John Cesarone

Brownstones, Parks and Tree-Lined Streets in Chicago’s Lincoln Park

The area of Chicago referred to as Lincoln Park extends along the western edge of Lake Michigan north from Ohio Street to Ardmore Avenue, is bordered on the east by the Chicago River,and it contains a total of 1,188.62 acres. Originally called Lake Park, the site was a public cemetery for victims of cholera and smallpox. By the middle of the 1800s citizens demanded the land be converted to park land; subsequently the bodies were exhumed and moved to other cemeteries. After the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, the land was re-named in his honor. Lincoln Park--the actual park--is in the Lincoln Park neighborhood and includes the Lincoln Park Zoo, the Chicago History Museum, the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum and many other areas, including North Avenue Beach and Oak Street Beach.