Entry No. 36 — the Chicago file — filed under: outdoor-weird

Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool

Behind a Prairie-style stone gate on a busy Lincoln Park sidewalk hides a garden most passersby never realize is there. Landscape architect Alfred Caldwell designed it in 1936-38 to feel like a river meandering through a Midwestern prairie, with a cascading waterfall, a council ring, and stratified stone ledges. A National Historic Landmark, it reads as a secret ravine dropped into the middle of the city. Open seasonally, roughly mid-April through mid-November.

The move: Slip through the gate off Fullerton and follow the stone path past the waterfall to a hidden council ring.

📍 Before you go Open seasonally, roughly late April through late November, daytime hours only.

• 📍 Lincoln Park
• 💸 Free
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Outdoors

Where: 125 W Fullerton Pkwy, Chicago, IL 60614

Hours: Added 2026-06-23 — confirm current hours before you go.

⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4

last checked: 2026-06-23