Pottawattomie Park

Description

Pottawattomie Park, located in the Rogers Park community, offers the following activities: baseball, basketball, bridge club, dance, floor hockey, soccer, step aerobics, track & field, tumbling, teen club, volleyball, holiday parties and special events for Chicago Public School non-attendance days. The Park Kids after-school program gives would-be latch-key kids a supervised place to learn new sports and music, do arts & crafts, have a quiet area for homework, and gain socialization skills.

Located on 9.40 acres, the park is comprised of three baseball fields, a combination football-soccer field, four basketball standards, turf soccer field, two playgrounds including a spray pool and a dog park/run. The air-conditioned fieldhouse contains a fitness center, racquetball court, gymnasium, kitchen, and four club rooms.

Pottawattomie Park is home to the Abbott Fund Wellness Program - providing the community with multifaceted, year-round nutrition and fitness programming.Fitness classes, fitness arcading and interactive fitness equipment are designed to help children and adults have fun while they get fit. Pottawattomie Park is also a C.A.P.S. monthly meeting site where neighbors can discuss 24th Police District issues.

The new "dog friendly area" is nestled in the northeast corner of the park along the Metra tracks and behind the townhomes at 7403-27 N. Wolcott.

History

Pottawattomie Park was one of four parks created by the Ridge Avenue Park District, established in 1896. The Ridge Avenue Park District's early parks were Morse and Indian Boundary. In 1931, the park district purchased property for two additional parks, Chippewa and Pottawattomie. Pottawattomie Park was the idea of the Birchwood Improvement Association, which lobbied for the establishment of a community center east of Ridge Avenue and north of Rogers Avenue. Pottawattomie Park became part of the Chicago Park District’s portfolio in 1934 when the 22 park districts were consolidated. The Chicago Park District continued to acquire land and vacated streets and alleys from 1949 to 1956 to expand the park.

The park's name honors the Pottawattomie (Potawatomi) Indians, one of nine tribal groups living around the Great Lakes after 1600. The Pottawattomies lived on the eastern edge of Lake Michigan until about 1760, when they moved westward into the Chicago region. Although many Pottawattomies intermarried with French, British, and American traders, the tribe was nevertheless forced from the area after the Blackhawk War of 1832. A large Works Progress Administration painting in the park fieldhouse depicts a meeting between Native Americans and whites.

Additional Information

Parking/Directions

For directions using public transportation visit www.transitchicago.com.

Advisory Council

Contact: Peter Normand, President

Contact Email: peternormand26@yahoo.com

Meetings: 3rd Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m.

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