River Day 2016 

   Last Saturday was Chicago River Day and the 10th season opening of the McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum! Last Saturday I had the pleasure of volunteering at the  McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum as part of Chicago River Day 2016, myself and Katherine McKeough got to work with the museums staff to help visitors on such a busy and exciting opening day. 

  My favorite moments of the day were seeing so many people walk through the doors and getting to know this museum, seeing the Michigan Avenue bridge lift for the first time this year, seeing the gears of the Michigan venue bridge was a majorly cool moment (it is SO loud!), and seeing people’s reactions as they walk through the museum

  As a newbie to Chicago (I’m from Los Angeles) the BHM is a great place to go to see the city (the museum has amazing views!) and to learn about Chicago through a way I would have never thought about, through the river! If you love Chicago history, are an environmental buff, an engineering nerd, or you just wannt a change to walk in an actual bridge tower the BHM IS FOR YOU!!! 

Images:.

1. Me and the Director of the BHM

2. A group of friends sailing down the Chicago River

3.Welcome sign outside the BHM

4. The Michigan Avenue gears in action!

Photo Credit :  Katherine McKeough and Emily Daura 

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Want to find another way to support the BHM aside from volunteering for Chicago River Day 2016? We have partnered up with Corner Bakery Cafe to have 15% your purchase benefit the BHM! Present this flyer as a hard copy for on your device on May 14th 2016 at  Corner Bakery Cafe location of 360 North Michigan Avenue! Please and Thank You Chicago!

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Help make the Chicago River healthier and more fish friendly by adopting one of Friends' 195,000 channel catfish. Released as part of one of Friends' groundbreaking restoration projects, this baby catfish and others like it need food, shelter, and a healthy river environment that they can call home!

By adopting a catfish or giving one as a gift, you make it possible for Friends to advocate for clean water and healthy habitat, which will make the river better for the over 70 species of fish, countless species of birds, beavers, muskrats, turtles and even occasional river otter that call the river home. 

 Not only are you helping the environment with a symbolic adoption of a catfish, it is also a perfect gift to celebrate birthdays, or special occasions such as Mother's Day, Father's Day, or Grandparent's Day. Adoption kits include a beautiful, personalized certificate with a photo of your fish, a welcome letter, catfish stickers, fact sheet, a Friends' membership, and more. 

 Click here for a catfish!

  P.S. Our success is made possible by people like you who invest in our mission to improve and protect the Chicago River system. Thank you!

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Overflow Action Days: A Simple Guide to Water Conservation 

Something that Friends of the Chicago River and the McCormick Bridgehouse and Chicago River Museum want to point out is the importance of conserving water during storms. As less water used = Less pollution in the Chicago River system.

The Chicago metropolitan area is served by a vast system of tunnels and reservoirs that more storm water, sewage, and individual waste . Understandings how all thee pieces work are connected will help you understand why you should conserve water in and around your work or at work.

Individual action is more urgent now because climate change is causing more frequent heavy rainstorms that overwhelm the system. Rain events add water to the sewer system (see illustration) and when the pipes are full, sewage drains to the river. Sometimes rain can trigger a release of untreated sewage and storm water to Lake Michigan. Additionally, storm water  picks up some pollutants and can carry them directly to the river in places where sewage and storm sewers separate. In areas where pipes are combined, pollutants, such as salt, motor oil, fertilizers, and cleaning products, are also not removed through waste water management treatment technology. These pollutants kill fish, harm people, and prevent the Chicago River system from truly becoming one of the world’s greatest metropolitan rivers. You can learn more about the water waste treatment process at www.chicagoriver.org/overflowaction 

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Two years after Illinois legalized same-sex marriage statewide, Cook County is approaching a new milestone.

The BHM is glad to be featured in an article on ChicagoTribune.com about same sex marriages in Cook County that will take place this summer! The article has a photo of  Christopher Saale and his fiance Elvis Garcia who will get married at the BHM this July!

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Daniel Burnham had a hand in a few of these of course.

Thanks Thrillist for naming us one of “The Best - Designed Space in Chicago”! It is truly an honor to be recognized and to be in such good company ! We encourage everyone to check out our museum space when we open for our 10th season along the Chicago River May 14th!

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Do you dream about swimming in the Chicago River some day? Join this Friends of the Chicago River at the McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum for a discussion about the possible future of Chicago River!

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Getting to the Bridge Museum Part 2

In preparation for our season opening on May 14th we partnered up with students at SAIC to create videos help you find and get to our museum! Take a look at one of the two videos showing you how to get to the B.H.M.

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Hey Chicago come celebrate Earth Day with us!

The B.H.M. is honored to be hosting an Earth Day rally with many prominent environmental groups!

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World's Largest Ultraviolet Disinfection Facility Tackles Chicago River

The notoriously polluted Chicago River is about to get cleaner with disinfection technology at a Skokie water treatment facility.

Ever wonder they ways the water in the Chicago River is cleaned? Look no further ! Happy Monday!

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#loveinthetower  Series Part :2

 This past weekend (Friday March 18th, 2016) at the B.H.M. we were glad to host the wedding ceremony of Robin Mueller and Michael Slajchert. Spring is all around and love is in the air at the B.H.M.  Here is to the happy couple!

 For those of you interested in the gorgeous look of the bride:

Gown: Teri Jon by Rickie Freeman http://www.terijon.com/index.php

Headpiece: David's Bridal

Earrings: BHLDN http://www.bhldn.com/

Shoes: Capparos

Hair/Makeup: Pin Me Up Chicago http://www.pinmeupchicago.com/

Flowers: Steve's Flower Market http://www.stevesflowermarket.com/

Photographer: Cristina G Photography http://cristinagphoto.com/

 If you are interested in hosting an event at the B.H.M. follow the link below:

http://www.bridgehousemuseum.org/venue-rentals/

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What is age, but a number? If our bridges could talk about their age, what would they say? Just like a fine wine our bridges get better with age. Chicago Architecture just posted a fascinating article on the 100 year old  and over  bridges here in Chicago. Believe it or not many  100 years old bridges are still working today! Do know which of our bridges are a century old ? 

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Getting to the BHM video!

We are proud to present the first of two videos to help everyone get the BHM museum when we open for our 10th season on May 14th!!!! We look forward to seeing you all there !!!!

Getting to the BHM: Chicago River Walk

We would love to give a special thank you to Jiayi Song for acting and editing these videos and Baiqi Chen for filming and directing !

Cast:

Xin Hu

Zhewei Jin

Emily Monasterio

Jiayi Song

Flora Zhang

Crew:

Baiqi Chen

Emily Daura

Jiayi Song

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Chicago River Day 2016

Enrollment for Chicago River Day starts today!!! Give back and volunteer in our multi location river clean up!

Chicago River Day, our flagship river clean-up event, is coming up on Saturday, May 14, 2016. This annual metro-wide volunteer day spans the river’s 156-mile system. Volunteers will work along the river banks and help to remove tons of litter and sort out recyclables, but can also support construction of river trails, remove invasive vegetation, and plant native plants. With over 60 locations to choose from, we are excited to see you out along the river this spring for Chicago River Day!

For more information, FAQs and how to enroll click the link below !

http://www.chicagoriver.org/get-involved/volunteer/chicago-river-day