Clybourn (Archibald) Park is a 0.49-acre Chicago Park District mini-park at 1755 N. Clybourn Ave., on Clybourn Avenue one block east of Sheffield Avenue in the southwest part of Lincoln Park. The CTA North/Clybourn Red Line station, at 1599 N. Clybourn Ave., is about two blocks southeast, and the Trader Joe’s on Clybourn is on the same stretch of the avenue.
What it’s known for
The City acquired the land from several owners in 1939 and 1940. In 1943 the Bureau of Parks and Recreation built a half-acre playlot on City-owned land above the north-south subway, now the Red Line. It started with a basketball court and playground equipment, and a sandbox and wading pool were added by 1950. The park passed to the Chicago Park District in 1957. It was paved over with asphalt in the early 1960s, and in the late 1980s the Park District replaced the asphalt with turf and plantings.
The park takes its name from Clybourn Avenue, which honors Archibald Clybourne (1802–1872), an early Chicago butcher, justice of the peace and school trustee who was the city’s first constable. Today it has a play slab with two basketball hoops and a Chicago Plays! playground.
Good to know
- Programs: There is no structured programming here. The Park District points visitors to Adams Playground Park for classes.
- Hours: The Park District page does not list hours for this park.
- Best for: A quick game of basketball or playground time between errands on the Clybourn corridor.
- Transit: Red Line to North/Clybourn. CTA buses #8 and #72 also stop at the station.
For more small parks, see Lincoln Park parks by size.
Sources: chicagoparkdistrict.com/node/5853, transitchicago.com/station/ncly
