Landscape Information
Located between the tree-lined, north-south thoroughfares of South Prairie and South Indiana Avenues, this 3.2-acre plot, which opened in 2000, honors noteworthy Chicago women and provides the setting for one of the oldest extant buildings in the city: the Greek Revival Clarke-Ford House (begun 1836, relocated from two blocks south in 1977). The property, edged to the north by the Romanesque Revival Glessner House (1887), includes a central fountain from which three linear, gravel walks radiate north, south, and east, creating irregularly shaped lawn panels. Characterized by a circular pool and raised basin surrounded by boxwood hedges and stone benches, the fountain is oriented on axis with the Clarke-Ford House and the gated east and west entrances. A looping, curvilinear concrete path edges the site, encompassing the Clarke-Ford House grounds, and is bordered by a dense canopy of deciduous trees.
In 2000, a master plan for the property鈥檚 rehabilitation was developed by McKay Landscape Architects and architect Tannys Langdon. The plan flanks the historic house with formal parterre gardens, including an ornamental orchard of deciduous trees with a groundcover of flowering perennials. Circular motifs recur throughout: in the fountain and, in the formal gardens, with a platform that includes Helping Hands, Louise Bourgeois鈥檚 bronze sculpture of 1996 (relocated from Navy Pier in 2011), which honors Chicago social activist Jane Addams. The property also includes a community garden of perennials, culinary and medicinal herbs, and other indigenous plants that have historically thrived in the region.
The Clarke-Ford and Glessner Houses were designated National Historic Landmarks in 1971 and 1976, respectively. The Chicago Women鈥檚 Park and Gardens is located within the Prairie Avenue Historic District, listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
