Blackhawk Park

The Northwest Park District began acquiring land for a new park known as the Cragin site in 1916.  In 1921, renowned landscape architect Jens Jensen, designer of much of the West Park system, developed a plan for the park. Early improvements to Blackhawk Park included a wading pool, a playground, tennis courts, and electric lighting.  Land acquisition for the park was completed in 1922.  Also, in 1922, the Northwest Park District named the park to honor the 86^th Division, a World War I Army unit known as the Blackhawk Division of the Allied Expeditionary Force. Composed of volunteers and draftees from Illinois, the Division took its name from the Sac Chief Black Hawk (1767-1838). In 1832, Black Hawk led a group of Sac, Fox, and Kickapoo Indians west across the Mississippi into Illinois in a futile attempt to reclaim their ancestral lands, from which they had been forced in the 1820s. Though his forces were beaten back and fell to final defeat on August 2, 1832, Chief Black Hawk has long been revered for his bravery and perseverance.

In 1926, a small brick field house with a gambrel roof was built in the park. Architect Albert Schwartz designed the building. Altogether, he produced six field houses for the Northwest and Old Portage Park Districts. Two years after the completion of the original field house, architect Walter W. Alschlager designed a major addition to the building that included an indoor swimming pool, gymnasium, locker rooms, offices, and a boardroom.  The fieldhouse offered many indoor activities like swimming, gymnasium activities, social dancing, music, crafts, dramatics, cooking classes, and citizenship lessons.

In 1934, Blackhawk Park became part of the Chicago Park District system when the twenty-two park districts were consolidated into one, the Chicago Park District.