Grant Park, known as "Chicago's front yard," is 300 acres "forever open, clear and free," as A. Montgomery Ward once said. The mail-order catalog inventor became known as the "watchdog of the lakefront" for his preservationism efforts, and played a notable role in protecting the park's beauty and accessibility. The great expanse of downtown green space in the shadow of the city skyline and a stone's throw to the Lake Michigan shoreline and its beaches offers plenty of shade, baseball fields, gardens, public art and some of Chicago's top attractions, including Buckingham Fountain. Every summer, hundres of thousands of festival-goers and dozens of bands take over almost the entirety of the park for the Lollapalooza music festival. The park's Hutchinson Field was the site of Barack Obama's 2008 election night rally and was party central during the 2013 Blackhawks Stanley Cup victory rally. On a day-to-day basis, the field is perfect for kite flying, a game of touch football or just lying in the grass.
