Hyde Park in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Obama Kissing Rock
Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, December 4, 2021
1. Obama Kissing Rock Marker
"On our first date, I treated her to the finest ice cream Baskin-Robbins had to offer, our dinner table doubling as the curb. I kissed her, and it tasted like chocolate."
- President Barack Obama
From an interview in O, The Oprah Magazine, Feb. 2007;
image courtesy of blackpast.org
On this site, President Barack Obama first kissed Michelle Obama.
Erected 2012.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Government & Politics. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #44 Barack Obama series list. A significant historical month for this entry is February 2007.
Location. 41° 47.978′ N, 87° 35.502′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in Hyde Park. It is at the intersection of East 53rd Street and South Dorchester Avenue, on the left when traveling west on East 53rd Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1400 East 53rd Street, Chicago IL 60615, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the American Midwest and on the Great Lakes. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Greenwood Row Houses (approx. 0.4 miles away); "Original Professors Row" (approx. 0.4 miles away); Harold Washington (approx. 0.4 miles away); Enrico and Laura Fermi
this page online
Another marker is no longer nearby. Museum of Science and Industry (was approx. Ύ mile away but has been confirmed missing).
Also see . . . Obama Kissing Rock - Chicago, Illinois (Atlas Obscura).
"While today it is a tiny little green space with flowers and a flagpole, the Obama Kissing Rock was once the site of a Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop. Future-president Barack and future-first-lady Michelle visited the Hyde Park franchise on their very first date back in the summer of 1989, and shared more than just two scoops on the curb outside the store, namely their first kiss."(Submitted on December 10, 2021.)
Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, December 4, 2021
2. Obama Kissing Rock Marker - wide view
The marker is visible here mounted to a low rock on the corner.
Mariana R. Cook (courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution), May 26, 1996
3. Barack and Michelle Obama, Chicago, Illinois, 26 May 1996
Credits. This page was last revised on January 30, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 10, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 3,554 times since then and 186 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 10, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.
