Little Mermaid All Shined Up
Some things at Cantigny are simply iconic. The McCormick House north portico. The WWI “doughboy” outside the Visitors Center. The Dick Tracy bunker at Cantigny Golf. Another strong candidate for icon status is the mermaid statue in the mansion’s south...
War on Buckthorn!
A walk around the edges of the park this spring and summer could be a revealing experience. The look is a lot more open thanks to recent work by Cantigny Horticulture. Why the change? In a word, buckthorn. The invasive...
Project Update, Fall 2019
The goal of Project New Leaf has always been to preserve and enhance Cantigny Park for current and future generations of visitors. We’ve made significant progress toward that objective in 2019 during Phase II. Also this year, Cantigny guests enjoyed...
A New Home for “Spirit of Commitment”
During Phase I of Project New Leaf, the “Lion of Cantigny” statue outside the Cantigny Visitors Center took a sky ride, hanging from a cable en route to a new location as part of the front plaza renovation. According to...
Project Update, Summer 2019
Project New Leaf entered Phase II last spring and it’s been a busy summer of progress. Of course, if you’ve been to the park lately, you may have noticed that progress is not always pretty! Portions of the east side...
Expanded Hosta Garden Now Open
Cantigny Park’s newly designed and expanded hosta garden, a collaboration with the Northern Illinois Hosta Society, is open! A ribbon-cutting for the garden took place on July 12 and included a talk by renowned hosta expert and author Mark Zilis....
Project New Leaf Featured in Photo Contest Entries
The top 20 images from the 2018 Cantigny in Focus amateur photography contest are now displayed inside the Visitors Center, awaiting your votes. It’s a particularly strong class, and three of the chosen pics feature completed elements of Project New...
Project Update, Spring 2019
The first phase of Project New Leaf officially concluded in February with the opening of our new restrooms and visitor information building located on the Oak Colonnade, near the First Division Museum. The facility is a much-needed addition to the...
Back to the Fountain Future
The Fountain Garden behind the Visitors Center has long been a favorite spot for Cantigny guests. This will surely remain the case after Phase II renovations are completed in 2020. Renowned landscape architect Franz Lipp created the Cantigny Gardens in...
Project Update, Fall 2018
This fall we’re putting the finishing touches on the first phase of Project New Leaf, our five-year revitalization plan for Cantigny Park. It’s been a year of steady progress. Even with construction during most of 2018, Park attendance is up...