CHAPTER III

CHICAGO, THE METROPOLIS OF THE MIDDLE WEST

The Old North West Territory 31

Reasons for expecting continuous growth in the Middle West 31

Increase in the population of Chicago 32

Recovery after the great fire of 1871 32

Chicago’s population fifty years hence 33

Attractions of city life 33

The suburbs of Chicago 34

Real estate speculation subversive of good planning 35

The development of the suburb 36

Dependence of the suburb on the municipality 37

Highways along Lake Michigan 38

A system of highways for the territory within sixty miles of Chicago 39

Suburban transit facilities 39

The advantages of good roads 39

Four sets of encircling highways proposed 40

Highways parallel to railroads 41

Suburban travel needs more comfortable conditions 41

The influence of the electric-railway and the automobile on suburban life 42