Douglas, Chicago

Douglas
Community Area 35 - Douglas
Prairie Shores in Bronzeville
Prairie Shores in Bronzeville
Location within the city of Chicago
Location within the city of Chicago
Coordinates: 41°50′05″N 87°37′05″W / 41.83472°N 87.61806°W / 41.83472; -87.61806[1]
CountryUnited States
StateIllinois
CountyCook
CityChicago
Neighborhoods
Area
 • Total1.67 sq mi (4.33 km2)
Elevation597 ft (182 m)
Population
 (2020)[2]
 • Total20,291
 • Density12,000/sq mi (4,700/km2)
Demographics 2020[2]
 • White10.6%
 • Black65.1%
 • Hispanic5.4%
 • Asian14.6%
 • Other4.4%
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Codes
parts of 60609, 60616 and 60653
Median household income 2020[2]$35,796
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

Douglas, on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, is one of Chicago's 77 community areas. The neighborhood is named for Stephen A. Douglas, Illinois politician and Abraham Lincoln's political foe, whose estate included a tract of land given to the federal government.[3] This tract later was developed for use as the Civil War Union training and prison camp, Camp Douglas, located in what is now the eastern portion of the Douglas neighborhood. Douglas gave that part of his estate at Cottage Grove and 35th to the Old University of Chicago.[4] The Chicago 2016 Olympic bid planned for the Olympic Village to be constructed on a 37-acre (15 ha) truck parking lot, south of McCormick Place, that is mostly in the Douglas community area and partly in the Near South Side.[5]

The Douglas community area stretches from 26th Street, south to Pershing Road along the Lake Shore, including parts of the Green Line, along State Street and the Metra Electric and Amtrak passenger railroad tracks, which run parallel to Lake Shore Drive. Burnham Park runs along its shoreline, containing 31st Street Beach. The community area also contains part of the neighborhood of Bronzeville, the historic center of black culture in the city, since the early 20th century and the Great Migration.

  1. ^ a b "Douglas". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. May 15, 1997.
  2. ^ a b c "Community Data Snapshot - Douglas" (PDF). cmap.illinois.gov. MetroPulse. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  3. ^ Callary, Edward (September 29, 2008). Place Names of Illinois. University of Illinois Press. p. 97. ISBN 978-0-252-09070-7.
  4. ^ "Old University of Chicago". 2005.
  5. ^ Hinz, Greg (September 23, 2006). "Plan for 2016 Olympics disclosed". Crain Communications, Inc. Retrieved April 2, 2007.