Addams (Jane) Park

In the late 1940s, Addams Park's Near West Side neighborhood was decaying and congested. The Chicago Park District established the much-needed park in 1946, part of a ten-year plan to increase recreational opportunities in under-served neighborhoods after World War II.

Land acquisition proved problematic, however, and demolition of the site's dilapidated buildings did not begin until 1952. The park district installed a swimming pool in 1967. Operated jointly with Medill Elementary School, the park provides a broad range of activities for the children of the adjacent Abbott Homes public housing project.

The park's name honors Jane Addams (1860-1935), the world-renowned social reformer who devoted her life to serving the economic and social needs of the Near West Side's disadvantaged immigrant community. Addams' base of operations was her Hull House on nearby Halsted Street, one of North America's first settlement houses. In addition to her work in Chicago, Addams actively promoted national legal reforms, including tenement-house regulation, factory inspection, and workers' compensation. Addams was awarded the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts.