PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Like the Cubs’ Steve Bartman incident a year prior, it’s a moment in Chicago (and pop culture) history that will forever live in infamy.
On this date 20 years ago, one of the tour buses for Virginia’s Dave Matthews Band dumped 800 pounds of human waste through a grated drawbridge — right onto a boat full of sightseers on the Chicago River.
Now Matthews, who formed the Grammy-winning band in Charlottesville back in 1991, and his crew weren’t on the bus at the time, but the story will forever be part of the band’s lore. Matthews has talked about how he was still apologizing for the incident years later.
“The bus driver lost his job [and later pleaded guilty to misdemeanors], and I didn’t have my finger on the button, but it was one of our buses — wasn’t mine — but it was one of the buses in my employment and so I feel bad about it,” Matthews said in a 2009 podcast interview. “It would be funnier if it was anyone else but me.”
It became known as “Poopgate,” or “The Unforgettable Splashdown,” a plaque marking the incident at the Kinzie Street Bridge reads.
“This solemn spot reminds us of a day a simple tour turned into a flood of something memorable,” reads the cheeky message.
To mark the occasion, the Chicago Bulls’ mascot, Benny, joined the Bears’ Staley the Bear and the Blackhawks’ Tommy Hawk at the site on Thursday to pay their respects — wiping their tears with toilet paper.
About two-thirds of the 120 passengers on the boat, called Chicago’s Little Lady, were hit by the bus’ contents. Several of whom talked to Chicago Magazine about the day they’ll never forget.
