Essex Playlot Park
History
The Chicago Park District acquired this playlot in 1974 with the help of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In 1998, the park was named Essex, after a nearby 19th-century settlement. In 1855, real estate developer Paul Cornell (1822-1904) began buying property south of his substantial holdings in the village of Hyde Park. The area soon became known as Essex - after Essex, England - for the large number of British railroad laborers who lived and worked in the area.