Monument Park

After purchasing the property in mid-1913, the park district immediately began improving the site with plantings. Initially called Ridge Lawn Park, the site became known as Monument Park after 1918, when residents erected a large memorial "in Honor of Our Boys Who Served In The Army and Navy of the U.S.A. During the World War." The impressive black and white granite pillar still stands, surmounted by a limestone eagle from the old Cook County Courthouse, demolished before 1911. By the time the Edison Park District transferred Monument Park to the Chicago Park District in 1934, the site included symmetrical lawns, walks, trees, and shrubs in addition to the war memorial. The Chicago Park District soon added flowerbeds, a drinking fountain, and benches. In 2010 the community and American Legion Post 541 initiated a restoration and dedication to include a plaque honor all Veterans of all wars. The exact date of monuments erection is not verified.