Amidst the hustle and bustle of the urban Roger’s Park neighborhood sits a wonderful summer oasis for families of all ages. Indian Boundary Park is located on 2500 W. Lunt Avenue just a block west of Western Avenue. Indian Boundary is not your ordinary city park. From the giant concrete sprinkler area to the tennis courts to the zoo animals, there is something for children and adults of all ages to enjoy. The park has been around for over a century and is a charming center-piece for the brownstone homes outlining the area. When visiting the park, you can’t help but feel you’ve been sent back numerous eras and placed in old world Chicago. Before there were water parks with 100 foot slides and boogie boards, there was a place called Indian Boundary. The park is not only a hidden treasure but also a north side landmark.

The playground has all the amenities of a usual city park such as swings, bridges, tires, rings, sandboxes, etc. There are also four tennis courts where you can try out the old back hand volley. But what makes it unique is the children’s sprinkler area. I can remember going through the sprinkler many years ago during my childhood. My sister and I couldn’t wait to get out of our hot car (with no air conditioning) and jump into the sprinkler. We would spend the first half hour under there before we would go buy a rainbow ice. Later, my mom would call us over to the picnic area that still exists today for an afternoon snack and a nice cold Capri Sun.

There are not many places in the city, outside of Lincoln Park Zoo, that you can see goats, sheep and chickens. So it may surprise you that Indian Boundary has a small, pleasant public zoo-area for people to see animals. The pond also has a family of ducks to visit as well. There’s a real “down home” feeling even though you are in the heart of Roger’s Park.

For over a century, Northsider’s in Chicago can always expect a few things during the summer time. It’s probably going to be unbearably hot and humid most of the time, the Cubs are probably going to play exciting baseball until about October and then find a way to fall apart and that Indian Boundary will be there for family’s to picnic, see animals, to get wet and wild and maybe even play a game or two of tennis. If you haven’t been there, you must go. If you have, then you already know what I’m talking about. For more information, check out this link.