On March 4, 1837, the city of Chicago was incorporated(that much you've been able to gather by now just from looking at the back walls of CTA bus shelters) And the man chosen to lead the newly minted city was none other than one William Ogden. Ogden was born and raised in New York. Over the years, he went to law school and served on the New York State Assembly. Eventually, he moved to Chicago, where he would help to design the first swing bridge over the Chicago River, as well as donating the land for Rush Medical Center.
Early on, Ogden was a big proponent of the I&M Canal, but as the railroads gained in popularity, he switched his allegiance to them. He used this influence in part to help facilitate the construction of the Galena and Chicago Railroad, which not only built a terminal into the city, but also is the forerunner to today's UP North(which in turn gave us the Deerpath legacy), Northwest, and West(which honors the legacy of Kate Shelley to this day) Lines. Later in his life, his home was lost as a casualty to the Great Chicago Fire.
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