Jane Byrne Park was dedicated in 2014 in honor of Chicago's first female mayor. The location was chosen for its proximity to Byrne’s longtimeStreetervilleapartment, which overlooked the park.

Byrne defeated incumbent mayor MichaelBilandicin the 1979 democratic primary in a surprising victory against the city's long-entrenched Democratic machine and went on to win the general election. She ran for reelection in 1983 but lost to Harold Washington, Chicago's first black mayor.

Byrne’s involvement in city politics began in 1960 when she met the first Mayor Richard Daley while volunteering for John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign. She became the first woman commissioner of consumer sales when Daley appointed her to that position in 1968, and she was the first woman to be appointed to Daley's mayoral cabinet. Byrne was also the first woman to co-chair the Cook County Democratic Organization.

Between losing the 1983 election and her death in 2014, Byrne largely disappeared from the public eye. She disappointed supporters who hoped she would bring permanent reform to City Hall. But her tenure in City Hall should also be remembered for its many high points. In an effort to make Chicago a safer and more attractive place for tourists and residents, she worked to expand Taste of Chicago, reinvigorate Navy Pier and the Museum Campus, bring filmmakers to the city (thank her for Blues Brothers), expand the city's arts scene, improve access to the city’s airports, and reduce the number of handguns on the streets, among many other things. 

Byrne died in November 2014, a few months after the city renamed the park in her honor. The City Council also renamed theinterstate expresswayCircle Interchange for Byrne earlier that year.    

Chicago Public Library. "Mayor Jane Byrne Biography."http://www.chipublib.org/mayor-jane-byrne-biography/. Accessed June 2016. 

"Chicago remembersJane Byrne: 'ARemarkableLife of Service.'"Chicago Tribune.http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-jane-byrne-reaction-20141114-story.html. Accessed June 2016.

Felsenthal, Carol. "Remembering Jane Byrne."Chicago Magazine.http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/Felsenthal-Files/November-2014/Remembering-Jane-Byrne/. Accessed June 2016.

Hirsch, Arnold. "Democratic Party."Encyclopedia of Chicago Online.http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/371.html. Accessed June 2016.

Holli, Melvin G. "Mayors."Encyclopedia of Chicago Online.http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/795.html. Accessed June 2016.

Text and photographs by Hope Shannon, Loyola University Chicago