Oak Brook in DuPage County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
The Indian Boundary Line
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 5, 2024
1. The Indian Boundary Line Marker
Look left. Look right. You are standing on the northern border of the Indian Boundary Line, a 20-by-70-mile strip of land that stretched from Lake Michigan southwest to the Illinois River near present-day Ottawa, Illinois.
The line was part of the 1816 Treaty of St. Louis between the U.S. government and members of the Ojibwe, Ottawa and Potawatomi tribes, known as the Council of Three Fires.
Treaties like this exploited differing land ethics and concepts of ownership. Native nations often viewed them as temporary permissions to access land in their territories. The U.S. government viewed them as ways to acquire, own and sell the land.
[Captions:]
The Indian Boundary Line encompassed today's Greene Valley and Mayslake forest preserves.
The U.S. government used the land within the Indian Boundary Line (section 78 on this map from 1899) to construct the Illinois and Michigan Canal, connecting the Chicago and Illinois rivers by 1848. The boundary line also created a safe corridor for European settlers moving west.
Land Acknowledgment
You are on the traditional homelands of Native nations including the Ojibwe, Ottawa and Potawatomi. During the early 1800s, the U.S. government shifted treaties with Native nations from peace and alliance to land
this page online
Erected by Forest Preserve District of DuPage County.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Environment • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Parks & Recreational Areas. In addition, it is included in the Illinois & Michigan Canal series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1816.
Location. 41° 49.856′ N, 87° 57.639′ W. Marker is in Oak Brook, Illinois, in DuPage County. It can be reached from 31st Street (County Route 34) 0.3 miles west of Illinois Route 83, on the left when traveling west. The marker is next to the parking lot in front of a lagoon on the northern end of the Mayslake Forest Preserve, which is adjacent to the Peabody Estate. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1717 31st Street, Oak Brook IL 60523, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Greater Chicago. It is also in the American Midwest and on the Great Lakes. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Portiuncula Chapel (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Gatehouse at Mayslake (about 600 feet away); Original Butler School Merry-Go-Round (approx. Ύ mile away); Veteran's Memorial (approx. 1.2 miles away); Fox Hunt (approx.
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 5, 2024
2. The Indian Boundary Line Marker
The marker overlooks a small lagoon at the Mayslake Forest Preserve, which is adjacent to the Peabody Estate in Oak Brook.
Regarding The Indian Boundary Line. Remnants of this "Indian Boundary Line" based on the Treaty of 1816 can be found in some diagonal streets north and west of Chicago that roughly line up with the northern border, including Rogers Avenue in Chicago's far north side Rogers Park neighborhood and another section further west bordering the Sauganash and North Park neighborhoods; Forest Preserve Drive on the northwest side; and short Indian Boundary Roads in suburban River Grove, near Grand Avenue, and Melrose Park, near North Avenue. Additionally, an Indian Boundary Line Road in far southwest suburban Plainfield lines up with the southern border of the 20-mile-by-70-mile territory. There are also at least a handful of parks with Indian Boundary in their name around Chicagoland, including one on Chicago's north side in the West Ridge neighborhood and others in the southwest suburbs of Bolingbrook, Midlothian and Frankfort.
Related markers.
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 5, 2024
3. Close-up of the map on the Indian Boundary Line marker
The location of this marker is roughly west of the end of the "Portage Road" on the map.
Also see . . .
1. Indian Boundary Line. Forgotten Chicago looks at the history of the Indian Boundary Line, which traverses what is now suburban Oak Brook. (Submitted on May 6, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
2. Treaty with the Ottawa, Etc. On the Forest County Potawatomi website, the text of the Treaty of St. Louis, signed August 24, 1816, which ceded land whose northern boundary is memorialized with this marker. (Submitted on May 6, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 13, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 5, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 2,929 times since then and 315 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on May 5, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 2, 3. submitted on May 6, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.
