If you’ve ever strolled through Chicago’s Lincoln Park and wondered about its many interesting monuments, then join the Des Plaines History Center for this hour-long presentation by guest speaker Krista August on Thursday, May 11, at 1:30pm.

 

August is the author of Giants in the Park. At a 2013 Coffee Talk, August presented Part I of her program series, including the histories behind select monuments and stories about the artists, benefactors, unveiling ceremonies, “lost” statues, and the park’s cemetery years.

For the second part of her series, August offers a focus on Kennison Boulder, the statues of Franklin, Schiller, Altgeld, Hamilton and Charitas, and minor mentions of missing pieces, including the Captain Magnus Andersen bust and the female Sphinx statues.

According to August, “Lincoln Park, historically Chicago’s great place of leisure, is also an outdoor art and history museum with its seventeen vintage portrait statues.” Using historical photographs and book highlights, she said, each part of her program focuses on five or six monuments and briefly details a few missing statues and Lincoln Park history.

Coffee Talk programs at the History Center are open to the public. There is no program fee but donations will be accepted to help support History Center programs. Located at 781 Pearson Street in Des Plaines, the History Center collects, preserves, and presents the history of Des Plaines to enrich local cultural heritage through educational and community engagement. The History Center operates the Kinder House museum, presents annual exhibits, provides public programs, and is supported by the Des Plaines Park District, the City of Des Plaines, members, and donors. For more information, go to www.desplaineshistory.org or call 847-391-5399.