The New York herald., 1921-06-19
Why Chicago Is in Illinois.

Why Chicago Is in Illinois.
Chicago is in Illinois instead of In
Wisconsin because one MITCHELL
made a mistake. An indirect result
of this error is that the State of
Michigan Is now threatening the
State of Wisconsin with a lawsuit for
tho recovery of the village Of Hurley
and $50 square miles adjacent thereto.
which territory Michigan claims IL
her own, wrongfully withheld from
her by Wisconsin. Out Of this con-
tention has arisen a project for the
secession of the upper peninsula from
Michigan and it's erection into a sep
arate sovereign State under the name
Of the State of Superior.
Friction between Michigan and
Wisconsin was appreciably increased
recently when resolution introduced
in the Wisconsin Legislature invited
the people of the upper, detached
peninsula Of Michigan to cut loose
and join Wisconsin. The region Is
separated from Michigan by the four
miles Of water forming the Strait Of
Mackinac. There is no such water
barrier between it and Wisconsin.
The resolution failed to pass but 1t
reused the people Of Michigan to ac-
ton. A Legislative committee with
$4,000 appropriation for expenses
was appointed to investigate the
Michigan-W Wisconsin boundary. The
investigation resulted in the Michi-
gan boundary line being extended to
include the village Of Hurley and the
adjoining $50 square miles now
mapped and included as within the
jurisdiction of Wisconsin. When the
Governor of Wisconsin refused to ar
bitrate the matter the committee rec
commended that Michigan begin legal
proceedings for the recovery OF the
territory.
Now all of this, together with CIV
ing Chicago to Illinois instead Of to
Wisconsin, is the direct and indirect
result of the mistake MITCHELL made
in 1775 when he undertook to make
map with the southern bend or
extreme" of Lake Michigan as point
of departure. That southernmost tip
of the lake was designated as his
base for map making measurements.
He fixed it in latitude 1920. AS a
matter of fact it is in latitude 1887.
The few miles involved in this error
include all the miles Of Chicago's
length ard breadth along the west
shore of the lake.
But that was not all the mischief
which flowed from MrTcHELL's blum
der. 1t led to grim visaged war be-
tween two great American Common
wealths. The casus belli was q dis
pute between Michigan and Ohio over
a strip of land which MITcHELL's
map left in jurisdictional doubt.
There was an appeal to arms. Gov
ernor LUCAS led the forces of Ohio
in person. Governor MASON led those
of Michigan. There were hostile col
lisions. Nobody was killed, but 1t
was in the watermelon season Of
1886 and there was dire havoc in all
patches" in the entire zone OF con-
fiict. Likewise was there terrible
slaughter OF barnyard poultry along
all the lines OF march. Toledo was
captured by Michiganders. Major
STIcKNEY's ice house was demol-
ished. The front door of his resi-
dence was smashed in. He himself
was seized and carried a prisoner of
war into the wilds Of Michigan.
Then Washington took hand in
the conflict as a peacemaker. Two
ambassadors, RICHARD RUSH OF Penn
sylvania and Colonel HOWARD of
Maryland, were sent to the scene.
They had plenary powers to nego-
tiate an amicable settlement. They
were successful. Michigan was salts
fled with her laurels won on the field
OF battle. Ohio had to be satisfied
with standing on her dignity eight
miles from the disputed territory.
The humiliation rankled in the
Buckeye breast. At the next session
OF court in Wood county, Ohio, the
prosecuting attorney brought, bills OF
Indictment against the Governor of
Michigan and others. The bills were
thrown out by the Grand Jury. De-
feated in the field and In the courts,
Ohio next appealed to Congress. Un-
der the leadership of her sons SAM
uEL r. VrNToN in the House and
Tom EwINo in the Senate she car
ried the day. She got the disputed
eight mile strip and Michigan in
compensation got the great penin-
sula between Lakes Huron, Michigan
and Superior-the region fabulously
rich in copper and other minerals.
Thus on the'pivot OF this original
Mitchell error hung the giving of
Chicago to Illinois, the great Michi-
gan-Ohio war, and now hangs the
threatened Wisconsin law.
suit. But for the Ohio war Michigan
would never have got the peninsula