East Side in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Calumet Park Fieldhouse

South Park Commission, architects; 1922-24

— Chicago Landmark —

Calumet Park Fieldhouse Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, July 27, 2024

1. Calumet Park Fieldhouse Marker

Inscription. This cast-concrete park fieldhouse is an excellent example of the Classical Revival architectural style and is comprised of a large central pavilion, flanked by two gymnasium wings. Its design elements feature eyebrow dormers, large-scale round-arched windows, balustrades and cartouches. The exterior is built of exposed aggregate concrete and also features a pair of Classical-style low-relief sculptural friezes designed by artist Frederick C. Hibbard, a protégé of noted Chicago sculptor Lorado Taft.

Designated on October 4, 2006
Richard M. Daley, Mayor

Erected 2006 by Commission on Chicago Landmarks; City of Chicago.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Parks & Recreational Areas. In addition, it is included in the Illinois, Chicago Landmarks Commission series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1922.

Location. 41° 43.081′ N, 87° 31.832′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in the East Side. It is at the intersection of South Avenue G and South Crilly Drive on South Avenue G. The marker is in the fieldhouse's front vestibule,

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to the left of the entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 9801 South Avenue G, Chicago IL 60617, 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 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: East Side Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); Illinois-Indiana Boundary Marker (approx. ¾ mile away); Veterans’ Memorial Park (approx. 1.3 miles away); Castle #30 - Whiting, IN (approx. 3.1 miles away in Indiana); Whiting Veterans Memorial (approx. 3.3 miles away in Indiana); Whiting-Robertsdale Vietnam Veterans Memorial (approx. 3.4 miles away in Indiana); Centier Bank: Generations of Family Bankers (approx. 3½ miles away in Indiana); Henry Schrage and Whiting (approx. 3½ miles away in Indiana). Touch for a list and map

Photographed by Sean Flynn, July 27, 2024

2. Calumet Park Fieldhouse Marker

of all markers in Chicago.

Also see . . .
1. Chicago Park District: Calumet Park.

Excerpt: "The park's name pays tribute to the Calumet region, which encompasses numerous south side community areas and comprises the basin of the Calumet River. The name Calumet comes from the Norman-French word for pipe, 'chamulet.' Early French explorers who traded with local Native Americans used the term in reference to their 'peace pipes.'"

(Submitted on July 28, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. Frederick Hibbard, Master Sculptor. A biography of Frederick Hibbard, whose friezes adorn the Calumet Park Fieldhouse in Chicago. He was best-known for Civil War-related sculptures, including the statue of Ulysses S. Grant commissioned by the state of Illinois for Vicksburg National Military Park.

Excerpt: "Hibbard died in Chicago on December 12, 1950. The New York Times noted his death: "Frederick C Hibbard, noted Chicago sculptor, died of bronchial pneumonia today in the Little Company of Mary Hospital. He was sixty-nine years old. Among works which won for him national acclaim are his Mark Twain monumental portrait
Photographed by Sean Flynn, July 27, 2024

3. Calumet Park Fieldhouse
and the Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn statues in Hannibal, Mo; the United Daughters of the Confederacy Memorial at Shiloh National Park, and a five-ton granite group of Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln, completed in 1943 for Racine, Wisconsin. He was buried in Mt. Hope Cemetery in Chicago, alongside his son, Lt. Frederick W. Hibbard, his first wife Gladys F. Hibbard and his second wife, Elisabeth H. Hibbard."

(Submitted on July 28, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Additional commentary.
1. Commission on Chicago Landmarks
This marker is included as part of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks series of historical markers.

— Submitted January 22, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.

Frederick Hibbard frieze on the Calumet Park Fieldhouse image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, July 27, 2024

4. Frederick Hibbard frieze on the Calumet Park Fieldhouse

Gymnasium at Calumet Park Fieldhouse image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, July 27, 2024

5. Gymnasium at Calumet Park Fieldhouse

Historic photo of Calumet Park Fieldhouse image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, July 27, 2024

6. Historic photo of Calumet Park Fieldhouse

This photo, on display outside the Southeast Side Historical Society (housed inside Calumet Park Fieldhouse) when visited in July 2024, shows the Illiana Lancers drum corps in front of the building in 1963.

Calumet Park Fieldhouse image. Click for full size.

Courtesy of Chicago Public Library

7. Calumet Park Fieldhouse

An undated early photo of the Calumet Park Fieldhouse

Credits. This page was last revised on June 10, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 28, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 1,556 times since then and 35 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on July 28, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 7. submitted on July 31, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.