Park History
For more than 180 years, Washington Square Park has served as a gathering place for Chicagoans — evolving from an elegant 19th-century public square into one of the city’s most storied spaces for community, conversation, activism, and public expression. From the era of “Bughouse Square” and its famed soapbox speakers to the vibrant neighborhood park enjoyed today, visitors continue to stand on grounds shaped by generations of history, civic life, and cultural change.
1842
From Parcel to Park
James Fitch, Orasmua Bushnell, and Charles Butler of the American Land Company donated a three-acre parcel to the city for use as a public park. The donors named the site "Washington Square", possibly after a similar park located in an elegant New York City neighborhood. As the developers had hoped, Chicago's Washington Square was soon surrounded by many fine residences and churches.
1869
Improvements
In 1869, the city began improving Washington Square with lawn, trees, bisecting diagonal walks, limestone coping, and picket fencing.
1890
The Fountain
By the 1890s, an attractive Victorian fountain adorned the square. Within a decade or so, however, it had been razed and the park had deteriorated. In 1906, when Alderman McCormick became President of Drainage Board, he decided to devote his aldermanic salary to improving the park. McCormick donated a $600 fountain, and the city allocated an additional $10,000 to rehabilitate the park. Landscape improvements were planned by the renowned designer, Jens Jensen, then a member of the board of the city's Special Park Commission.
1910s
Bug House Square
By the 1910s, the neighborhood surrounding Washington Square had become more diverse. Because many old mansions had been converted into flophouses, the park earned the nickname, "Bughouse Square." Like Speakers Corner in London's Hyde Park, Washington Square became a popular spot for soap box orators. Artists, writers, political radicals, and hobos pontificated, lectured, recited poetry, ranted and raved. A group of regulars formed "The Dill Pickle Club," devoted to free expression. For years, Washington Square orators appointed their own honorary "king."
1959
An Official Chicago Park
In 1959, the city transferred Washington Square to the Chicago Park District. Although Alderman McCormick's fountain was removed in the 1970s, in the late 1990s, the park district, the city, and neighborhood organizations agreed on a restoration plan for Washington Square. Improvements include a reconstructed historic fountain, period lighting, fencing, and new plantings. -- Chicago Park District website
1970
Pride in the Park
On June 27, 1970, Bughouse Square became the launch site of world's first Gay Liberation March, held to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising in New York City. The park's long tradition of protest, visibility, and expression in Bughouse Square made it a natural starting place for a historic moment in LGBTQ+ history. Organized by Chicago Gay Liberation, approximately 100–150 participants gathered in the park before marching through downtown Chicago in a public call for visibility, equality, and liberation. The event took place one day before similar marches in New York and Los Angeles, making Chicago’s march among the earliest Pride demonstrations in the world.
What began in Bughouse Square as a grassroots protest movement would eventually grow into the annual Chicago Pride Parade and contribute to the global LGBTQ+ Pride movement celebrated today.
News Articles About Washington Square Park:
Tatiana Walk-Morris,"Washington Square Park Advisory Council Kicks Off Summer Event Series," DNAinfo | Chicago, 21 Jun. 2016
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Sarah Ziegler, "Dog lovers find community blocks from Moody," The Moody Standard, 6 Apr 2016
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Amy Lardner, "Spotlight: Washington Square Park Advisory Council," Chicago Parks Foundation's Blog Series "Spotlight on PACS", 20 Jan. 2016
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Tatiana Walk-Morris,"Some Residents Skeptical as Updates to Washington Square Park Take Shape," DNAinfo | Chicago, 29 Oct. 2015
Felicia Dechter, "Park Yourself Here," Skyline, 7 - 13 Oct.2015, 3
Tatiana Walk-Morris, "Plans for Washington Square Park Makeover To Be Presented at Meeting," DNAinfo | Chicago, 2 Oct. 2015
Alisa Hauser, "Final Call for Hydrangeas as Finkl Demolition Nears End, Guard Says," DNAinfo | Chicago, 30 Jul. 2015
Tatiana Walk-Morris, "Washington Square Park Gets New Look With Flowers Salvaged From Demo Site," DNAinfo | Chicago, 10 Jul. 2015
David Matthews, "Volunteers Working to Revitalize Historic Gold Coast Park," DNAinfo | Chicago, 25 Jun. 2015
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“Inside the First Pride Parade: A Raucous Protest for Gay Liberation,” National Geographic History, 27 Jun. 2020
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Pride Chicago, “A Look Back at the Chicago Pride Parade: 1970–2023,” Pride Chicago, 2023
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Pride Chicago, “Pride Began Here: Commemorating Chicago’s Historic 1970 LGBTQ+ March,” Pride Chicago, 2020
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Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame, “PrideChicago,” Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame
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WTTW News, “Remembering Chicago’s First Gay Liberation March,” WTTW, 24 Jun. 2020