All posts related to the Gardens & Grounds
Category: Gardens & Grounds
Coming Soon: More Parking!
Good news: Cantigny is about to have a lot more parking capacity. The south lot, to your right as you enter the park from Winfield Road, will soon offer 350 additional spaces. This represents a 30% increase in total parking...
Project Update, Summer 2018
We are in the “home stretch” of Project New Leaf’s Phase One, with completion scheduled for this fall. Your patience is appreciated as we improve the park for you and for future generations of Cantigny visitors. It’s always good news...
Standing Guard, Without a Scratch
For nearly a decade, the bronze Lion of Cantigny has kept watch outside the Visitors Center. The WWI “doughboy” soldier by sculptor Stephen Spears was dedicated on Veterans Day, November 11, 2008. During construction of the Arrival Plaza, a key...
Canoes or Battleships?
Parks visitors may notice that the new flower beds in the soon-to-be-completed Oak Colonnade have a distinctive shape. The beds are generally known as “canoes” among Cantigny staff members, especially those in Horticulture. To others, once planted, they resemble battleships....
Project Update, Spring 2018
We are well into the second full year of Project New Leaf and there is much to report. Thanks for your patience as we improve the park. Naturally we devoted the winter months to indoor work, primarily an extensive remodeling...
Red Oaks Farm Playground
We’re in the final stages of construction for the Red Oaks Farm playground, located in the picnic area. A Memorial Day weekend opening is anticipated, weather permitting. The playground’s name recalls the rich history of Cantigny. When Joseph Medill purchased...
Progress in the park
A very busy summer officially changed to fall amid record-high temperatures and a continuing high activity level for Project New Leaf. Calm and dry weather has definitely worked in Cantigny’s favor during Phase One. Our top priority in August was...
Project Overview
Project New Leaf, after years of planning, formally began in November 2016. That’s when we started the massive renovation and update of the First Division Museum. The project is currently in Phase One and will last about five years. It primarily involves the park...
Garden work accelerates
The successful completion of the First Division Museum and Tank Park triggered an immediate refocus on the gardens and landscape aspects of Project New Leaf. Some of this busy construction zone is visible from Roosevelt Road. The former Gold and Silver...
South Wetland
You may wonder what’s happening on the south side of the southernmost parking area, between the parking lot and the golf course. Glad you asked! Cantigny Park has a brand new wetland habitat, a constructed water detention basin tied to the pending...