Later Development Along The River

With the mouth of the river being moved, other ideas were also coming forth. In 1837, Byron Kilbourn proposed building a canal between the Milwaukee River and the Rock river (which flows from Madison thru Janesville and then down to Rockford, Illinois). The canal was to connect the Milwaukee River to the Rock River then connect the four lakes of Madison (Lake Mendoata, Lake Monona, Lake Waubesa, and Lake Kegonsa), the Wisconsin River, and eventually connecting to the Mississippi River. The idea was to greatly expand shipping throughout the state of Wisconsin.

However, since railroads were being built over much of Wisconsin, many believed that this become the chief mode of transportation. Because of this, the project to build the canal between the Milwaukee and the Rock River was halted after only one mile was completed.

The one mile of the canal that was built however did find a use. Along its banks a total of twenty five flour mills, sawmills, and factories were built. These buildings made use of the one mile canal for several years till the canal was closed in 1884, after which the City of Milwaukee filled the canal and built Commerce St.

In 1869, a commission was appointed to establish a system of water channels and canals to link the city together. This led to more industries being built along the Milwaukee River Basin and an increase of shipping and commercial interests. Among these industries were machine shops, meat packing companies, brick manufacturers, malt companies, and breweries. By 1912, eight grain elevators had also been opened along the Milwaukee and Menomonee Rivers.