The Lagoons Today

“I want to warn all the 'old timers' to take a last fond look at the 'Old Skokie' as you knew it 50 years ago.  It is fast becoming a thing of the past, a distant memory of quiet places, tall waving marsh grasses, carpets of spring and fall flowers, the wild life, the pure white snow blanket, the sheets of ice, the terrible fires, the floods of water, the soft grey mists and the colors that no artist could reproduce.  From now it will be a beautiful playground – autos, hikers, aeroplanes, boats, golf grounds, drives, paths, lawns, shrubbery, trees, and colors which the artist and the photographer can reproduce.  The 'old timer' must let go, and the present generation improve and carry on.”
-Frank Windes, Winnetka Village Engineer (1898-1940), November 1933.

Nearly 80 years later, the construction of the Skokie Lagoons is also a distant memory.  Indeed, the tall trees and mature landscaping around the lagoons make the space appear as if it evolved naturally without human intervention.  But a closer look at the landscape reveals a dynamic environment that people have shaped to meet their needs.  Although we cannot see any words in the water, we can still read a century’s worth of history in the Skokie Lagoons.