Chicago River Museum Opens

Chicago River Museum Opens

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Chicago’s latest cultural attractions opens tomorrow.

The Chicago River Museum will give visitors an insight into the history of the waterway.

There’s a piece of Chicago River history lots of people walk by everyday perhaps without giving much notice: the concrete bridgehouses connected to every bridge that crosses the Chicago River.

The bridghouse at the southwest corner of the Michigan Avenue bridge is where people can go to learn about the river’s history - from it’s earliest pre-European settlement days through today.

The museum is run by the conservation group Friends of the Chicago River.

Executive Director Margaret Frisbie says she wants visitors to come away excited about today’s Chicago River.

The bridgehouse was built in 1920 as part of famed architect Daniel Burnham’s 1909 Chicago Plan.

Frisbie says the five story River Museum holds about 35 visitors.

She expects about 500 patrons a day.