With the Carpentersville dam gone and the adjoining parking lot recently paved, an unimpeded view of the Fox River returned to its natural state can now be seen.
“Now that the dam has been removed, people can see a free flowing river,” said Jennifer Rooks-Lopez, director of planning and land protection for the Forest Preserve District of Kane County. “By next summer we expect to see the channel widen at the former dam site as well as revegetation within the new shoreline.”
In the works for nearly a decade, the $1.4 million dam removal project began in mid-September. The parking lot, which was the staging area for the work, was repaved the first week of December and has 34 spots, Rooks-Lopez said. The gazebo that overlooked the dam remains in place.
When work on the dam removal first began, water levels were low due to a drought. Those conditions have since ended, Rooks-Lopez said.
“We knew going into the project that the dam dated to the late 1830s, early 1840s and that the concrete structure was not original,” she said. “Once demolition began, we were surprised to find that the original boulder dam was still in place and that the concrete structure was installed over the original boulder dam.”
Some of those boulders are still onsite and make up the south side embankment of the gazebo, she said. There also were three mill stones found in the original boulder construction that were saved.
“The district hasn’t determined what to do with them yet, but we hope to include them as part of an overall educational exhibit on the dam,” Rooks-Lopez said. “The district also plans to install educational signage on the site to record the dam, its history and the process of removal.”
Without the dam in place, it’s also possible the river could freeze during the winter if it gets cold enough — something that typically wouldn’t happen with the barrier there, she said.
Fishing will continue to be allowed along the river there. Staff also will be monitoring and managing the changes to the river and its shoreline over the next few years, she said.
“We will be flying drones north of the former dam site to Buffalo Preserve (in Algonquin) to record the changing shoreline,” Rooks-Lopez said.
For now, the site will remain known as Carpentersville Dam Historical Site and part of the Fox River Shores Forest Preserve, she said, but that may change in the future.
The dam was known as a good spot for spotting eagles, particularly during the winter, as open water provides a place from the big birds to forage for fish. Officials expect that to continue despite the barrier being removed.
“The eagles have been seen numerous times since the project started, and we expect that they will continue to visit the site and along the Fox River,” Rooks-Lopez said.
Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
