To Protect and Preserve: An Early History of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Illinois, 1900-1930

Foundations

In 2009, Chicagoans celebrated the 100th anniversary of Daniel Burnham’s 1909 Plan of Chicago. Among other ideas, the Burnham Plan championed the creation of forest preserves, a vision already promoted by reformers, urban leaders, and prominent members of Chicago’s social elite. When Cook County voters approved a referendum in 1914 to create the Forest Preserve District, the Burnham Plan’s goal of making nature accessible to the public was well on its way.

But it took a long time to get there. This section of the exhibit looks at the period from 1869 to 1905. During those years, a number of civic-minded reformers laid the foundations for a system of open spaces and parks in and around Chicago. Among them were two “prairie school” architects, Dwight H. Perkins and Jens Jensen, who led the campaign for this civic enterprise.

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