1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Waukegan

WAUKEGAN, a city and the county-seat of Lake county, Illinois, U.S.A., on the W. shore of Lake Michigan, about 36 m. N. of Chicago. Pop. (1890) 4915; (1900) 9426, of whom 2506 were foreign-born; (1910 census) 16,069. It is served by the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern (of which it is a terminus) and the Chicago & North Western railways, by an interurban electric line, and by lake steamers. In 1880 the United States government undertook the formation of an artificial harbour with a channel 13 ft. deep, and in 1902–1904 the depth was increased to 20 ft. The main portion of the city is situated about 100 ft. above the level of the lake. There are a number of parks and mineral springs, and along the lake front a fine driveway, Sheridan Road. The city is a residential suburb of Chicago. The principal buildings are the Federal building, the Court House, a Carnegie library, the Masonic Temple and McAlister Hospital. At the village of North Chicago (pop. in 1910, 3306), about 3 m. S. of Waukegan, there is a United States Naval Training Station. Waukegan is the commercial centre of an agricultural and dairying region, and has various manufactures. The total value of the factory product in 1905 was $3,961,513. Waukegan was settled about 1835, and until 1849 was known as Little Fort, which is supposed to be the English equivalent of the Indian name Waukegan. It became the county-seat of Lake county in 1841, was incorporated as a town in 1849, and first chartered as a city in 1859.