In 1856, when Galena was at the height of its prosperity, the city was the Steamboat Capital of the Northwest Territory. Over 12,000 residents and the largest steamboat line on the Upper Mississippi River made it one of the richest and most influential cities in Illinois.
The thriving metropolis had started out as a lead mining boomtown in 1820s, hub to the first major mineral rush in U.S. history. The name Galena, in fact, means lead sulfide in Latin. By the 1850s the lead trade was in decline but the settlement of the Upper Mississippi River Valley was in full swing and Galena’s huge wholesaling and retailing trade was thriving. One newspaper account reported over 500 travelers arriving daily, many stocking up on supplies for the journey to points farther north and west.
The wealth of Galena was displayed in its architecture. From humble miners’ cottages to magnificent mansions, every style of the day was on display. Most of that architecture is still here. Today over 85% of the entire community is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and well over 1,000,000 visitors a year come to enjoy the town that time forgot.
The river silted in badly from the soil washed down the hillsides by mining and farming activities. Most of the river trade was gone by the end of the Civil War, but the town that the river gave birth to still remains as a testament of times gone by.
This cache is located on top the dike that was built in the early 1950s to hold the river back. You can see what is left of the river on one side and on the other side a beautiful view of downtown Galena. Thousands of visitors will walk by this spot on busy weekends. They won’t notice the cache but you will. Can you grab the cache, sign the log, and place it back without them seeing you?
Remember to bring your own pencil.