Scoville Park

Scoville Park is a public park in Oak Park, Illinois. Designed by Jens Jensen, the Danish-American landscape architect, the park is located at the corner of Lake Street and Oak Park Avenue in the town's central Hemingway District, next to the village's main library. It is home to a war memorial for local veterans of World War I, the Horse Show Fountain, a meadow that hosts summer concerts and other village events, a playground, and tennis courts. The park was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.[1]

Horse Show Fountain in the southeast corner of the park

History

Joseph Kettlestrings, the first white settler in the area that became Oak Park, acquired 173 acres of land from the federal government in 1833, including the area that is now Scoville Park. A plaque marking the spot of his second home is located in Scoville Park's southwest corner, near the library, although recent research indicates the house may have been farther west, just south and east of the present-day intersection of Harlem Avenue and Lake Street.[2][3]

In 1855, James Scoville bought the land that would become the park from Kettlestrings.[4] He built his estate, including a large white mansion, at the site of what is now the location of the park's Peace Triumphant statue, atop a ridge that marks a continental divide between the St. Lawrence River and Mississippi River basins.[5] Scoville later donated money to create the Scoville Institute, which eventually became the Oak Park Public Library, on land immediately next door to his house.[2]

Amid plans to convert Scoville's estate into a hotel, the Park District of Oak Park was created in 1912 and, in its first purchase, it bought the property for $135,637.[4][6][7] In 1913, the Scoville home was demolished and Jens Jensen drafted plans for the park.

Scoville Park underwent piecemeal changes through the years. It was renovated in 2012-2013 to make the park more open and align it more closely with Jensen's original plan.[8]

Horse Show Fountain

The Horse Show Fountain, a 1969 replica of the 1909 original, is located at the park's entrance at the corner of Lake and Oak Park. The fountain is also known as the Wright-Bock Fountain, as the original is generally believed to be the product of sculptor Richard Bock and architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The fountain was built by the local Horse Show Foundation to serve not only people, but also horses and dogs.[2]

Peace Triumphant in 2018

The fountain was originally located 100 feet to the west, on the curb at Lake Street, in front of the wrought-iron fence that surrounded the Scoville mansion and later served as the park boundaries. By the 1960s the fountain was deteriorating, so a replica was built with entirely new materials, and it was re-placed about 100 feet east, at the corner of the park. The fountain's original inscription was lost to history during the restoration. The new fountain was dedicated on June 8, 1969, on what was then believed to be the 100th anniversary of Frank Lloyd Wright's birth (he is now believed to have been two years older).

Oak Park-River Forest War Memorial (Peace Triumphant)

The Oak Park-River Forest War Memorial, known as Peace Triumphant, is a memorial to the veterans of World War I located at the top of the hill on the park's north end. The monument was erected in 1925 by citizens of Oak Park and neighboring River Forest, who donated the $52,573.63 needed to build the granite and bronze monument to community members who fought in the war.[9][10] The monument includes three bronze statues, representing representing the armed forces of land, sea and air.[10] The monument includes the names of 2,446 residents who served in World War I from Oak Park and River Forest, including Ernest Hemingway, who grew up nearby and sledded down the hill as a boy.[10] Vice President Charles G. Dawes attended the dedication, on Armistice Day, 1925.[10]

Ernest Hemingway's name on the Peace Triumphant statue

Peace Triumphant was restored in 2009-10. The foundations of James Scoville's house were discovered beneath the statue during its restoration in 2010.[11]

Percy Julian Bust

A bust of Percy Julian, the chemist, humanitarian, and long-time Oak Park resident, was unveiled in 2003, close to the library on the park's west end.[7] It was commissioned by the Institute for Science Education and Technology.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places listings in Cook County, Illinois", Wikipedia, 2018-05-19, retrieved 2018-06-19
  2. 1 2 3 "SCOVILLE PARK FOUNTAIN (1903 - S.094)".
  3. ↑ "Before Oak Park, there was Kettlestrings Grove". oakpark.com. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  4. 1 2 "Scoville Park Master Plan Update" (PDF). March 21, 2018.
  5. ↑ "Oak Park Continental Divide page". oprf.com. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  6. ↑ "History of the Park District of Oak Park | The Park District of Oak Park". pdop.org. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  7. 1 2 "Facility Description | The Park District of Oak Park". pdop.org. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  8. ↑ "Scoville Park master plan gets Park District of Oak Park OK. Now, how to pay for it?".
  9. ↑ "Peace Triumphant: A war remembered". www.oakpark.com. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "The History and Theme of Peace Triumphant". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  11. ↑ "Restoring history, finding even more". oakpark.com. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  12. ↑ "Waymarking - A scavenger hunt for unique and interesting locations in the world". waymarking.com. Retrieved 2018-06-19.

Coordinates: 41°53′22″N 87°47′42″W / 41.88944°N 87.79500°W / 41.88944; -87.79500

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