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57th street beach
USINFO | 2013-05-24 13:25
Description
57th Street Beach is located at 5700 S. Lake Shore Drive (57th St. @ Lake Michigan) in Jackson Park. This beach features an ADA accessible beach walk and restrooms. Beach goers can stop by the Tasty Grill offering a Mexican menu along with hot dogs and refreshing beverages. The distance swimming area is located parallel to shore from 55th Street south to pier. Limited street parking is available nearby, west of Lake Shore Drive.
History
The 57th Street Beach is located in Jackson Park, one of Chicago’s oldest and most significant parks. The renowned designers of New York’s Central Park, Olmsted & Vaux, laid out Jackson Park along with the adjacent Midway Plaisance and Washington Park in 1871. Their earliest park improvements included a beach composed of granite bricks at the location of what is now the 57th Street Beach. Considering that raw sewage was dumped into Lake Michigan at that time, it is not surprising that the beaches were used as paved drives for strolling or promenading, rather than wading or bathing. Improvement plans for Jackson Park after the Columbian Exposition included a sand beach. However, at this time, raw sewage was dumped right into Lake Michigan, and the lake was not considered a desirable place to wade or swim. The lakefront did not become a popular place for public bathing until 1899 when Chicago’s innovative Drainage Canal was complete. Since the turn of the century, the 57th Street Beach has been used by generations of Chicagoans. In 1993, the park district constructed a new comfort station for the beach, and beach-goers can enjoy the beautiful view of the skyline.
57th Street Beach is located at 5700 S. Lake Shore Drive (57th St. @ Lake Michigan) in Jackson Park. This beach features an ADA accessible beach walk and restrooms. Beach goers can stop by the Tasty Grill offering a Mexican menu along with hot dogs and refreshing beverages. The distance swimming area is located parallel to shore from 55th Street south to pier. Limited street parking is available nearby, west of Lake Shore Drive.
History
The 57th Street Beach is located in Jackson Park, one of Chicago’s oldest and most significant parks. The renowned designers of New York’s Central Park, Olmsted & Vaux, laid out Jackson Park along with the adjacent Midway Plaisance and Washington Park in 1871. Their earliest park improvements included a beach composed of granite bricks at the location of what is now the 57th Street Beach. Considering that raw sewage was dumped into Lake Michigan at that time, it is not surprising that the beaches were used as paved drives for strolling or promenading, rather than wading or bathing. Improvement plans for Jackson Park after the Columbian Exposition included a sand beach. However, at this time, raw sewage was dumped right into Lake Michigan, and the lake was not considered a desirable place to wade or swim. The lakefront did not become a popular place for public bathing until 1899 when Chicago’s innovative Drainage Canal was complete. Since the turn of the century, the 57th Street Beach has been used by generations of Chicagoans. In 1993, the park district constructed a new comfort station for the beach, and beach-goers can enjoy the beautiful view of the skyline.
