Madden Park
History
Between 1890 and 1930, as African-Americans left the rural south to seek greater economic opportunity, Chicago's black population grew from less than 15,000 to more than 200,000. There were few parks available to Chicago's African-Americans, most of whom had settled in an area between 24th and 35th Streets known as Bronzeville. In the late 1920s, Ida B. Wells and the Chicago Federation of Women's Organizations urged the South Park Commission to address the recreational needs this underserved community. The commission began to acquire land in the neighborhood in 1927. The park opened shortly thereafter. In 1934, the commission transferred the park property to the newly-formed Chicago Park District.
During the late 1930s, land adjacent to the park was earmarked for a public housing complex. The Chicago Park District and housing administrators worked together to create what was then considered an innovative concept--a complex that combined housing and parkland. Funded by President Franklin Delano Roovelt's Project Work's Administration (PWA), the facility was named in honor of Ida B.Wells. Federal relief fundsalso allowed improvements to the park. In 1970, the Chicago Park District hired architects Dubin, Dubin & Moutassamy to design a new field house for Madden Park. Today, the Chicago Park District and the Chicago Housing Authority continue tojointly operate the Wells Homes Community Center at the park.
The park's name honors Chicago Alderman and Congressman Martin B. Madden (1855-1928). Having risen from quarry water boy to stone conglomerate president, Madden used his business contacts to enter politics. As Fourth Ward alderman and particularly as representative for the First Congressional District, Madden proved a fast friend to his black constituents, championing, for example, the hiring of Blacks by the U.S. Postal Service.
