Humboldt Park Lagoon and Prairie River

Humboldt Prairie River, on west side of Humboldt Drive, is a meandering stream designed in 1906 by the Jens Jensen, the founder of the prairie-style of landscape architecture. Inspired by Midwestern natural landscapes, Jens Jensen designed a long narrow waterway to look like a natural prairie river, linking it with the park’s existing lagoon. Historically, the prairie river forked off into two rocky brooks with lovely water cascades. There were also stepping stone paths and simple footbridges that fit well into Jensen’s naturalistic vision for the area. The river was edged with native aquatic plants and prairie grasses. Its southern portion was surrounded by perennial gardens with views of the nearby rose garden.

In 2003, the Chicago Park District undertook a major restoration of the Humboldt Prairie River which included dredging filled-in portions of the River, reconnecting it to the main lagoon, redesigning pedestrian pathways, restoring stony brooks and waterways, thinning weedy trees, removing non-native invasive plant species, reintroducing native wetland, prairie grasses and wildflowers, and installing a circulation system to pump water from the north end of the Prairie River to the south end. This circulation system improves water quality and ends the wasteful practice of continually drawing on city water to feed the Prairie River. Also solar panels and a wind turbine were installed to provide renewable energy to power the circulation pump. Powering the pumps with renewable “green” energy saves money, reduces air pollution and conserves resources.

Humboldt Park also has a swimming lagoon and fishing lagoon. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources stocks the lagoon with bluegill, crappie, green sunfish, pumpkin seed, rock bass, largemouth bass, channel catfish, bullhead, and carp. Other aquatic life at the lagoon may include waterstriders, crayfish, dragonflies and other insects, turtles, tadpoles, frogs and toads, and waterfowl. The Park District provides a worm pit for fishermen to use, in an effort for limit shoreline disturbance caused by anglers digging for worms. Limestone fishing stations and lagoon edge plantings were installed in 2003 as part of a lagoon shoreline restoration program.