Third Panel Session

The Illinois and Michigan Canal experience

If heritage development strategies are to work as effective preservation and conservation tools, however, there must be thorough identification and understanding of the region’s critical resources and a corresponding appreciation of their significance by elected officials, developers, community leaders, and residents. To this end, a conceptual framework drawn from the humanities has shaped the basic character of the heritage corridor from its inception. A strong public history component has been incorporated at every stage, including public lecture series, publications, community conferences, traveling exhibitions, oral histories, photographic surveys, and multi-media presentations. In order to “read” the layered landscape of the canal corridor and encourage its further exploration by individuals and institutions, a multi-disciplinary approach to planning and interpretation has been pursued, involving the academic community from diverse fields as part of the public education process.

Interpretation of the cultural landscape is clearly one of the most important ingredients in this emerging new regionalism. Once residents in one town begin to understand their historical connections with other communities in a region that has a common heritage, a shared sense of history can help bridge geographical differences and create a willingness to put aside local rivalries in order to work on collaborative efforts – be they tourism promotion, development of a recreational trail, or support for a treasured landmark or natural area threatened with destruction. Interpretation is the “glue” that provides regional thematic cohesion and establishes a sense of common ground and collective past.

The Heritage Corridor Commission, created by the federal legislation and appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, has convened representatives of all the public and private entities engaged in interpretation throughout the corridor to explore shared themes and to place these individual stories within the broader context of the entire corridor. The Interpreters Group serves as an invaluable volunteer base for coordinating and improving site interpretation in the corridor. It also advises and assists the Commission regarding needs and opportunities for public education and quality interpretation on a regional basis. Early and continuing efforts to develop comprehensive corridor signage, interpretive brochures, and wayside exhibits have helped move the heritage corridor in the public’s mind from a vague concept to part of their daily lives.

Understanding of the corridor’s landscape in terms of past human endeavor has forged a framework for regional stewardship and advocacy that did not exist previously. A new corridor-wide constituency unites Chicago with “downstate,” creating an unprecedented and extremely powerful unified voice in Springfield and Washington concerning matters of funding and public policy. While traditional competition over turf and age-old rivalries between communities persist, the heritage corridor, by definition, encourages collaborations and partnerships in a number of ways – at the local level within an individual community, between the public and private sectors, and on a regional scale between communities, governmental agencies and others.

A highly successful example of regional cooperation is found in the work of the Heritage Corridor Visitors Bureau. Originally a tourism bureau created to promote only the community of Joliet, the Heritage Corridor Visitors Bureau has now expanded its geographic focus to market the attractions of the corridor region through ad campaigns, publications, and five tourist information offices located in corridor communities.

Another pioneering example of multi-jurisdictional cooperation that demonstrates the power of the federal designations to serve as a catalyst for voluntary collaboration is the Centennial Trail. Extending 26 miles through three counties, the Centennial Trail, when completed, will connect the eastern edge of the City of Chicago with the existing 60-mile Illinois and Michigan Canal State Trail. This scenic trail is being developed for hiking and bicycling on more than one thousand acres of land, previously inaccessible to the public, owned by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. The trail will be managed as a recreational and educational resource by three separate forest preserve districts. Even though these neighboring districts all include holdings along the lower DesPlaines River Valley, which includes the I & M Canal, they had never met to explore the opportunities for joint projects until the heritage corridor initiative was launched.

In order for a long-term vision to survive and remain vital, there must be an initial action plan with highly visible results that demonstrate in tangible ways the philosophy and goals of the program. Since implementation of the heritage corridor’s goals is voluntary and requires the involvement of diverse public and private partners, one must always think strategically about how best to leverage limited resources to achieve the greatest impact. Well-executed demonstration projects provide concrete expression of relatively abstract goals, establish high standards, and also serve as models that inspire others to undertake similar action.

The Gaylord Building in Lockport is a dramatic example in the heritage corridor of a project that has inspired creative thinking about the corridor’s underutilized or abandoned historic structures, and has served as an anchor for regional tourism and a catalyst for the revitalization of downtown Lockport. Without the vision and generosity of Gaylord Donnelley and members of his family the 1838 limestone warehouse would probably not have survived. A meaningful public/ private partnership, this privately-funded $2.5 million rehabilitation required the active participation of various local and state agencies. Today the Gaylord Building houses a gallery of the Illinois State Museum, a state-operated visitors center, and the acclaimed Public Landing Restaurant. When the project won the President’s Award for Historic Preservation in 1988, it generated great pride in the community and throughout the whole corridor. In many ways, the Gaylord Building has become a symbol of the rebirth of the region.

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