SUMMIT

village, Cook county, northeastern Illinois, U.S., just west of Chicago, straddling the watershed between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Named for the ridge separating the watershed, it was the site of a portage (route used for carrying boats overland) used (1673) by the explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet. The spot, designated as a national historic site, marks the west end of the portage that connected the waters of the Great Lakes (and the St. Lawrence River) with those of the Mississippi River (and the Gulf of Mexico). An artery of travel used by Indians in their migrations and by fur traders, it was an early factor (preceding the Illinois and Michigan Canal) in Chicago's commercial growth. Although primarily a residential suburb, Summit has the Argo plant, one of the world's largest corn (maize) products companies. Inc. 1890. Pop. (1990) 9,971.