National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form
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NPS Form 10-900-b 0MB No W24-0018 (Jan. 1987) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form This form is for use in documenting multiple property groups relating to one or several historic contexts. See instructions in Guidelines for Completing National Register Forms (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. For additional space use continuation sheets (Form 10-900-a). Type all entries. A. Name of Multiple Property Listing__________________________________________ The Historic Resources of the Chicago Park District B. Associated Historic Contexts The Historical Development of Public Parks in Chicago since 1839 C. Geographical Data The City limits of Chicago/ Illinois I I See continuation sheet D. Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, I hereby certify that this documentation form meets the National Register documentation standards and sets forth requirements for the listing of related properties consistent with the National Register criteria. This submission meets the procedural and professional reqt-jjjjetfienis a& forth in 36^Cr-H"Pact60^ and the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Planning and Evaluation. Signature of certifying official Date ___ Director , T1 1 1nnls State or Federal agency and bureau I, hereby, certify that this multiple property documentation form has been approved by the National Register as a basis for evaluating related properties for listing in the National Register. _________________ Signature of the Keeper of the National Register Date E. Statement of Historic Contexts Discuss each historic context listed in Section B. INTRODUCTION By its very nature, an urban park is a constantly changing form. In addition to the fact that landscapes are composed of natural and transitory materials, urban parks are shaped by a variety of societal forces. These social, cultural, economic, and political forces affect a park's programs, activities, design, appearance, and physical development. The initial creation of parks is often driven by social movements to improve conditions of the city, either in general, or targeted to a particular neighborhood. Subsequent significant alterations in the parks are influenced by many of the factors listed above including changing patterns in transportation, recreational trends, available funding, crime and security issues, and other political considerations. While it is a combination of these factors which truly shapes the development of a park, one of the key aspects is the framework of policies and legislation through which parks could be created and improved. By focusing on the history of public policy and major legislative decisions related to the development of parklands in Chicago, Illinois, a historic context for the urban park property type is generated. This historic context statement will provide a structure for evaluating the social history, recreational trends, architectural and landscape architectural design significance of Chicago's parks. However, a more detailed significance statement related to those aspects of the historic context is provided in section F of this document. This nomination covers a period which commences with the creation of the first documented park in 1839, two years after Chicago incorporated as a city. While the beginning point of this nomination is clear, the historic development of Chicago's parks is characterized by overlapping movements and trends, rather than a simple linear chronology. Thus, an outline has been developed which appears three times in the body of this cover document: the historic context statement (E), the description statement (F, Part II) and the significance statement (F, Part III) for the urban park property type. The outline is composed of five major sections, with several sub-sections. The first section, Chicago's Early Parks 1839-1869, begins with the city's first documented park and covers the period prior to the emergence of formal open space policies. The next section, the Creation of the Three Original Park Commissions 1869-1934, addresses the legislation which established the South, West, and Lincoln Park systems and mandated the creation of the initial parks and boulevards. This section also documents the development of those parks up to 1934, the year in which the individual park districts were consolidated to a single agency, the Chicago Park District. The third section is entitled the Three Original Park Commissions' Ability to Create Additional Parklands 1899-1934. It discusses the South, West, and Lincoln Park Commissions' efforts to develop additional parks through new legislation generated by the Progressive Reform Movement. This section includes the creation of new parklands along Chicago's south lakefront. The fourth section, Parks and Boulevards of the Nineteen Additional Park Commissions 1895- 1934 deals with a movement generated by neighborhoods unserved by the original three commissions to improve streets and establish parks in their own areas. The last section, the Consolidation of the Twenty Two Superseded Park Districts in 1934 addresses the development nearly all of the parks in the city, under the stewardship of the Chicago Park District, which occurred during the Works Progress Administration. CHICAGO'S EARLY PARKS 1839-1869 Though it had adopted the motto "Urbs in Horto" ("City set in a Garden"), Chicago had few official policies relating to the acquisition or stewardship of public open space prior to 1869 . The city had little parkland, and that which it did have was often left undeveloped and unplanned. Dearborn Park (which no longer exists) is considered Chicago's first park. It was established in 1839 on a portion of what had been Fort Dearborn. The land had been reluctantly donated to the City by the United States government after Fort Dearborn was discontinued (Chicago Citv Manual. 1914, pp. 7). See continuation sheet 10M4019 (Ml) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 2 His - Resources of the Chicago Park Dist. Most of the other parks which were established before 1869 resulted from the donation or sale of lands at reduced rates by real estate developers. According to the Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) Historic Register these "enterprising men" were "subdividing land widening streets, planting trees along their sides, decorating adjoining grass plots with urns of flowers and doing all the things of the day calculated to start real estate booms" (W.P.A, pp. 570). Though the City benefitted from the ownership of these properties, these developers were clearly interested in establishing parks and boulevards as a means of enhancing their own real estate investments. John S. Wright was one such developer whose vision transcended his own real estate holdings. He conceived of a city-wide system of grand parks linked together with broad tree-lined boulevards. Though Wright's idea eventually became the genesis of one of the nation's first boulevard systems, at the time it did not become a reality. The city had not developed a comprehensive program for parks. Rather, it continued the piecemeal approach of purchasing and accepting donations of land. The history of Washington Square is representative of parklands created by real estate speculators. Composed of a three acre plot of land, it was donated to the City in 1842 by James Fitch, Orasmua Bushnell, and Charles Butler of the American Land Company for use as a public square. Union and Vernon Parks also represent the way in which the early parks were initially created and continued to evolve. The property which became Union Park was owned by developers Reuben Taylor and Billy Carpenter. They successfully lobbied the City in 1853 to purchase the property at a reduced rate. No improvements took place until 1865, and even after that newspapers referred to the Park as a "cow pasture with a few dying trees" (Breen, pp. 571). After the West Park Commission came into existence in 1869 (see below), Union Park went through several significant changes. Vernon Park, which was later renamed Victor Arrigo Park, is composed of property which was donated to the city by Henry D. Gilpin in 1857. It, too, was largely undeveloped and unimproved until the West Park Commission took possession of it in 1885. The history of Lincoln Park is also representative of the piecemeal and continuous way in which the early parks evolved. In 1828, the federal government ceded part of what is now Lincoln - Park to the State of Illinois to aid in the construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal. The City of Chicago purchased some of this property in 1842 for a burial ground which was named Chicago Cemetery (Breen, pp. 131). Lincoln Park also played an important role in the social reform movement of the mid-to-late nineteenth century which ultimately led to the creation of park systems. Concern about the cemetery's threat to public health led to a city ordinance prohibiting the additional sale of lots in the cemetery. In 1860, a citizen committee petitioned the Common Council to set a portion of the property aside for park land. The Council adopted the recommendation and "Lake Park" was established. The park was renamed "Lincoln Park" in 1865, and by the following year its boundaries were expanded and further burials were forbidden. Between 1865 and 1868 approximately $30,000 was appropriated by the city for landscaping. The donation of a pair of mute swans from Central Park in New York in 1868 became the inception of Lincoln Park Zoo. (Discussion about the development of Lincoln Park under ihe stewardship of the Lincoln Park Commission is included in the following section. Subsequent additions and alterations to the Park, conducted by the Chicago Park District after 1934, are discussed in the last section.) NJtPorm 1MOO* United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number E Page 3 His.