McKinley Park, Chicago

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McKinley Park
Community area
Community Area 59 - McKinley Park
The McKinley Park Lagoon, looking south
Location within the city of Chicago
Coordinates: 41°49.8′N 87°40.2′W / 41.8300°N 87.6700°W / 41.8300; -87.6700Coordinates: 41°49.8′N 87°40.2′W / 41.8300°N 87.6700°W / 41.8300; -87.6700
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Cook
City	Chicago
Neighborhoods	list McKinley Park
Area
• Total	1.40 sq mi (3.63 km²)
Population (2010)
• Total	15,612
• Density	11,000/sq mi (4,300/km²)
Demographics2010^[1]
• White	17.08%
• Black	1.5%
• Hispanic	64.76%
• Asian	15.66%
• Other	0.99%
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP Codes	parts of 60608 and 60609
Median income	$36,010
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

McKinley Park, one of the 77 official community areas of Chicago, Illinois, is located on the city's southwest side.

McKinley Park has been a working-class area throughout its long history. This tradition began around 1836 when Irish workers on the Illinois & Michigan Canal took squatter's rights to small tracts of land. By the 1840s, a few farmers had purchased and drained land and sent the Irish squatters packing. One of the first attempts at town building, “Canalport,” died stillborn, but Brighton was platted in 1840 and incorporated in 1851.

The completion of the Illinois & Michigan Canal in 1848 and the coming of the Chicago & Alton Railroad in 1857 spurred further subdivision of the area. The rails amplified the transportation advantages of the area, and during the Civil War industries located along the waterways and the railroad. The Union Rolling Mill was founded in the early 1860s along the south fork of the Chicago River and produced 50 tons of rails per day. Eventually, the firm became part of U.S. Steel.

History

Many steelworkers lived in the triangle formed by Ashland and Archer Avenue and 35th Street in an area called Mt. Pleasant. The name was probably ironic because of the adjacent steel mills, and because much of the area was swampy and undrained. Standing water bred hordes of mosquitoes and spring flooding was so severe that many houses were built on stilts. Not surprisingly, a portion of McKinley Park was called “Ducktown.” Some landowners desperate to elevate their holdings invited scavengers to dump ashes and thereby fill low areas. Unfortunately the scavengers dumped not only ashes, but garbage as well. Thus the area was not only wet, but fetid. Even with these problems, McKinley Park was annexed to Chicago in 1863.

The fire of 1871 displaced numerous industrial operations and many relocated to this area. Within five years after the fire 11 factories opened—most in iron and steel—along with 27 brickyards. During this same period, meatpacking operations just to the south moved into high gear. The result was the creation of the solid working-class community that still exists today.

The packinghouses fouled the environment and dumped wastes directly into the south fork of the Chicago River. Here the stream was such a hellish mess of decomposing material that it became known as “Bubbly Creek” because of the bubbles that constantly roiled its surface. The situation finally became so horrendous that the stream's upper reaches were filled in to rectify the problem.

If industries created pollution, they also created many good industrial jobs and led to a period of unprecedented growth and prosperity. Irish, Germans, Swedes, English, and native-born Americans filled the industrial jobs of the 1870s. Even after 1900, when Poles and other Eastern Europeans came to the area, English prevailed as the street language, and the area was the most American of all settlements in the stockyard districts. Transportation had always been poor, but the 1880s and 1890s saw improvement and extension of the car lines on Archer Avenue and on 35th Street. As time passed, steel mills and brickyards closed and industries changed, replaced by new activities. The Central Manufacturing District was begun in 1905 on some 260 acres (1.1 km²) along the south fork. In the late 1990s it was still operating, Pepsi-Cola was opening a new bottling plant, and the Wrigley Company was still making chewing gum. Meanwhile, the Chicago Sun-Times was building a mammoth publishing and distribution plant west of Ashland along the Chicago River.

The McKinley American Legion Post. Note the Willis Tower in the distant background.

The beginning of the twentieth century led, after years of complaints by residents, to the creation of a park, which was named for President McKinley after his assassination. The 69-acre (280,000 m²) park now boasts a swimming pool and ice-skating rink. It is the area's showplace and led to the naming of the entire community.

After years of declining populations, during the 1990s the population grew from 13,297 to 15,962, with Mexicans joining the ethnic mix. Well-kept two and four-flat buildings dominate the landscape, but new infill housing has begun to appear. Two stops on the Orange Line rapid transit have boosted property values and spurred development of a shopping mall on Archer and Ashland Avenue.

McKinley Park is served by three neighborhood newspapers the Bridgeport News, the Back of the Yards Journal and the Brighton Park/McKinley Park Life. The neighborhood newspapers are delivered weekly on Wednesdays to homes throughout the neighborhood.

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1930	22,032	—
1940	20,429	−7.3%
1950	18,813	−7.9%
1960	16,908	−10.1%
1970	15,691	−7.2%
1980	13,248	−15.6%
1990	13,297	0.4%
2000	15,962	20.0%
2010	15,612	−2.2%
^[2]

References

↑ Paral, Rob. "Chicago Demographics Data". Retrieved 21 September 2012.
↑ Paral, Rob. "Chicago Community Areas Historical Data". Retrieved 3 September 2012.

External links

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v t e Community areas in Chicago

Far North	Rogers Park West Ridge Uptown Lincoln Square Edison Park Norwood Park Jefferson Park Forest Glen North Park Albany Park O'Hare Edgewater

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North	North Center Lake View Lincoln Park Avondale Logan Square

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Southwest	Garfield Ridge Archer Heights Brighton Park McKinley Park New City West Elsdon Gage Park Clearing West Lawn Chicago Lawn West Englewood Englewood

South	Armour Square Douglas Oakland Fuller Park Grand Boulevard Kenwood Washington Park Hyde Park Woodlawn South Shore Bridgeport Greater Grand Crossing

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Far Southeast	Chatham Avalon Park South Chicago Burnside Calumet Heights Roseland Pullman South Deering East Side West Pullman Riverdale Hegewisch

v t e Neighborhoods in Chicago

Recognized by the City of Chicago	Albany Park Andersonville Archer Heights Ashburn Auburn Gresham Avalon Park Avondale Back of the Yards Belmont Cragin Beverly Bridgeport Brighton Park Bronzeville Bucktown Burnside Calumet Heights Chatham Chinatown Clearing Dunning East Side Edgewater Edison Park Englewood Forest Glen Gage Park Galewood Garfield Ridge Gold Coast Greater Grand Crossing Greektown Hegewisch Hermosa Homan Square Humboldt Park Hyde Park Irving Park Jefferson Park Kenwood Lake View Lincoln Park Lincoln Square Little Italy Little Village Logan Square The Loop Magnificent Mile McKinley Park Montclare Morgan Park Mount Greenwood Near North Side Near West Side New City North Park Oakland O'Hare Old Town Pilsen Printer's Row Pullman River North Riverdale Robert Taylor Homes Rogers Park Sauganash South Chicago South Deering South Shore Streeterville Ukrainian Village Uptown Washington Heights Washington Park West Elsdon West Ridge West Town Wicker Park Woodlawn Wrigleyville

Other districts and areas recognized by the community	Altgeld Gardens Armour Square Big Oaks Bowmanville Boystown Budlong Woods Buena Park Canaryville Central Station Chicago Lawn Chrysler Village East Garfield Park Edgebrook Fernwood Fuller Park Fulton River District Gladstone Park Goose Island Grand Boulevard Groveland Park Heart of Chicago Hollywood Park Illinois Medical District Indian Village The Island Jeffery Manor Jackowo Kilbourn Park K-Town Kosciuszko Park Lilydale Lower West Side Margate Park Marquette Park Marshall Square Mayfair Museum Campus New Chinatown Noble Square North Austin North Center North Halsted North Lawndale North Mayfair Old Edgebrook Old Irving Park Old Norwood Park Old Town Triangle Oriole Park Palmer Square Peterson Park Pill Hill Portage Park Prairie District Polish Village Prairie Shores Princeton Park Pulaski Park Ravenswood Ravenswood Manor River West Roseland Rosemoor Roscoe Village Saint Ben's Scottsdale Sheridan Park Smith Park South Lawndale South Edgebrook Tri-Taylor Union Ridge The Villa Waclawowo West Beverly West Englewood West Garfield Park West Lakeview West Lawn West Loop Gate West Pullman West Rogers Park Wildwood

South Lawndale, Chicago

Lower West Side, Chicago

Bridgeport, Chicago

McKinley Park, Chicago

Brighton Park, Chicago

New City, Chicago

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