Jackson Park (Chicago)

Jackson Park is a 551.5-acre (223.2 ha) urban park on the shore of Lake Michigan on the South Side of Chicago. Straddling the Hyde Park, Woodlawn, and South Shore neighborhoods, the park was designed in 1871 by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux and remodeled in 1893 to serve as the site of the World's Columbian Exposition. It is one of the largest and most historically significant parks in the city, and many of the park's features are mementos of the fair—including the Garden of the Phoenix, the Statue of The Republic, and the Museum of Science and Industry. The parkland that would become Jackson Park was originally developed as part of an unrealized 1,000-acre (400 ha) addition to the Chicago park and boulevard system, other parts of which include Washington Park and Midway Plaisance. Initially called Lake Park, it was renamed in 1880 in honor of Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States. The aquatic islands and lagoons have since been developed to include boat harbors, playing fields, prairie restoration, a golf course, and three beaches. The park also hosts the Barack Obama Presidential Center and La Rabida Children's Hospital.