Plate 50 A from Plan of Chicago 1909: Chicago. View of the Proposed Park on the South Shore Looking Northwest Towards the City.

One of the most significant results of the Plan of Chicago is the system of lakefront parks, which runs over 18 miles along Lake Michigan and spans nearly the entire length of the city. Building on the landscape developed for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Jackson Park, Burnham imagined these green spaces as providing a “continuous playground for the people,” with playing fields, lagoons for boating, and paths for promenades. In this drawing, the parks appear completely removed from the busy streets of the city.