Union Park, Urban park in Near West Side, Chicago, US
Union Park is an urban park on Chicago's Near West Side, with sports fields, tennis courts, basketball areas, a swimming pool, and open lawns. The grounds cover a full city block and are bordered by Ogden Avenue to the southwest, giving the park a clear and recognizable shape.
The park was established in 1853, when Chicago was expanding rapidly and public green spaces were being carved out for a growing urban population. By the early 1900s, it had become a regular meeting point for labor organizers and working-class communities in the surrounding neighborhoods.
The park sits in a neighborhood long shaped by waves of Irish, Polish, and Eastern European immigrants, and that layered history is still visible in the surrounding streets. Concerts and community events regularly draw people from across the city to the open lawns.
The park is located at the corner of Ashland Avenue and Washington Boulevard, with the Ashland transit station close by. Most facilities are free to use without prior booking, though the pool may have specific rules depending on the season.
A statue of James Connolly, the Irish independence leader and labor organizer, stands at the park's southwest corner, making it the only Connolly statue in the United States. It was placed here in 2006, chosen for this location because of the neighborhood's deep ties to Irish immigrant communities.
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