Joliet in Will County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Natividad Guiterrez
Joliet Bicycle Route
I&M Canal Passage
Photographed By Jason Voigt, October 2, 2020
1. Natividad Guiterrez Marker
Left panel
(left panel:)
Natividad Guiterrez, 1900-1978
In 1919, Natividad Guiterrez arrived in Joliet with his wife and grandmother. Like other Mexicans, he came here for work and found a job driving spikes on the EJE Railroad.
The family and three uncles lived in a boxcar provided by the company until 1928, when Guiterrez bought a home. He worked as a railroad for 55 years.
(right panel:)
Joliet's people power
The bridge you see is a reminder of Joliet's importance as a railroad hub. Railroads shipped coal, limestone and steel, and attracted manufacturers to Joliet. But it took people - Mexican, Irish, African-American, Polish, Slovenian, Serbian, Italian, Croatian, Scandinavian, German, and others - to quarry the stone, lay the rails, and make the steel.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Bridges & Viaducts • Railroads & Streetcars • Waterways & Vessels.
Location. 41° 31.318′ N, 88° 5.309′ W. Marker is in Joliet, Illinois
Photographed By Jason Voigt, October 2, 2020
2. Natividad Guiterrez Marker
Right panel. Marker has visible signs of wear and tear as the Joliet Bicycle Route emblem has faded off.
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Edwin Porter's Brewery (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Joliet/Juliet's First Log Cabin (approx. 0.2 miles away); "Bluff Street" (approx. 0.2 miles away); Joliet's First Stone Building (approx. 0.2 miles away); American House Hotel (approx. 0.2 miles away); Bicentennial Park (approx. 0.2 miles away); A Corridor in Time: The Illinois and Michigan Canal (approx. Ό mile away); "Frannie" (approx. Ό mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Joliet.
More about this marker. The marker, like most in the I&M Canal Passage/Joliet Bicycle Route series, was accompanied by a silhouette statue. Statue was missing as of October 2020 but there are pictures of it that exist online.
Photographed By Jason Voigt, October 2, 2020
3. Natividad Guiterrez Marker
At the corner of Bluff and Marion Sts
Credits. This page was last revised on October 4, 2020. It was originally submitted on October 4, 2020, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois. This page has been viewed 84 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on October 4, 2020, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois.
