Chicago Park District Records : Drawings, 1870-2010
- Collection ID ARCHIVES P00001
- Creator Names Chicago Park District (Chicago, Ill.)
- Title Records, 1870-2010
- Physical description Approximately 100,000 drawings : approximately 25,000 PDF surrogates as access copies
- Collection arrangement The collection is arranged in one series, Series 1: Drawings, 1870-2010. Parks are organized by park number, which is assigned by the Chicago Park District, but they are searchable by a number of elements, including park name.
- Access and usage restrictions PDF versions are the primary mode of access. A handful of drawings are only available to view in hard copy. For physical copies, researchers must make an appointment with an archivist. Same-day appointments are not possible.
- Collection summary From large, famous park, to small, neighborhood playground, from Chicago's boulevard system, to its beaches, the Chicago Park District and its predecessor Park Commissions are represented in their entirety in this collection. The records of the Chicago Park District are comprised of a wide variety of landscape and architectural drawings of parks, park buildings and related green spaces. Included are property surveys of park sites; maps of site areas; maps showing Lake Michigan, its shoreline changes and sounding depths; plans showing utility lines for water, sewer and electricity; elevations, sections, plans and details for park buildings, structures and decorations; maps of boulevards; and planting plans for park landscapes. Versions of these drawings are available to view as scanned PDFs.
- Biographical or Historical Note The earliest parks were created in Chicago between the 1830s and 1860s. The park system as it is known today began to take shape with the adoption of three separate acts of state legislation establishing the Lincoln, South, and West Chicago Park Commissions in 1869. Although the three park commissions operated independently, the overall goal was to create a unified ribbon of green that would encircle Chicago. An 1895 state act allowed voters within newly annexed areas to create their own park districts. By 1930, a total of 22 independent agencies operated simultaneously in the city. In 1934, to reduce duplication of services, streamline operations and gain access to New Deal funding, voters approved the Park Consolidation Act of 1934, which established the Chicago Park District (CPD).
- Finding Aids Note Finding aid available in the Reading Room of the Special Collections and Preservation Division and on the library's web site.
- Acquisition information Transferred from the Chicago Park District in 2014.
- Geographic coverage Chicago Park District (Chicago, Ill.) Archives.
- Subjects
- Parks Illinois Chicago History Sources.
- Landscape architecture Illinois Chicago History Sources.
- Names
- Chicago (Ill.). Commissioners of Lincoln Park Archives.
- Chicago (Ill.). West Chicago Park Commissioners Archives.
- South Park Commission (Chicago, Ill.) Archives.
- Century of Progress International Exposition (1933-1934 : Chicago, Ill.)
- United States. Works Progress Administration.
- World's Columbian Exposition (1893 : Chicago, Ill.)
- Finding aid URL http://www.chipublib.org/fa-chicago-park-district-records/