In 1869 , the Illinois state legislature established the West Park Commission , which was responsible for three large parks and interlinking boulevards . Later that year , on November 4 , 1869 the commissioners named the southernmost park in honor of Stephen A. Douglas ( 1813 – 1861 ) . Best remembered for his pre-Civil War presidential defeat by Abraham Lincoln despite superb oratorical skills , Douglas was a United States Senator who helped bring the Illinois Central Railroad to Chicago . In 1871 , designer William Le Baron Jenney completed plans for the entire West Park System which included Douglas , Garfield , and Humboldt parks . Jenney 's engineering expertise was especially helpful for transforming Douglas Park 's poor natural site into parkland . He had manure from the Union Stock Yards and sand added to the marshy site . This process brought the of land to grade level . In the center of the landscape , Jenney created a picturesque lake , and a small section of the park was formally opened in 1879 . Inflated construction costs and post Great Chicago Fire tax collection difficulties resulted in phased projects . The first improvements were made to the park by Oscar DuBuis in the 1880s . Between 1886 and 1888 Douglas Park , like the other West Park System parks , replaced its greenhouse with a conservatory . In 1895 , members of several German turners ' clubs petitioned for an outdoor gymnasium , and the following year one of Chicago 's first public facilities was constructed with an outdoor gymnasium ( pictured right ) , swimming pool , and natatorium
Great Chicago Fire
Great Chicago Fire
Douglas Park (Chicago)