Lake Front Park
| Location | Chicago, IL, United States |
|---|---|
| Modern Address | Millenium Park |
| Tags | |
| Description | Lake Front Park (aka Lake Shore Park, Union Base Ball Grounds, Chicago Base Ball Grounds) was used by the Chicago White Stockings in 1871. See Lowry, "Green Cathedrals." It is at the site of the modern Millenium Park. Baseball was played in Lake Park in 1870, the Bill Posters playing a picked nine. See Chicago Tribune, July 30, 1870. The Lake Park was used for concerts, balloon ascensions and circuses throughout 1870. The Chicago White Stockings leased the north end of Lake Park for a baseball grounds for the 1871 season. See Chicago Tribune, Jan. 28, April 9. 1871; Chicago Evening Mail, Feb. 13, 20, 1871 See protopix for a birds-eye view of the park. |
| Sources | See Lowry, "Green Cathedrals." |
| Comment | The 1868 "Guide to Chicago" pp. 119-120 notes the existing Dearborn Park (west of Michigan Ave. between Randolph and Washington) and notes that a new Lake Park is planned, by filling in the basin east of Michigan Ave. (and directly east of Dearborn Park). The Chicagology website article on Dearborn Park (see https://chicagology.com/prefire/prefire052/) has a photo of Dearborn Park looking east which appears to include the area that became Lake Front Park, and may have a baseball game in the background. This image was taken c. 1871--presumably before the ballpark was constructed. The ballpark's northern boundary was, like Dearborn Park, Randolph St. This image is also in the Library of Congress. I've uploaded this image to the Bill Pushers Club entry. A photo with a near similar date and view view is in Chicago Magazine, Oct. 2015 (and Kirkland's Chicago, p. 313) showing the Armour block/Pullman Palace Car Co., which is to the immediate northeast of Dearborn Park. Newspaper complaints about kids playing baseball in Lake Park in the Chicago Evening Post, Oct. 19, 1868, and in Dearborn Park, same, and Aug. 25, 1869. Lake Park at this time extended south to "Park Row", 1/2 block north of 12th Street. The Excelsiors Jr. club played a practice game there in 1867. See Chicago Inter Ocean, April 7, 1867. The Chicagology website has a map of that Lake Park, and an illustration from Chicago Illustrated, Feb. 1866. A newspaper search failed to find ball-playing in either Lincoln Park or Jefferson Park prior to 1871. Edit with form to add a comment |
| Query | Edit with form to add a query |
| Found by | Bruce Allardice |
| Submission Note | |
| Entered by | Bruce Allardice |
Clubs
| Club | Years | Edit Association with Field |
|---|---|---|
| White Stockings Club of Chicago | 1871 |
Games
No games have been posted yet
Comments
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