Kenosha, WI: Harbor and American Motors Plant

(Satellite)

Mary McCorison posted
All this about Harbors and bridges got me thinking about the Kenosha, Wisconsin Harbor. We would go down there to watch the ships come in and turn around to park next to American Motors. Sometimes there would be 2 or 3 ships in at a time. This is all they had to turn around in. But, it was always exciting to watch.

 

Brendon Baillod posted three images with the comment:

This scarce Kenosha harbor view arrived a few weeks ago.  It is a divided back postcard that was mailed in 1914.

It shows a scene that no longer exists.  Until 1960, Pike Creek flowed into Kenosha Harbor at the site of present-day Navy Memorial Park.  Present-day 6th Avenue spanned the creek via a swing bridge which allowed schooners of significant size to sail up the creek to the N.R. Allen Tannery docks.

The view here looks out the creek to the northeast into the harbor.  On the left is a large trestle used to carry coal to loading chutes.  Tan bark can be seen stacked on the left bank of the creek just above the Sixth Avenue bridge caisson.  A large two-masted schooner is moored near the outside of the creek, probably having just loaded with coal at the chutes after unloading the tan bark.

In the 1950s, Pike Creek was filled in and by 1960, it was completely gone along with much of the industrial infrastructure that depended on it for transportation.  The maps below show Kenosha harbor in 1910 and today.

(This is a digital image of an archival original in my private collection.  Please include original description if resharing on Facebook.  Please credit the Brendon Baillod Collection if you wish to share outside of Facebook.)

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Apr 4, 1955 @ 17,000; AR1VDG000110147

Mar 1, 1976 @ 36,000; AR1VEDC00010008