Washington Square Park, Chicago
Encyclopedia
Washington Square, also known as Washington Square Park, is a park in Chicago, Illinois. A registered historic landmark that is better known by its nickname Bughouse Square (derived from the slang of bughouse referring to mental health facilities), it was the most celebrated open air free-speech center in the country as well as a popular Chicago tourist attraction. It is located across Walton Street from Newberry Library
at 901 N. Clark Street
in the Near North Side
community area
of Chicago, Illinois
, USA
. It is Chicago
's oldest existing small park. It is one of four Chicago Park District
parks named after persons surnamed Washington
(Washington Park, Harold Washington Park
, Dinah Washington Park
). It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on May 20, 1991.
McCormick became President of Drainage Board in 1906, the fountain had been razed and the park had deteriorated. Alderman McCormick devoted his aldermanic salary to improving the park. He donated a $600 fountain, and the city allocated an additional $10,000 to rehabilitate the park. By the 1910s, the neighborhood surrounding Washington Square had become more diverse.
’s March 27, 1897 lecture for the Commercial Club of Chicago
inspired the club to provide $80,000 to publish the Burnham Plan
.
Washington Square Park has been the geographic center of Chicago public speeches. By the 1890s the park acquired its Bughouse Square moniker. Soapbox orators waxed on topics ranging from gender relations to Communism. It served as a home for soapbox orators on warm-weather evenings from the 1910s to the mid-1960s. Like Speakers' Corner
in London
's Hyde Park
, Washington Square became a popular spot for soap box orators. Artists, writers, political radicals, and hobos pontificated, lectured, recited poetry, ranted, and raved. A group of regulars formed "The Dil Pickle Club
," devoted to free expression. For years Washington Square orators appointed their own honorary "king." In its heyday in the 1920s and 1930s, revolutionary left soapboxers were occasionally joined by poets, religionists, and cranks. In 1959, the city transferred Washington Square to the Chicago Park District. In 1964, Life
featured an article saying that it was a meeting place for cottaging
among homosexuals. Six years later, it played host to Chicago's first Gay Pride March.
in Chicago, Illinois that includes Washington Square Park, Chicago
. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
on August 21, 2003. The Washington Square District was declared a Chicago Landmark
on May 16, 1990. The original 1990 Washington Square Park District Chicago Landmark
designation included the park, Newberry Library, 60 West Walton Street and 915 to 929 North Dearborn Street. The first Chicago Landmark district extension on July, 10 2002 included 22-28 and 27-31 West Chestnut Street and 802-818, 827-867, 1012, 1023-1029, and 1150-1154 North Dearborn Street. The May 11, 2005 extension added the Isaac Maynard Row Houses located at 119-123 West Delaware Place. The National Register of Historic Places
included Washington Square as well as North Dearborn Street from West Walton Street to West Chicago Avenue.
Every July, the Bughouse Square Committee continues to oversee the annual Bughouse Square Debates
free speech gathering in conjunction with the Newberry Library’s annual book sale. The debates are part of an annual festival to recreate the atmosphere of speeches and debates by soap box orators that once flourished in the park.
Although Alderman McCormick's fountain was removed in the 1970s, in the late 1990s, the park district, the city, and neighborhood organizations agreed on a restoration plan for Washington Square. Improvements include a reconstructed historic fountain, period lighting, fencing, and new plantings. In the west part of the park, there is a memorial tablet designating the park as "Chicago's Premier Free Speech Forum."
Newberry Library
The Newberry Library is a privately endowed, independent research library for the humanities and social sciences in Chicago, Illinois. Although it is private, non-circulating library, the Newberry Library is free and open to the public...
at 901 N. Clark Street
Clark Street (Chicago)
Clark Street is a north-south street in Chicago, Illinois that runs close to the shore of Lake Michigan from the northern city boundary with Evanston, to 2200 South in the city street numbering system...
in the Near North Side
Near North Side, Chicago
The Near North Side is one of 77 well-defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is located north and east of the Chicago River, just north of the central business district . To its east is Lake Michigan and its northern boundary is the 19th-century city limit of Chicago,...
community area
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...
of Chicago, 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...
. It is Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
's oldest existing small park. It is one of four Chicago Park District
Chicago Park District
The Chicago Park District is the oldest and largest park district in the U.S.A, with a $385 million annual budget. It has the distinction of spending the most per capita on its parks, even more than Boston in terms of park expenses per capita...
parks named after persons surnamed Washington
Washington (name)
-Origin and dissemination:The name (ˈwɒʃɪŋtən) refers to George Washington , the first President of the United States of America.The name itself is a name of origin and refers to place names in England, such as Washington, Tyne and Wear, from which the ancestors of George Washington came from....
(Washington Park, Harold Washington Park
Harold Washington Park
Harold Washington Park is a small park in the Chicago Park District located in the Hyde Park community area on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was recently named for lawyer, state legislator, U.S. congressman, Hyde Park resident, and the first Chicago Mayor of African-American descent...
, Dinah Washington Park
Dinah Washington Park
Dinah Washington Park is a park located at 8215 S. Euclid Avenue in the South Chicago community area of Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was named for singer and Chicago resident Dinah Washington. It is one of four Chicago Park District parks named after persons surnamed Washington...
). It was added to 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...
on May 20, 1991.
Origin
On September 4, 1842, the city received a 3 acres (12,140.6 m²) parcel that was donated by the members of the American Land Company for use as a public park. The property had once been a cow path with a well for farmers to water their cattle. The donors named contributed the name Washington Square. Between 1869 and the 1890s, the city improved Washington Square with lawn, trees, bisecting diagonal walks, limestone coping, picket fencing, and an attractive Victorian fountain. By the time AldermanChicago City Council
The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 aldermen elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms...
McCormick became President of Drainage Board in 1906, the fountain had been razed and the park had deteriorated. Alderman McCormick devoted his aldermanic salary to improving the park. He donated a $600 fountain, and the city allocated an additional $10,000 to rehabilitate the park. By the 1910s, the neighborhood surrounding Washington Square had become more diverse.
History
The original purpose of the neighborhood park was as a place of assembly to discuss community issues. Chicago has a long storied history of public speeches both for entertainment and educational purposes. The Haymarket Riot first started as an anarchist workers rally. Daniel BurnhamDaniel Burnham
Daniel Hudson Burnham, FAIA was an American architect and urban planner. He was the Director of Works for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. He took a leading role in the creation of master plans for the development of a number of cities, including Chicago and downtown Washington DC...
’s March 27, 1897 lecture for the Commercial Club of Chicago
Commercial Club of Chicago
The Commercial Club of Chicago is an anti-labor club resulted from the 1907 merger of two predecessor Chicago clubs: the Merchants Club and the Commercial Club . Its most active members included George Pullman, Marshall Field, Cyrus McCormick, George Armour, Frederic Delano, Sewell Avery, Rufus...
inspired the club to provide $80,000 to publish the Burnham Plan
Burnham Plan
The Burnham Plan is a popular name for the 1909 Plan of Chicago, co-authored by Daniel Burnham and Edward H. Bennett. It recommended an integrated series of projects including new and widened streets, parks, new railroad and harbor facilities, and civic buildings...
.
Washington Square Park has been the geographic center of Chicago public speeches. By the 1890s the park acquired its Bughouse Square moniker. Soapbox orators waxed on topics ranging from gender relations to Communism. It served as a home for soapbox orators on warm-weather evenings from the 1910s to the mid-1960s. Like Speakers' Corner
Speakers' Corner
A Speakers' Corner is an area where open-air public speaking, debate and discussion are allowed. The original and most noted is in the north-east corner of Hyde Park in London, United Kingdom. Speakers there may speak on any subject, as long as the police consider their speeches lawful, although...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Hyde Park
Hyde Park, London
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
, Washington Square became a popular spot for soap box orators. Artists, writers, political radicals, and hobos pontificated, lectured, recited poetry, ranted, and raved. A group of regulars formed "The Dil Pickle Club
Dil Pickle Club
The Dil Pickle Club or Dill Pickle Club was once a popular Bohemian club in Chicago, Illinois between 1917 and 1935. The Dil Pickle was known as a speakeasy, cabaret and theatre and was influential during the "Chicago Renaissance" as it allowed a forum for free thinkers...
," devoted to free expression. For years Washington Square orators appointed their own honorary "king." In its heyday in the 1920s and 1930s, revolutionary left soapboxers were occasionally joined by poets, religionists, and cranks. In 1959, the city transferred Washington Square to the Chicago Park District. In 1964, Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
featured an article saying that it was a meeting place for cottaging
Cottaging
Cottaging is a British gay slang term referring to anonymous sex between men in a public lavatory , or cruising for sexual partners with the intention of having sex elsewhere...
among homosexuals. Six years later, it played host to Chicago's first Gay Pride March.
Washington Square Historic District
Washington Square Historic District is a historic districtHistoric district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries, historic districts receive legal protection from development....
in Chicago, Illinois that includes Washington Square Park, Chicago
Washington Square Park, Chicago
Washington Square, also known as Washington Square Park, is a park in Chicago, Illinois. A registered historic landmark that is better known by its nickname Bughouse Square , it was the most celebrated open air free-speech center in the country as well as a popular Chicago tourist attraction...
. The district was listed 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...
on August 21, 2003. The Washington Square District was declared 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,...
on May 16, 1990. The original 1990 Washington Square Park District 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,...
designation included the park, Newberry Library, 60 West Walton Street and 915 to 929 North Dearborn Street. The first Chicago Landmark district extension on July, 10 2002 included 22-28 and 27-31 West Chestnut Street and 802-818, 827-867, 1012, 1023-1029, and 1150-1154 North Dearborn Street. The May 11, 2005 extension added the Isaac Maynard Row Houses located at 119-123 West Delaware Place. 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...
included Washington Square as well as North Dearborn Street from West Walton Street to West Chicago Avenue.
Today
Bughouse Square Debates
The Bughouse Square Debates are an annual event sponsored by the Newberry Library in Chicago. The name Bughouse Square is the common nickname for Washington Square Park where the event is held. The name came from the word “bughouse” which was popular slang for mental health facilities in the early...
free speech gathering in conjunction with the Newberry Library’s annual book sale. The debates are part of an annual festival to recreate the atmosphere of speeches and debates by soap box orators that once flourished in the park.
Although Alderman McCormick's fountain was removed in the 1970s, in the late 1990s, the park district, the city, and neighborhood organizations agreed on a restoration plan for Washington Square. Improvements include a reconstructed historic fountain, period lighting, fencing, and new plantings. In the west part of the park, there is a memorial tablet designating the park as "Chicago's Premier Free Speech Forum."
Related Fora
- Jack Jones’s Dill Pickle Club, also known as the indoor Bughouse Square.
- Washington Park forum, also known as the Bug Club.