Washington Park Court District

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Coordinates: 41°41′30″N 87°36′37″W / 41.691598°N 87.610302°W / 41.691598; -87.610302
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Washington Park Court
Department of Streets & Sanitation
LocationChicago
North endEast 49th Street (one-way east)
Major
junctions		East 50th Street (hosts additional contributing properties.[1])
South endEast 50th Street (one-way west)
Washington Park Court from the south (November 1, 2009)
Washington Park Court from the south (November 1, 2009)

The Washington Park Court District is a

Washington Park community area or the Washington Park park, but is one block north of both. The district was named for the Park.[3]

The district includes

row houses built between 1895 and 1905, with addresses of 4900–4959 South Washington Park Court and 417–439 East 50th Street.[2] Many of the houses share architectural features.[4] The neighborhood was part of the early twentieth century segregationist racial covenant wave that swept Chicago following the Great Migration.[5] The community area has continued to be almost exclusively African American since the 1930s.[6]

Architecture

Washington Park Court District
Top: Washington Park Court from north; Bottom: 50th St in Washington Park Court District

Washington Park Court, which runs one-way northbound from East 50th Street to East 49th Street, is a one-city block-long street located at 432 east in the Chicago street numbering system. Officially, it runs from 4900 south to 5060 south in the numbering system.[3] The street and several adjacent homes at one end are recognized as a distinct district within the city, according to the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development.[2] In May 1990, the district was one of ten that were under consideration for Chicago Landmark status,[7] and it was designated a Chicago Landmark on October 2, 1991.[2] The district was named for the Park,[3] which was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted.[8]

The T. G. Dickinson Real Estate Company, which created the subdivision in 1892, mandated 10-foot (3.0 m)

Henry Newhouse and of developers Andrew and John Dubach.[2] At least twenty-five of the lots were developed by the Dubaches and at least twelve of the properties were designed by Newhouse.[4] Their architectural contributions set the tone for the block, which uses mostly brick and limestone houses that share porch and cornice lines.[4] Most houses have mansards or recessed roofs with bay fronts.[4]

Demographic change

Between 1900 and 1934 the African American population in Chicago grew from 30,000 to 236,000.

United States Supreme Court upheld racially restrictive covenants in Corrigan v. Buckley (271 U.S. 323 (1926)).[9][10]

During the first half of the 20th century,

The Black Belt was the term for the African-American neighborhood from 22nd Street to 31st Street along State Street on Chicago's South Side.[11] South Side local businessmen and the University of Chicago became alarmed at the prospect of poorer blacks moving from the Black Belt due to a combination of racial succession and economic decline.[12] Because 85% of Chicago was covenanted, most black neighborhoods were bounded by covenanted areas.[9] The Washington Park Court Improvement Association changed its focus from neighborhood improvement projects, such as planting shrubs and cleaning streets, to upholding segregationist policies.[5][13] When necessary, the organization resorted to violence to pursue its segregationist purpose, and between 1917 and 1921, bombs were used to discourage encroachment into majority white neighborhoods. The bombs were used at the residences of African Americans as well as the properties of real estate agents and bankers.[5]

Eventually the term Black Belt included the region from 39th Street to 95th Street between the

2000 Census, the area was 98.2% African American and 0.8% Hispanic.[6]

Notes

  1. ^ "Washington Park Court District Map". City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Landmarks Division. 2003. Retrieved January 2, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Washington Park Court District". City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Landmarks Division. 2003. Retrieved March 30, 2007.
  3. ^
    ISBN 0-8294-0597-6
  4. ^
    ISBN 0-15-602908-1
    . Retrieved January 4, 2008.
  5. ^
    ISBN 0-7391-1029-2
    . Retrieved January 3, 2009. Washington Park Court.
  6. ^
    Chicago Historical Society
    . Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  7. ^
    Newsbank
    . Retrieved January 2, 2009.
  8. Chicago Historical Society
    . Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  9. ^ a b c d e Kamp, Allen R. (1986–1987). "The History Behind Hansberry v. Lee" (PDF). UC Davis Law Review. 20. University of California, Davis: 481–500. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 12, 2010. Retrieved January 2, 2009.
  10. ^
    Chicago Historical Society
    . Retrieved December 31, 2008.
  11. ^
    Chicago Historical Society
    . Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  12. Chicago Historical Society
    . Retrieved December 31, 2008.
  13. ISBN 978-1-56000-857-6
    . Retrieved January 4, 2008.

External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Washington Park, Chicago.

41°41′30″N 87°36′37″W / 41.691598°N 87.610302°W / 41.691598; -87.610302

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