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BHistory
History · Forest Park

Forest Park dates to 1907, and 48% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 58% of U.S. towns · #346 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Corbin, Dr. Joseph Carter, Gravesite. Below: 16 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1880.

1907founded
1on the National Register
48%homes built before 1940
16old photos & papers
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Forest Park’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Forest Park began

When was Forest Park founded?

1907

Forest Park dates its founding to 1907 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 923 in 18802020 census: 14,339119 years

How historic is Forest Park?

B

More historic than 58% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1922.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Forest Park’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Forest Park is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #346 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Forest Park’s overall grade.
Founding era1907, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194047.8% of homes (±4.7) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register1 listing, 0.7 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 58%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 55%

Few Illinois towns list much on the Register (a typical Illinois town has 0.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Forest Park’s 0.7 sits near the middle of its state (61% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.7 points). Two sources give 1907.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Forest Park’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

On the map since 18917 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1993. Watch Forest Park change.A town in postcards16 old photos, postcards and papers, 1901–1996.Old housesHalf of Forest Park’s homes were built before 1949.
★ What stands out · On the map

Forest Park on the map, 1891 to 1993

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Forest Park. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Forest Park on the 1891 USGS mapForest Park on the 1900 USGS mapForest Park on the 1928 USGS mapForest Park on the 1953 USGS mapForest Park on the 1963 USGS mapForest Park on the 1972 USGS mapForest Park on the 1993 USGS map1891Riverside sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Forest Park.

By decade

Forest Park, decade by decade

6 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s5 items
Harlem Race Track Grandstand, 19011901Harlem Race Track Grandstand, 1901S002710 loc carl fisher harlem racetrack chicago cropped1904S002710 loc carl fisher harlem racetrack chicago crop…Casino at Forest Park Illinois amusement park1907Casino at Forest Park Illinois amusement parkPostcardForest Park Amusement Park dedication circa 19071907Forest Park Amusement Park dedication circa 1907PostcardForest Park Illinois amusement park Steeplechase ridec. 1907Forest Park Illinois amusement park Steeplechase ridePostcard
1910s–1920s7 items
Forest Park Illinois amusement park chutes1910Forest Park Illinois amusement park chutesPostcardForest Park amusement part souvenir photo 19101910Forest Park amusement part souvenir photo 1910PostcardForest Park Illinois amusement park lake scene1911Forest Park Illinois amusement park lake scenePostcardForest Park Illinois town hall 19141914Forest Park Illinois town hall 1914PostcardForest Park Illinois amusement park entrance and ballroom1922Forest Park Illinois amusement park entrance and ball…PostcardForestparksafetycoasteredited1922ForestparksafetycoastereditedPostcardSteeple Chase Ride1922Steeple Chase RidePostcard
1930s–1950snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1960s–1990s4 items
19670501 02 Chicago Transit Authority Congress Expy. @ Des Plaines Ave196719670501 02 Chicago Transit Authority Congress Expy. …19700240 03 SOO197019700240 03 SOO19700240 04 SOO B&OCT197019700240 04 SOO B&OCT19960200 01 Harlem Ave. @ Pleasant St199619960200 01 Harlem Ave. @ Pleasant St
Today8 recent
Van Buren St near Forest Park station - Forest Park, IL - July 20232023Van Buren St near Forest Park station - Forest Park, …Chicago Two-Flat2017Chicago Two-FlatMadison Street2016Madison StreetEnd of the Line, Concordia Cemetery2011End of the Line, Concordia CemeteryGreetings from Forest Park, Illinois - Large Letter Postcard2011Greetings from Forest Park, Illinois - Large Letter P…DocumentShowmensRestStatue2007ShowmensRestStatueNew Des Plaines River Bridge2006New Des Plaines River BridgeUntitled photo2002Untitled photo
The story

How Forest Park came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Forest Park.

Read it all →

Before modern settlement, the area now known as Forest Park was inhabited by the Potawatomi and other Native American groups. In 1839, French trader Leon Bourassa purchased 160 acres of land where present day Forest Park lies. German immigrant Ferdinand Haase, bought 40 acres of that land from Leon Bourassa in 1851, which eventually became 240 acres. In 1856, John Henry Quick purchased the land, and named it Harlem after his hometown.

The community of Harlem was incorporated in 1884. However, was renamed to Forest Park, and officially incorporated under that name on April 17, 1907.

ChaptersAmusement parkCircle Theatre

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Forest Park, 1887 to 1996

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1887Born hereErv Lange is born here
  3. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1901In the archiveHarlem Race Track Grandstand, 1901
  6. 1907
    FoundingForest Park is established
  7. 1910In the archiveForest Park Illinois amusement park chutes
  8. 1919Born hereBill Idelson is born here
  9. 1922In the archiveForest Park Illinois amusement park entrance and ballroom
  10. 1922Post officeThe Forest Park post office opens
  11. 1923Born hereCalvin Sutker is born here
  12. 1927Born herePeggy Fenton is born here
  13. 1967In the archive19670501 02 Chicago Transit Authority Congress Expy. @ Des Plaines Ave
  14. 1970In the archive19700240 03 SOO
  15. 1996In the archive19960200 01 Harlem Ave. @ Pleasant St
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Harlem Race Track Grandstand, 1901
Retake this viewHarlem Race Track Grandstand, 1901, 1901

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Forest Park’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Forest Park

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2023
Corbin, Dr. Joseph Carter, Gravesite
Corbin, Dr. Joseph Carter, Gravesite
Sites
All 1 listings
Corbin, Dr. Joseph Carter, GravesiteSite · listed 2023

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Forest Park, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 15,688

Between 923 and 15,688 people in every census since 1880.

14 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Forest Park’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

4 famous people were born in Forest Park

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Bill IdelsonAmerican actor · b. 1919
C
Calvin SutkerAmerican lawyer and politician · b. 1923
E
Erv LangeAmerican baseball player · b. 1887
P
Peggy FentonAmerican baseball player · b. 1927
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Forest Park’s post office has been open since 1922.

7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Forest Park
ConcordiaForest HomeFree Sons of IsraelWaldheimWaldheimWaldheimWoodlawn Funeral Home and Memorial Park

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Forest Park’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
6 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewHarlem Race Track Grandstand, 1901: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Maywood17 historic placesA−River Forest5 historic placesARiver Forest Township5 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townProviso Township20 historic placesA−North RiversideIts storyC

Questions about Forest Park’s history

What year was Forest Park founded?

In 1907, according to Wikidata. Forest Park’s post office opened in 1922, and the census of 1880 counted 923 people here.

How does Forest Park rank for history?

Forest Park is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #346 of 768 in Illinois. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Forest Park?

One place: the Corbin, Dr. Joseph Carter, Gravesite (listed 2023).

How old are the homes in Forest Park?

48% of Forest Park’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.7 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1949.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (24), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.