Gage Park is one of Chicago's 77 well-defined community areas, located on the city's southwest side; it is also the name of a park within the neighborhood. Gage Park's population is largely working-class, and its housing stock is mostly bungalows. For generations, the neighborhood was Eastern European and Irish Catholic. The neighborhood remains overwhelmingly Catholic with the addition of many Hispanic residents. Gage Park is bounded by 49th Street to the north, 59th Street to the south, Central Park Ave to the west, and Leavitt Street to the east.
History
The development of Gage Park began in 1873 when South Park Commissioner George W. Gage began working on a planned park at the intersection of Western Ave. and Garfield Boulevard. Upon Gage's death in 1875, the park was renamed Gage Park in his honor.
The area developed after Gage's passing, slowly adding more and more land and offering up more services to the local community. By 1919, Gage Park had added more land and the park now included ball fields, tennis courts, separate men's and women's gymnasiums, gardens, and a wading pool. A large field house and auditorium was later added in 1928, with a large mural by Tom Lea added in 1931.
K-8 schools serving sections of Gage Park include Morrill, Carson, Talman, Nightingale, Christopher, Fulton, Henderson, Sawyer, Tonti, Sandoval, and Hernandez.
Gage Park High School serves most of the community area. Some sections are served by Hubbard, Kelly, Curie, and Solorio high schools.[3] Gage Park High School is located on South Rockwell Street, where 728 students attended during the 2013–2014 school year. Of the 728, 96.6% were from low-income households and 18.3% are homeless. The average ACT score in 2014 was 15.2 with the state average being 20.[4]
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago operates Catholic churches. On July 1, 2020, St. Gall Parish will incorporate St. Simon the Apostle Parish into its structure, and St. Gall will be the main church of the merged entity. On the same day St. Rita of Cascia Parish will incorporate St. Clare of Montefalco, and the former will be the main church of the combined entity.[9]