1301 W. Church St.
Bound by W. Church St., Sabin Ave.
Open Dawn to Dusk
About Eisner Park:
- Obtained in 1944
- Acres: 4.9
- Built in 2014
- Donors: Albert Eisner, Jr., Elizabeth Eisner and Robert Eisner
- Fully-Accessible Playground, see our blog post for more details!
- Eisner Park Aerial Download
History:
- Originally named West End Park
- Was served by horse & mule drawn (later electric) railway. Lines were extended along Church Street to the park from the downtown area in July of 1891. One could ride from there to Crystal Lake Park in Urbana for 5 cents. (In 1971 the trip would cost $3 by taxi)
- Attractions at the park included carnival rides (including a roller coaster), a casino, refreshment booths, shooting gallery, and a theatre which could accommodate 600 people.
- For a number of years, beginning in 1894, extravagant Fourth of July celebrations were held in the park with various entertainment, family picnics, and fireworks.
- In October of 1989, residents in the Eisner Park neighborhood sent a petition to Park District Officials asking for the tennis court be “reconstructed”. In July of 1990, Park District staff let to bid the resurfacing of the court and specified using artificial turf. In August of 2008, the surface was replaced to what you see today, which is Nova Pro Court XP Synthetic Turf.
