Munroe Park
History
Munroe Park lies in a section of the south side Beverly community that was once part of the Village of Morgan Park. The area's 1914 annexation to Chicago brought new residents, and population continued to climb throughout the Depression and World War II years. In 1945, the Morgan Park Manor Improvement Association transferred property straddling the Baltimore & Ohio C.T. Railroad right-of-way to the city. The Bureau of Parks and Recreation began improving the land south of the tracks in 1948, and within two years, the new park had playing fields, playground apparatus, and a small recreation building. Tennis courts were added north of the tracks in 1955. In 1959, the city transferred the southern section of the park to the Chicago Park District, which acquired the remainder two years later. In the late 1980s and 1990s, the park district substantially improved the park with a soft surface playground, a sand volleyball court, a soccer field, and a fitness course.
Initially known as Talman Playground for a nearby street, the property had been renamed Munroe Park by 1955. The derivation of the park's name is unknown.
