The Mystery at Sag Bridge

Afterword: History versus Fiction

Afterword: History versus Fiction

The Mystery at Sag Bridge is a work of fiction: the characters are fictitious, and so is the story. That said, residents of Lemont, a suburb some twenty-five miles southwest of Chicago, Illinois, will easily recognize their town-and perhaps some of its history.

Lemont is perched on a bluff overlooking the Des Plaines River Valley, and, when I moved to the village in 1998, I quickly became enthralled by its unique geographic features and fascinating history. This led to many hours of exploration and, ultimately, an affiliation with the Lemont Area Historical Society. I vowed that, should I ever achieve my ambition to write mystery novels, Lemont would be featured prominently in those books.

The historical background and geography of Lemont are described with as much accuracy as possible in the story. However, in that much of what passes for "history" is oral tradition and sometimes questionable, I wanted freedom to take the story where it needed to go in those instances that fact and story did not agree. Any errors or misrepresentations are solely mine.

So what is true? What is fiction? Cora and all characters and events from the 2012 time period are fictional. The geography of the area is accurate. The exact location of the fictional Meg's farm and Cora's home were intentionally left vague. The conversion of the land from forest to farmland beginning in the 1830s is accurate, and much of the area, purchased by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County after the 1893 Columbian Exposition, was turned back to forests. The lakes that currently enrich the area's forest preserves are man-made. Much of the work was done by the Civilian Conservation Corp during the Great Depression. The building of the Sanitary Canal (AKA drainage ditch) was completed in 1900, and the Cal-Sag Channel in 1922. These waterways did indeed replace much of the real town of Sag Bridge, the remainder of which is now incorporated into Lemont. Thus in Meg's day, the I & M Canal, opened in 1848, had been present before she was born, the Sag Bridge portion of the Sanitary Canal would have been completed, and the Cal-Sag Channel had yet to be thought of. And yes, the Des Plaines River was moved to allow the Sanitary Canal to occupy the original river bed.

What was the "bridge" in Sag Bridge, and what is "Sag"? The answers are speculative, just as the history is murky. The term Sag probably derived from a Potawatomi Indian word, Saginaw, which may have meant "swamp". The Sag Valley was a low-lying swampy area, and it is presumed that a bridge may have provided transport across it. The name could also refer to the geographic coming together of two valleys, the Des Plaines and the Sag. When one considers that recorded history of the area relates that the first white settlers to the area arrived in 1833 and that the oldest grave at Saint James Cemetery is that of Michael Dillon, buried in 1816, further fuel is added to any doubt about the accuracy of the history.

Saint James at Sag Bridge is a real Catholic Church still in operation, and its history is essentially as presented in the story. It is located on a peak of land between the Des Plaines and Sag Valleys, once Mount Forest Island in prehistoric Lake Chicago. Father Fitzpatrick, Meg and her family and friends, and the events surrounding the murders depicted in the novel are all fictional. The Old Stone Church also still exists. Built in 1861, it was originally a Methodist Church, and currently operates as the Lemont Area Historical Society. Reverend Tully is a fictional character loosely based on the real Reverend Clancy of the Lemont Methodist Church, who battled against the evils of Smokey Row. Smokey Row, begun in the 1860s, became notorious after the 1893 Columbian Exhibition in Chicago. It is said to have had over one hundred taverns and brothels. Crime of all sorts, including murder, was plentiful on the sin strip, which really did exist as described, as did the questionable activities of Village and police officials during the period.