18 / OutdoorIllinois June 2009

One hundredyears after draw-ing up plans for

the nature ofChicago, DanielBurnham contin-ues to inspire a

Green movement.

Any list of the most impor-tant figures in conserva-tion history is bound toinclude the likes of JohnMuir, Aldo Leopold and

Rachel Carson. But for those living inthe Chicago region, architect and urbanplanner Daniel Burnham deserves hisown special place on that list.

Burnham may be best known for hissupervision and layout of the 1893Columbian Exhibition and his admoni-tion to “Make no little plans. They haveno magic to stir men’s blood.” Takinghis own words to heart, in 1906 heaccepted a commission from the Mer-chant’s Club, which soon thereaftermerged with the Commercial Club of

Chicago, to craft a bold new develop-ment vision for Chicago and its sur-rounding area. The result was the Planof Chicago, which was published 100years ago, in 1909.

Popularly known as the BurnhamPlan—in spite of having been co-authored by Burnham’s chief assistant,Edward Bennett—it focused on severalmajor areas, including: improvement ofthe Lake Michigan lakefront, creation ofa system of highways outside the city,improvement of freight and passengerrailway systems, systematic arrange-ment of streets, and development of acivic center of cultural institutions andgovernment. Because of the Commer-cial Club of Chicago’s active promotionof the plan, a number of its recommen-dations were implemented; some as theplan outlined, some only partially or inaltered form. Among the more glam-

orous achievements were the formaliza-tion of Grant Park; the establishment ofa museum campus, anchored by theField Museum; the construction ofMunicipal Pier No. 2, now known asNavy Pier; and the raising of Island No.1, or Northerly Island.

As wonderful as these legacies are,what did the Plan of Chicago have todo with conservation? Echoing a recom-mendation issued by the Special ParkCommission in 1904, Burnham also rec-ommended the acquisition of an outerpark system, which led to the establish-ment of the region’s “emerald neck-lace” of forest preserves. Noting thevast, forested areas in close proximityto such major European cities as Lon-don, Paris and Berlin, Burnham called ita “sane proposition” to provide Chica-go and its suburbs with 60,000 acres ofwooded territory.

S to r y By Ar t hu r Me l v i l l e Pea r sonI l l u s t ra t i on s cou r t e sy A r t I n s t i t u t e o f Ch icago

Burnham’s recognition that “Humannature demands such simple and whole-some pleasures as come from roamingthe woods” was instrumental in popu-larizing the idea of preserving theregion’s forested lands for their naturalvalues rather than for development asmanicured parks. To be sure, his planalso called for plenty of neighborhoodand city parks linked by a system oftree-lined boulevards. However, “wildforests,” as he called them, providedsomething no conventional park evercould: “All of us should often run awayfrom the works of men’s hands andback into the wilds, where mind andbody are restored to a normal condition,

and we are enabled to take up the bur-den of life in our crowded streets andendless stretches of buildings withrenewed vigor and hopefulness.”

Burnham also reinforced the ideathat the “Time to secure the lands nec-

essary for such a (forest preserve) sys-tem is now, while as yet the prices aremoderate and the natural scenery iscomparatively unspoiled.”

Four years before the publication ofthe plan, the Illinois Legislature hadpassed the “Forest Preserve Act of1905.” In addition to the fact that it

called for the establishment of boule-vards through several of the morescenic rural areas of Cook County, itlacked sufficient details regarding landacquisition, development and gover-nance, and was never signed into law.

After a second forest preserve actwas ruled unconstitutional in 1911, athird law passed in 1913. Shorn of anymention of boulevards, it authorizedthe establishment of a Forest PreserveDistrict “To acquire...and holdlands...containing one or more naturalforests or lands connecting such forestsor parts thereof, for the purpose of pro-tecting and preserving the flora, faunaand scenic beauties within such dis-trict, and to restore, restock, protect,and preserve the natural forests andsaid lands together with their flora andfauna, as nearly as may be, in their nat-ural state and condition, for the pur-pose of the education, pleasure, andrecreation of the public.”

In 1916, after the Illinois SupremeCourt ruled that the 1913 forest pre-serve district law was constitutional,the district acquired its first 500 acres.Within a few short years, it had expand-ed its holdings to nearly 22,000 acres.Today, the Forest Preserve District ofCook County owns more than 67,000acres, which amounts to about 11 per-cent of the total area of the county.

Among the district’s holdings aresites first identified by the Special ParkCommission and reiterated in the Burn-ham Plan: Skokie Lagoons, Thatcher

The plan included an updated street and

boulevard network and a proposed forest

reserve system. Plate 86, Plan of Chicago.

The Plan of Chicago presented “the City as

a Complete Organism in which All its Func-

tions are Related One to Another in such a

Manner that it will Become a Unit.” The

proposed design of Michigan Avenue

(right), looking towards the south. Plate

118, Plan of Chicago.

June 2009 OutdoorIllinois / 19

Mt. ForestReserveMt. ForestReserve

Lake CalumetReserveLake CalumetReserve

Elmhurst andSalt CreekReserve

Elmhurst andSalt CreekReserve

Des PlainesRiverReserve

Des PlainesRiverReserve

Skokie ValleyReserveSkokie ValleyReserve

20 / OutdoorIllinois June 2009

Woods and Palos Forest Preserve toname a few. The plan also lookedbeyond Cook County to the “risingwooded land of DuPage County.” In1917, the newly formed Forest PreserveDistrict of DuPage County acquired itsfirst 79 acres, and today holds nearly25,000 acres. Subsequent forest pre-serve or conservation districts in Kane,Will, Lake and McHenry counties havepreserved 170,000 acres—nearly threetimes as many as called for in the Planof Chicago.

The Burnham Plan has inspiredcountless other planning efforts, ofwhich the protection of natural landsand related open space has been a keycomponent. To date, public and privateinterests within Chicago Wilderness—aregion extending from southeast Wis-consin, through northeast Illinois andacross northern Indiana into southwestMichigan—have worked together topreserve a grand total of 360,000 acresof natural lands and waters.

Given the Burnham Plan’s signifi-cance for the region, a corps of promi-nent civic and business leaders havecome together to organize the BurnhamPlan Centennial. Throughout all of2009, the committee—with key sup-

port from Metropolis 2020 and theChicago Community Trust—is planninga range of exhibitions, workshops, lec-tures, films, symposia and relatedevents. With an overall theme of “BoldPlans. Big Dreams,” the aim of the year-long celebration is three-fold: Toinspire and educate young and oldabout the legacies of the Burnham Plan,encourage actions that advance realiza-tion of the plan and initiate bold plansfor the next half century.

Among the celebration’s most ambi-tious initiatives is its promotion of morethan 20 Green Legacy Projects. In thespirit of the Burnham Plan, Green Lega-cy Projects seek to protect the LakeMichigan shoreline, develop regionaltrails and greenways, and pursue large-scale open space reserves of regional, ifnot national, significance.

“Then, as now,” according to thecelebration’s Web site, www.burnhamplan100.org, “the charge is to protectopen space before opportunities arelost.”

Lakeshore Preserve

Among the Green Legacy Projects being undertaken is the Openlands Lakeshore Pre-serve. For more than a century, Fort Sheridan occupied 714 acres of Lake Michigan

shoreline in northern Illinois. In 1994, the base was closed and 2 miles of shoreline weretransferred to conservation interests: the Lake County Forest Preserve District and Open-lands, a Chicago-based nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and enhancingopen space in northeastern Illinois.

Legislation was passed in 1995 to transfer at no cost 259 acres from the Army toLCFPD, with the actual transfer occurring between 1999 and 2001. In 2004, legislationwas passed allowing the Navy to transfer land it owned at Fort Sheridan to Openlands,and agreement was reached in August of 2005 on the terms of the transfer. BartlettRavine and a mile of shoreline and bluffs were transferred early in 2006. Two otherravines and 100 feet along the top of the bluffs will be transferred to Openlands this year.

With less than half of Illinois’ 60 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline protected, theaddition of the Openlands Lakeshore Preserve marks a significant achievement. “One ofthe last remaining ravine/bluff ecosystems in the Chicago region,” the 77-acre preserveis home to five state-listed threatened and endangered plant species, and is an importantbird refuge, especially for millions of migrating birds as they semi-annually pass throughthe Lake Michigan flyway.

Beginning in 2008, Openlands initiated efforts to stem erosion of the bluffs andsteeply graded ravines. As habitat restoration continues, the organization also plans toestablish a naturalized buffer area with an interpretive trail leading to scenic overlooks.For more information, go to either www.burnhamplan100.uchicago.edu/events/id/48 orwww.openlands.org/policy.asp?pgid=342.

Arthur Melville Pearson is a freelancewriter from Chicago.

View looking north on the south branch of

the Chicago River, showing the suggested

arrangement of streets and ways for team-

ing and reception of freight by boat, at dif-

ferent levels. Plate 107, Plan of Chicago.

Bird’s-eye view of Grant Park, depicting the

façade of the city, proposed harbor and the

lagoons of the proposed park on the south

shore. Plate 127, Plan of Chicago.