The Detroit River
The Detroit River has been a staple feature of life in Michigan for centuries, providing water and transport for many communities. From the fur trade to industrialization, the river has been a crucial conduit for commerce. In 1872, the Detroit River handled over half of lake commerce and over a third of all waterborne traffic in the United States (Army Corps of Engineers, 1874). Before the creation of the Livingston Channel, this river had bidirectional traffic which proved tricky. By the 19th century, the Limekiln Crossing was a chokepoint—ships coming in both directions tended to jostle each other at busy times. The irregular depth of the crossing also was beholden to the wind and made accidents quite frequent. The crossing itself was "wholly" in Canadian waters; therefore, any improvements were a political hurdle. Since the Great Lakes region had long functioned as a borderlands, wholly national borders were complicated.
The river itself flows west and south for 28 miles from Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie. It also acts as an international boundary between Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Canada. The two countries are connected by the Ambassador Bridge, the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel, and the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel. The Detroit River has functioned as one of the world's busiest waterwyas since its use even before French settlement in the region. This waterway connects the upper Great Lakes Superior, Michigan and Huron to the lower Great Lakes Erie and Ontario and eventually the St. Lawrence Seaway. As a boundary, the river has been a highly sought after commodity between warring nations from France and Britain to the U.S.'s eventual consolidation of the territory after the War of 1812. As such, the river has played an important role in facilitating movement throughout the centuries. Not only that, but the Detroit River played an important role in the development of the surrounding area.
From Cadillac to industrilization, people have long realized the importance of this waterway. In 1818, the U.S. opened a land office in Detroit. Wooden piers were built to sustain the traffic and goods coming from international waters. Perhaps most famously, the Detroit River served as the final stop on the underground railroad and was the most active entry and exit point along the border for fugitive slaves. The location of the river in the upper midwest rather than the south made it popular because of its proximity to free states. The transnational fluidity of the border region along the Detroit River made it a poltical nightmare and a commercial haven. Following Detroit's indisutrialization of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the river became the world's busiest waterway and was dubbed "the Greatest Commercial Artery on Earth" by the Detroit News in 1908. 1907 tonnage measured at 67,292,504, which was higher than both New York and London.
By the time the fur trade had declined, Michigan's economy had been boosted by the exploitation of lumber-rich areas of northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. The city of Detroit and its surrounding counties turned into a major industrial region, largely because of the Detroit River. The only way a ship could reach the St. Lawrence Seaway was down the Detroit River. From there, ships could travel anywhere in the world out of the St. Lawrence Seaway or the Erie Canal to New York City. The Detroit Free Press reported that the river was to be deepened and widened in 1800. The report touted that the channel was to be straightened for the safety of the vessels traversing the waterway.
In 1883, in a letter from the Secretary of War, Major F. U. Farquar of the Army Corps of Engineers requested to exchange the present plan to "excavate a curved channel 150 feet wide and 20 feet deep" for a straight channel instead of the same dimensions, which would be "safer for navigation at all times." Farquar complained that the present channel's rocky and jagged edges could easily sink a ship, and apart from easing navigation, an improved channel would make commerical sense as well. The channel was eventually straightened for the benefit of commerce. In 1885, the Detroit Free Press further reported that "being greatly impressed by the magnitude of the interests concerned in this improvement and by the fact that the project would be completed at a cost less than half," the chief engineer considered widening the channel even further. Because of the earlier improvements, the shorelines had been left jagged and he worried that ships would "surely come to grief" there.
In 1886, the channel was widened by an additional 100 feet from the American side, making it 400 feet wide. Historian Ramya Swayamprakash argued that "the need for efficient shipping only further increased calls for a deeper, wider channel throughout the Great Lakes to meet the demands of faster, bigger ships that needed deeper channels." By the turn of the century, railroads skirted by on an advantage. In 1889, a tunnel had opened between Port Hurn and Sarnia under the St. Clair River. The tunnel had reduced the demand for ferries crossing the river. Even with shipping interests championing the dredging of the Detroit River, a competition sparked for more efficient routes across the river including tunnels and bridges.
Less than 10 years later, with the passage of the 18th amendment, the Detroit River played a crucial role in another more lucrative commerical activity: rum-running. At less than a mile across in some places, the Detroit River has thousands of hiding places for smugglers during Prohibition. The Detroit River, Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River carried 75% of all liquor smuggled into the United States during Prohibition. The industry itself generated more that $300 million ($4 billion nowadays) annually. By 1929, bootlegging became Detroit's #2 industry behind automobiles. The Toledo-Detroit-Windsor triangle smuggled alcohol over international and state boundaries in a variety of ways.
Rum-running was the practice of transporting smuggled alcohol across the Detroit River or Lake St Clair. It was a risky business, but extremely profitable. This would be done by boat or, in the winter, smugglers would simply drive in automobiles across the frozen lake or skate across to obtain their goods. The contraband was dragged beneath boats, towed in sleds, and sped in caravans across the ice. The border patrol was overworked and had difficulties monitoring the whole river. Underground tunnels were also created from boathouses and houses along the river to hide the shipments. In one instance, a pipeline was created between a Windsor distillery and a Detroit bottler. In Detroit alone there was approximately 25,000 speak easies. Smugglers often loaded small boats with alcohol and slipped across the Great Lakes, Lake St. Clair, or the Detroit River.
Detroit went under rapid industrialization during the early 20th century. By the late 19th century, industry in Detroit included shipbuilding and railway businesses. The city's success can be atributed to its strategic location next to a busy waterway and position in relation to markets in the Great Lakes and St. Larence Seaway region. In 1932, the Rouge River—one of Detroit's largest tributaries—supported the Ford Motor Company. The river provides substantial revenue for both local and national economies. At least half of the recreational boating industry takes place on the Detroit River. With eight crossings, the Detroit River is considered a fluid border between the U.S. and Canada. 150,000 jobs depend on these river crossings. In 2004, trade with Ontario alone reached approximately $407 billion, 28% of which crossed the Detroit River. In the 21st century, the Detroit River has a variety of economic and recreational uses, and much of the lower section is now part of a wildlife refuge.
