Washington Park, Chicago
Encyclopedia
Washington Park is a well-defined community area
on the South Side
of Chicago in Cook County
, Illinois
, USA
, Which gets its name from the and nieghborhood
. It includes the 372 acre (1.5 km²) park named Washington Park, stretching east-west from Cottage Grove Avenue to the Dan Ryan Expressway
, and north-south from 63rd Street to 51st. It is home to the DuSable Museum of African American History. The park was the proposed site of the Olympic Stadium and the Olympic Aquatics Center in Chicago's bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics
.
Including the park, the community area hosts two listings on the National Register of Historic Places
. It includes and is surrounded by smaller neighborhoods that have gone though notable and often turbulent racial transitions.
and German railroad workers and meatpackers made Washington Park home. There was a sprinkling of African American
residents in the working-class district south of Garfield Boulevard/55th Street. Affluent American-born European Americans settled the wide north-south avenues that provided a direct route into the Loop 7 miles (11.3 km) to the north. Cable cars
, The Chicago 'L'
and wide boulevards contributed to late 19th century prosperity. The wide avenues, especially Grand Boulevard (now named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Drive), provided popular locations for mansions and grand apartments built by many wealthy Chicagoans.
The park in this community area was named for President George Washington
in 1880. In the 1920s, the University of Chicago
created the community area system of city subdivision with the current names that continue to be used today. The community areas although not formally adopted by the United States Census Bureau
are largely consistent with census tract
boundaries. The Washington Park community area and its census tracts have been unchanged.
A turn-of-the-20th-century apartment construction boom allowed the expansion of Chicago's African American ghetto southward, and the original inhabitants mostly left the area. The transition was rapid and marked with conflicts such as the Race Riot of 1919
. Some white Protestants left to form an exclusive residential community in the South Shore
community area. In 1906 they formed the South Shore Country Club, which excluded Blacks and Jews from membership.
The area rapidly changed from European American
to African-American in the 1920s. By 1930, the population was only 7.8% white. By 1960, the population was 0.5% white. From 1950 to 2000 the total population of the neighborhood declined from 57,000 to 14,146. This population decline is partly due to initiatives of the Chicago Land Clearance Commission, who acted under the 1955 Amendment to the Blighted Areas Redevelopment Act, which empowered redevelopment authorities that have acquired land by condemnation or otherwise to redevelop such lands for non-residential uses. A good example of the Land Clearing commission activities is the Lake Meadows Park to the north Washington Park. The failure of the evolution of industry and commerce in the community, the above mentioned white flight
and land redevelopment for non-residential use combined lead to population decline.
Religion
and worship are cornerstones of the South Side communities. The nearby hub of Bronzeville at 47th and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive (known as King Drive and formerly Grand Boulevard) was a cultural center of the rising ghetto that fostered a cultural identity. In keeping with the racial transformation, the cultural and religious institutions, including those of Irish Catholic
s, Greek Orthodoxy and the Jewish faith, converted to African American institutions. The DuSable Museum of African American History, founded in 1961, moved to Washington Park in 1973. It is a Washington Park landmark and one of the largest African American museums in the country.
The neighborhood once contained many public housing
complexes including about a third of the nations largest, the Robert Taylor Homes
. The Taylor homes have been demolished because of the socioeconomic problems that they perpetuated. The area has minimal industry or commerce at the current time. The other property on the NRHP in the area is the Schulze Baking Company Plant
.
Several nearby regions and institutions use Washington Park in their name. Immediately to the south, Washington Park Subdivision
exists where Washington Park Race Track
once stood. One city block
to the north, Washington Park Court District
is a neighborhood that has become a Chicago Landmark
.
The Washington Park neighborhood has been the setting for works of popular literature. James T. Farrell
's Studs Lonigan
trilogy is set in Washington Park. In Richard Wright
's novel Native Son
, Bigger Thomas drives the drunken Jan Erlone and Mary Dalton around Washington Park, as the two embrace. In addition to hosting the DuSable Museum, the park hosts Fountain of Time
, the world's earliest concrete finished art work.
Additionally, the aforementioned adjacent Washington Park Subdivision
has been the subject of notable literature. The conditions of this neighborhood are described in a section of Black Metropolis by St. Clair Drake
and Horace Roscoe Cayton.
The play Raisin in the Sun was inspired by Lorraine Hansberry
's time in the neighborhood after her father won the repeal of restrictive covenants. The Hansberry house, the red brick three-flat at 6140 S. Rhodes which they bought in 1937, is up for landmark status before the Chicago City Council's Committee on Historical Landmarks Preservation.
Community areas of Chicago
Community areas in Chicago refers to the work of the Social Science Research Committee at University of Chicago which has unofficially divided the City of Chicago into 77 community areas. These areas are well-defined and static...
on the South Side
South Side (Chicago)
The South Side is a major part of the City of Chicago, which is located in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Much of it has evolved from the city's incorporation of independent townships, such as Hyde Park Township which voted along with several other townships to be annexed in the June 29,...
of Chicago in Cook County
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Which gets its name from the and nieghborhood
Neighborhoods in Chicago
Cartographers distinguish between over 200 neighborhoods and 77 community areas in the City of Chicago . A semi-official by the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development was created in the 1970s by researchers who went from door-to-door in Chicago, asking "What neighborhood is this?"...
. It includes the 372 acre (1.5 km²) park named Washington Park, stretching east-west from Cottage Grove Avenue to the Dan Ryan Expressway
Dan Ryan Expressway
The Dan Ryan is an expressway in the city of Chicago that runs from the Circle Interchange with I-290 near downtown Chicago through the South Side of the city. It is designated as both Interstate 94 and Interstate 90 south to 66th Street, a distance of...
, and north-south from 63rd Street to 51st. It is home to the DuSable Museum of African American History. The park was the proposed site of the Olympic Stadium and the Olympic Aquatics Center in Chicago's bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics
2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, are a major international multi-sport event to be celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee...
.
Including the park, the community area hosts two listings on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. It includes and is surrounded by smaller neighborhoods that have gone though notable and often turbulent racial transitions.
History
In the mid-to-late 19th century, a large number of IrishIrish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
and German railroad workers and meatpackers made Washington Park home. There was a sprinkling of African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
residents in the working-class district south of Garfield Boulevard/55th Street. Affluent American-born European Americans settled the wide north-south avenues that provided a direct route into the Loop 7 miles (11.3 km) to the north. Cable cars
Cable car (railway)
A cable car or cable railway is a mass transit system using rail cars that are hauled by a continuously moving cable running at a constant speed. Individual cars stop and start by releasing and gripping this cable as required...
, The Chicago 'L'
Chicago 'L'
The L is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority...
and wide boulevards contributed to late 19th century prosperity. The wide avenues, especially Grand Boulevard (now named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Drive), provided popular locations for mansions and grand apartments built by many wealthy Chicagoans.
The park in this community area was named for President George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
in 1880. In the 1920s, the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
created the community area system of city subdivision with the current names that continue to be used today. The community areas although not formally adopted by the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
are largely consistent with census tract
Census tract
A census tract, census area, or census district is a geographic region defined for the purpose of taking a census. Usually these coincide with the limits of cities, towns or other administrative areas and several tracts commonly exist within a county...
boundaries. The Washington Park community area and its census tracts have been unchanged.
Changing demographics
Chicago Race Riot of 1919
The Chicago Race Riot of 1919 was a major racial conflict that began in Chicago, Illinois on July 27, 1919 and ended on August 3. During the riot, dozens died and hundreds were injured. It is considered the worst of the approximately 25 riots during the Red Summer of 1919, so named because of the...
. Some white Protestants left to form an exclusive residential community in the South Shore
South Shore, Chicago
South Shore is one of 77 well-defined community areas of the City of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. A predominately black neighborhood located along Chicago's southern lakefront, it is a relatively stable and gentrifying neighborhood...
community area. In 1906 they formed the South Shore Country Club, which excluded Blacks and Jews from membership.
The area rapidly changed from European American
European American
A European American is a citizen or resident of the United States who has origins in any of the original peoples of Europe...
to African-American in the 1920s. By 1930, the population was only 7.8% white. By 1960, the population was 0.5% white. From 1950 to 2000 the total population of the neighborhood declined from 57,000 to 14,146. This population decline is partly due to initiatives of the Chicago Land Clearance Commission, who acted under the 1955 Amendment to the Blighted Areas Redevelopment Act, which empowered redevelopment authorities that have acquired land by condemnation or otherwise to redevelop such lands for non-residential uses. A good example of the Land Clearing commission activities is the Lake Meadows Park to the north Washington Park. The failure of the evolution of industry and commerce in the community, the above mentioned white flight
White flight
White flight has been a term that originated in the United States, starting in the mid-20th century, and applied to the large-scale migration of whites of various European ancestries from racially mixed urban regions to more racially homogeneous suburban or exurban regions. It was first seen as...
and land redevelopment for non-residential use combined lead to population decline.
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
and worship are cornerstones of the South Side communities. The nearby hub of Bronzeville at 47th and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive (known as King Drive and formerly Grand Boulevard) was a cultural center of the rising ghetto that fostered a cultural identity. In keeping with the racial transformation, the cultural and religious institutions, including those of Irish Catholic
Irish Catholic
Irish Catholic is a term used to describe people who are both Roman Catholic and Irish .Note: the term is not used to describe a variant of Catholicism. More particularly, it is not a separate creed or sect in the sense that "Anglo-Catholic", "Old Catholic", "Eastern Orthodox Catholic" might be...
s, Greek Orthodoxy and the Jewish faith, converted to African American institutions. The DuSable Museum of African American History, founded in 1961, moved to Washington Park in 1973. It is a Washington Park landmark and one of the largest African American museums in the country.
The neighborhood once contained many public housing
Public housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is owned by a government authority, which may be central or local. Social housing is an umbrella term referring to rental housing which may be owned and managed by the state, by non-profit organizations, or by a combination of the...
complexes including about a third of the nations largest, the Robert Taylor Homes
Robert Taylor Homes
Robert Taylor Homes was a housing project in the Bronzeville neighborhood of the South Side of Chicago, on State Street between Pershing Road and 54th Street alongside the Dan Ryan Expressway.-History:...
. The Taylor homes have been demolished because of the socioeconomic problems that they perpetuated. The area has minimal industry or commerce at the current time. The other property on the NRHP in the area is the Schulze Baking Company Plant
Schulze Baking Company Plant
Schulze Baking Company Plant is a factory building located on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is located at 40 East Garfield Boulevard in the Washington Park community area in Cook County. Built in 1914, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on...
.
Several nearby regions and institutions use Washington Park in their name. Immediately to the south, Washington Park Subdivision
Washington Park Subdivision
The Washington Park Subdivision is the name of the historic 3-city block by 8-city block subdivision in the northwest corner of the Woodlawn community area, on the South Side of Chicago in Illinois that stands in the place of the original Washington Park Race Track. The area evolved as a...
exists where Washington Park Race Track
Washington Park Race Track
Washington Park Race Track was a popular horse racing venue in the Chicago metropolitan area from 1884 until 1977. It had two locations during its existence. It was first situated in what is the current location of the Washington Park Subdivision of the Woodlawn community area of Chicago in Cook...
once stood. One city block
City block
A city block, urban block or simply block is a central element of urban planning and urban design. A city block is the smallest area that is surrounded by streets. City blocks are the space for buildings within the street pattern of a city, they form the basic unit of a city's urban fabric...
to the north, Washington Park Court District
Washington Park Court District
The Washington Park Court District is a Grand Boulevard community area neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. It was designated a Chicago Landmark on October 2, 1991. Despite its name, it is not located within either the Washington Park community area or the Washington Park park,...
is a neighborhood that has become a Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation of the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council for historic buildings and other sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artistic, cultural,...
.
In literature and culture
James T. Farrell
James Thomas Farrell was an American novelist. One of his most famous works was the Studs Lonigan trilogy, which was made into a film in 1960 and into a television miniseries in 1979...
's Studs Lonigan
Studs Lonigan
Studs Lonigan is the title of a novel trilogy by American author James T. Farrell: Young Lonigan, The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan, and Judgment Day. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked the Studs Lonigan trilogy at 29th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.The...
trilogy is set in Washington Park. In Richard Wright
Richard Wright (author)
Richard Nathaniel Wright was an African-American author of sometimes controversial novels, short stories, poems, and non-fiction. Much of his literature concerns racial themes, especially those involving the plight of African-Americans during the late 19th to mid 20th centuries...
's novel Native Son
Native Son
Native Son is a novel by American author Richard Wright. The novel tells the story of 20-year-old Bigger Thomas, an African American living in utter poverty. Bigger lived in Chicago's South Side ghetto in the 1930s...
, Bigger Thomas drives the drunken Jan Erlone and Mary Dalton around Washington Park, as the two embrace. In addition to hosting the DuSable Museum, the park hosts Fountain of Time
Fountain of Time
Fountain of Time, or simply Time, is a sculpture by Lorado Taft, measuring in length, situated at the western edge of the Midway Plaisance within Washington Park in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. This location is in the Washington Park community area on Chicago's South Side...
, the world's earliest concrete finished art work.
Additionally, the aforementioned adjacent Washington Park Subdivision
Washington Park Subdivision
The Washington Park Subdivision is the name of the historic 3-city block by 8-city block subdivision in the northwest corner of the Woodlawn community area, on the South Side of Chicago in Illinois that stands in the place of the original Washington Park Race Track. The area evolved as a...
has been the subject of notable literature. The conditions of this neighborhood are described in a section of Black Metropolis by St. Clair Drake
St. Clair Drake
St. Clair Drake was an African-American sociologist and anthropologist.Drake was born in Suffolk, Virginia. Upon graduation from Hampton Institute in 1931, he became involved with The Society of Friends in the south...
and Horace Roscoe Cayton.
The play Raisin in the Sun was inspired by Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry was an African American playwright and author of political speeches, letters, and essays...
's time in the neighborhood after her father won the repeal of restrictive covenants. The Hansberry house, the red brick three-flat at 6140 S. Rhodes which they bought in 1937, is up for landmark status before the Chicago City Council's Committee on Historical Landmarks Preservation.