Lincoln's Gettysburg Address plaque - Chicago, IL
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member adgorn
N 41° 53.268 W 087° 45.948
16T E 436466 N 4637602
Bronze profile of Abraham Lincoln and plaque of the Gettysburg Address, inside the Austin Town Hall Cultural Center, dedicated on April 15, 1929.
Waymark Code: WMZBJV
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 10/14/2018
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member wayfrog
Views: 4

Listed on the Smithsonian SIRIS database (visit link) The artist is listed as unknown.

The plaque contains a portrait of Abraham Lincoln and is inscribed "1809-1865, Gettysburg Address, November,(sic) 19 1863" followed by the address. At the bottom is the inscription: "Presented by Mrs. Phil Sheridan Tent No. 4 Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War 1861-1865 in Memory of Kilpatrick Post No. 276 Grand Army of the Republic. April 5, 1929."

More about the center from the Chicago Park District site: (visit link)

"Located in the Austin community, Austin Town Hall Park and Cultural Center totals 3.17 acres. The park features a fieldhouse with an indoor swimming pool, two kitchens, a gymnasium, a performance theater/auditorium and a fitness center.

In 1865, businessman and real estate speculator Henry W. Austin created a lovely 280-acre subdivision in Cicero Township. Austin's development included wide, tree-lined streets and a small park, originally known as Holden Park. The township selected Austin as its seat of government, and in 1870 constructed a brick town hall building, with a cupola and eclectic details, in the center of Holden Park.

In 1898, Austinites, having a majority on Cicero's town council, used political influence to allow the extension of the Lake Street elevated line into their community. This infuriated residents of other areas within Cicero Township, such as Oak Park and Berwyn, who retaliated the following year by holding a joint election to force Austin's annexation to the City of Chicago. Much to the dismay of local residents, this effort succeeded and Austin became part of Chicago in 1899. The city took over the Cicero Town Hall and began using it as a library and police station as well as for other public functions.

The city transferred Holden Park to the West Park Commission in 1927. Because the old town hall had housed a branch library for several years, the West Park Commissioners agreed to the construction of a new public library in the park, designed by architect Alfred S. Alschuler. At the same time, the West Park Commission also built a fieldhouse for the newly renamed Austin Town Hall Park. The large brick Georgian Revival-style building was influenced by Philadelphia's Independence Hall. The structure was designed by architects Michaelsen and Rognstad, who were also responsible for other notable buildings including the Garfield Park Gold Dome Building, the Humboldt and Douglas Park Fieldhouses, and the On Leong Chinese Merchant's Association Building in Chinatown.

In 1934, Austin Town Hall Park became part of the Chicago Park District, when the city's 22 independent park commissions merged into a single citywide agency."

I visited during the annual Open House Chicago event: (visit link)
Location Type: Statue/Bust/Portrait

Property Type: Public

Date of Event: 04/15/1929

Location Notes:
Inside the building located at 5610 W. Lake Street on the west side of Chicago.


URL for Additional Information: [Web Link]

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