Bubbly Creek is the nickname given to the South Fork of the South Branch of the Chicago River. It runs entirely within the city of Chicago. It marks the boundary between the Bridgeport and McKinley Park community areas of the city. The creek derives its name from the gases bubbling out of the riverbed from the decomposition of blood and entrails dumped into the river in the early 20th century by the local meat-packing businesses surrounding the Union Stock Yards directly south of the creek's endpoint at Pershing Road. It was brought to notoriety by Upton Sinclair in his exposé on the American meat packing industry titled The Jungle.
Bubbly Creek originates near 38th Street, at the Racine Avenue Pump Station of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. It flows in a generally northward direction for approximately , and joins with the South Branch of the Chicago River.
History
The area surrounding Bubbly Creek was originally a wetland; during the 19th century, channels were dredged to increase the rate of flow into the Chicago River and dry out the area to increase the amount of habitable land in the fast-growing city. The South Fork became an open sewer for the local stockyards, especially the Union Stock Yards. Meat-packers dumped waste, such as blood and entrails, into the nearest river.Grossman, James R., Ann Durkin Keating and Janice L. Ruff (eds.), Encyclopedia of Chicago, "Meatpacking", pp. 515-7, University of Chicago Press, 2004, The creek received so much blood and offal that it began to bubble methane and hydrogen sulfide gas from the products of decomposition.
In 1906, author Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle, a portrait of America's meat packing industry. In it, he reports on the state of Bubbly Creek, writing:
Present situation
Two heavily polluted streams that joined to create the South Fork were later filled in, but their courses can still be seen today in the configuration of streets and railroad tracks in the area. The area has been increasingly occupied by residential development such as Bridgeport Village; a program to oxygenate the creek by continuously injecting compressed air into the water has met with limited success, although the creek's odor has been much reduced. Some fish and vegetation have returned in recent decades.Gallun, Alby. Flushing out Bubbly Creek. Chicago Business. July 25, 2004.
Areas near the creek have been designated for recreational uses including parks, and developers and the city agreed on a setback to allow for remediation. However, during heavy rains, millions of gallons of wastewater continue to be dumped into the stagnant creek by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
, the city and the Army Corps of Engineers were considering a $2.65 million feasibility study to look at restoration options, which would have implications for the remainder of the Chicago River system due to the unusual challenges of Bubbly Creek. The creek's waters are largely stagnant, having little gradient; the study investigated several possibilities, including a meandering stream amid a wetland, to restore an oxygenated system. The Corps had proposed restoring about of water and surrounding land, in part by covering the creek bottom with of sand and of rocks. The renovation project was expected to cost $15.4 million. In 2015 the project was stalled due to contamination discovered in the creek's sediments.
A private society has opened the Chicago Maritime Museum, a museum and memorialization of Chicago's river and maritime heritage, on 35th Street adjacent to Bubbly Creek. Cleanup of Bubbly Creek by groups like Urban Rivers and Friends of the Chicago River have resulted in increased wildlife sightings, including beavers and a bald eagle. References
External links Archived page for the Bubbly Creek Proposed Restoration