September 9-11, 1983: A Weekend in Dallas
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One Saturday, Guy and I walked over to Lincoln Park to go to the Lincoln Park Conservatory; that's why there's lots of plants but we are both wearing heavy coats.

Positioned near the shore of Lake Michigan, the 3-acre Lincoln Park Conservatory is a conservatory and botanical garden in the huge city park across Clark Street from my condo- Lincoln Park. The conservatory is located at 2391 North Stockton Drive just south of Fullerton Avenue, west of Lake Shore Drive- about a mile from The Parkview (the name of my building). Part of the complex are also the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool and the North Pond Nature Sanctuary are further to the north along Stockton Drive.

The Lincoln Park Conservatory is a Victorian Era glass house, built in late nineteenth century. It contains four rooms displaying exotic plants from around the world. Rare orchids, like the Moth orchid, can be found in the Orchid room.

A formal garden is situated in front of the Conservatory; one of the oldest public gardens in Chicago, designed and planted in the late 1870s. Since its foundation, the formal garden has been the home of many sculptors and works of art. The most famous are the Bates fountains, the Schiller monument, and the Shakespeare monument. The formal garden is planted between May and June. Though the peak viewing time is between July and August, the display lasts till mid-October.

Conservatories were originally benevolent establishments attached to hospitals or other charitable or religious institutions. They provided plants and organisms for medicinal use and research.

Conservatories owe their existence to the development of iron and glass building technology. Lincoln Park had been home to a small greenhouse built in the 1870s, but this technology allowed the construction of a much larger facility. Chicago's rapid growth led to a growing concern about the ill effect of industrialization, and an interest in collecting and classifying plant life became very popular. The city leaders decided to have designed and built an exotic-style glass conservatory which was described as “a paradise under glass".

At left is a closeup-aerial view of the Conservatory, and below you can see Guy inside the Conservatory itself:

The conservatory consists of a vestibule, four display halls and fifteen propagating and growing houses. The vestibule and Palm House were built and opened to the public in 1892; three of the houses contain commissioned sculptures. The Display House is used for seasonal flower exhibits.

Here are four more pictures that we took inside the warm Conservatory during the dead of winter outside:

Guy is turning out to be (well, more correctly, I am beginning to realize that he is) an extremely good companion in a number of ways. I am concerned that my schedule will be a deal-breaker for a long-term relationship; his busy days are on weekends, which, of course, is the time I am in town. Regardless, I like spending time with him.

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	September 9-11, 1983: A Weekend in Dallas
	Return to the Index for 1983