December 14, 1910 –The Chicago Daily Tribune reports on “one of the most remarkable features of the construction of buildings in downtown Chicago.” [Chicago Daily Tribune, December 14, 1910] As more and more tall buildings are erected in the city, engineers have found a unique way of moving the thousands of tons of material created by digging foundations. When a new foundation is begun or an old building is razed to make way for a new one, a shaft is sunk from the curb line down to the tunnel system that runs beneath the central section of the city. The refuse is dumped down this shaft, where it pours directly into open cars below the chute.
The article indicates that a large part of Grant Park has been made with debris carried 60 feet below the city streets to Polk Street and Michigan Avenue where a crane lifts the cars and dumps them. The system works, both to reuse the debris as landfill and to keep busy Loop streets free of hundreds of wagons, hauling construction waste. The above photo shows Grant Park taking shape on the other side of the Illinois Central Railroad tracks in 1907.
http://www.connectingthewindycity.com/2019/12/december-14-1953-congress-expressway.html
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