Gwendolyn Brooks Memorial

While it’s technically located farther east in the Kenwood neighborhood, Brooks Park and the Gwendolyn Brooks Memorial honor the poet of the same name. A lifelong Chicago resident, Gwendolyn Brooks resided in the Bronzeville neighborhood, contributing to its rich legacy as a prolific writer.

Born in Kansas in 1917, her family moved to Chicago when she was just six weeks old as part of the Great Migration. Brooks started writing poetry at a young age, and by 1935 she regularly submitted her work for “The Chicago Defender.” In fact, by the age of 16, Brooks had published approximately 75 poems. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry (1950) and recipient of many awards and accolades, Brooks continued writing and promoting poetry until her death in 2000.

While the park was first established in 1970, it wasn’t named after Gwendolyn Brooks until 2004 (the park was originally named Hyacinth Park). The park was renamed as part of the Chicago Park District’s effort to recognize and honor Chicago women. While relatively small at just over 2 acres, this park is popular among families and residents attending the movie nights or the park’s play structures. Within the park is a sculpture of Gwendolyn Brooks’ bust made of bronze, wood, and stone. The piece was sculpted by Margot McMahon in 2018 and was installed the same year. Behind the bust is a model of a porch that mirrors Gwendolyn Brooks’ childhood writing spot.