Garfield Ridge
| Territory Data | |
| Open Territory
| |
| Territory Claimed by: | None |
| Sphere: | Werewolf |
| Location Value: | 20 |
| Specialty: | Rivers (Survival) |
| Cost Reductions: | Multilingual, Interdisciplinary Specialty, Direction Sense |
| Unique Bonus: | Once per month, spend a Resources point to have a weatherproof shelter set up in the marshes for +2 to survival rolls for one outing. |
| Travel Code: | SW |
Description
The area of Garfield Ridge has always been in an important geographical section of the Chicago area. It contained the southernmost portion of Mud Lake, a swamp which connected the Chicago and Des Plaines River. The southern shore was known as Point of Oaks and extended to 53rd and Oak Park. There are still a few oaks left today.
The significance of the lake was that it provided a significant travel route for Native Americans and the French explorers Marquette and Joliet. During the wet season one could take a canoe using Mud Lake and effectively connect Lake Michigan to the Illinois River. In drier seasons there were portage routes where canoes could be carried between navigable waterways. Upon this feature a canal was planned and dug in the 1830s and began operation in the 1840s to make the primitive route continuous and efficient. This was named the Illinois and Michigan Canal and was crucial to Chicago's development as a transportation hub.