From Rail Yard to Artistic Park

“Critically acclaimed as a unique fusion of art, architecture, and landscaping; embraced by diverse Chicagoans as a park for all people; and promoted to tourists as the crowning glory of a beautiful world-class city, Millennium Park has, in many ways, won Chicago the honor as the city of the century” (x).

The Book

Millennium Park: Creating a Chicago Landmark by Timothy J. Gilfoyle is a great coffee table book for anyone interested in Chicago. The book is full of pictures, maps, drawings, and short chapters that chronicle the history of Millennium Park. Gilfoyle divides the book into three sections: history, politics, and culture.

Millennium Park is a place that is steeped in history and is the final piece of Grant Park to be completed. In 1836 the land along Lake Michigan was preserved from any major development and became home to railroad tracks. After the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, Chicago became interested in developing a permanent park along the lakefront. Plans were commissioned for Grant Park in 1903 and sporadic construction began. Gilfoyle guides the reader through the history and straight into the political aspects of Millennium Park. The goal was to create something significant to attract residents and tourists and celebrate the new Millennium (the park didn’t actually open until 2004). There were accusations of corruption due to influence from major donors and construction issues. The many changes to the park’s design caused construction to be redone numerous times.

Gilfoyle ends the book with culture and helps the reader appreciate all that went into Millennium Park. One chapter consists solely of pictures depicting the construction of the major elements of the park: Pritzker Pavilion, Cloud Gate, BP Bridge, Crown Fountain, and Lurie Garden. The following chapters focus on each of the major elements and their designers. The book ends with a nod to Daniel Burnham and the realization that Millennium Park simply builds upon this man’s dream for Chicago that began in the late nineteenth century.

The Place

Millennium Park is a park designed for all seasons and all ages. There are several parts of the park that are worth checking out.

Cloud Gate: Chicagoans refer to this as “the Bean.” It is a huge bean shaped sculpture that reflects its surroundings. You are able to walk up to it, around it, and under it.

Crown Fountain: During the warm months, the pictures of Chicagoans mimic gargoyles while water spits from their mouths. The two towers face each other and the water pools in between.

Lurie Garden: This garden is stocked with large varieties of plants. Within the garden is a section where visitors can sit and soak their feet in water.

In addition to these, is the ice skating rink in the winter, the BP Bridge that snakes out of the Lurie Garden, and the Pritzker Pavilion that hosts concerts. Although Millennium Park is always crowded, it is a must see for visitors to Chicago. I have more pictures of the Bean than I can count, but it is always fun to visit. 

The Flag was Still There

“We sir, are ready at Fort McHenry to defend Baltimore against invading by the enemy. This is to say, we are ready except that we have no suitable ensign to display over the Star Fort, and it is my desire to have a flag so large that the British will have no difficulty seeing it from a distance” Major George Armistead (17-18).

The Book

The Flag, the Poet, and the Song: The Story of the Star-Spangled Banner, by Irvin Molotsky, is an easy to read book that dives into the stories surrounding our national anthem. Molotsky provides a brief background into the war including the reasons American declared war on Great Britain and the major events. Throughout this tumultuous time Mary Young Pickersgill was asked, by Major George Armistead, to sew a massive American flag. With the help of many, the flag was completed in six weeks. It weighed eighty pounds, was thirty feet tall, and forty-two feet long.

Francis Scott Key was a lawyer who was asked to help an American citizen, imprisoned by the British. The American was being held on a ship in the Chesapeake Bay just outside of Baltimore. While on the ship, Key witnessed the British attack Fort McHenry through a naval bombardment that lasted twenty-four hours. At the end of the bombardment, Fort McHenry still stood and Pickersgill’s flag was proudly raised. Key saw that flag and wrote a poem: The Star-Spangled Banner.

Molotsky’s book is packed with details surrounding the British attempt to invade Baltimore, details of the main characters, the preservation of Pickersgill’s flag, and how Key’s poem became the national anthem. I enjoyed reading this book and learning many new things. The only drawback is that Molotsky includes many editorial comments that are not necessary. The book shines when he lets history speak for itself.

The Place

Fort McHenry is a part of the National Park Service and is located southeast of Baltimore, Maryland. Visitors can tour the fort and learn more about the War of 1812 at the Visitors Center. When I visited Fort McHenry as a kid, we were able to see an interactive model that explained the types of defenses that were used. These included sunken ships that prevented the British Navy from coming too close.

The fort is surrounded by large cannons that can seem intimidating up close, but it is incredible to think of their power. A tour of the fort reveals what it was like to live there, especially during the bombardment by the British. The flag pole that held the “Star-Spangled Banner” is still at the fort and visitors can imagine the eighty pound flag flapping in the wind.