Day 55: The Remnants of The Fair

     When Paul Cornell successfully won approval for the formation of the South Park Commission in 1869, approval was given to put in a 1,000 acre park.  When it was first constructed, the Park was known collectively as merely South Park.  However, in 1880 the commission wanted the public to suggest new names for the park.  The westernmost park was renamed Washington Park in honor of out first President.  The park bordering the lake, which had originally been known as Lake Park, was renamed Jackson Park in deference to Andrew Jackson.

     10 years after that, the city was awarded the right to host the 1893 World's Fair, and the Fair needed a venue.  Soon afterward, Jackson Park was selected as the venue for the Fair, and work was quickly begun to ready it for the affair.  Daniel Burnham assisted with the design of the fairgrounds, producing the now-famous "White City".  Some of the features of the fair were the Osaka Garden(which was an authentic Japanese strolling garden), Daniel French's The Republic, a replica of a Viking ship, and a full-scale replica of Christoper Columbus' flagship Santa Maria.

     When the fair closed on November 1, 1893, the area was turned back into a park, including a public golf course, which was the first one of its kind to be opened west of the Allegheny Mountains(the course opened in 1899).  The Republic had been claimed by a fire in 1896, so a replica sculpture(at half the size of the original) was unveiled in 1918.  During World War II, vandals came through the park and damaged the Japanese Garden.  The Park District waited for many decades after the war to have it repaired before the Japanese city of Osaka finally stepped in and provided for the restoration project, and now the Island featuring the garden is known as one of the 150 great places in Illinois(at least according to the American Institute of Architects)  With the advent of the Cold War, came the advent of ultra-preparedness in this country, which brought the installation of a surface-to-air missile batter at the park.

     Nowadays, the park is a hot destination in the Summer months, as one of Chicago's many beaches is located within the boundaries of the park.  Not just that, but the park also features two walking trails and two basketball courts.  Additionally, the Park is an outdoorsman's paradise, featuring ample birdwatching opportunities with more than 24 species of bird(including feral Monk parakeets, descended from pet birds that went on the loose in the '60s), and a healthy fishing locale in the park's lagoons.