Recently there has been campaign to rename Paschen Park to honor the Pollard Family. According to an article by Joe Ward published on, Nov 11, 2021 on the Block Club website, “The Rogers Park West Ridge Historical Society — along with the current owners of the Pollard home — are asking the Park District to rename Paschen Park, 1932 W. Lunt Ave., to Pollard Family Park.”
“They’re an inspiration to all,” said Dona Vitale, treasurer of the historical society. “These accomplishments would be special for anybody, but to do it under the circumstance they did? The Pollards deserve recognition. We think the time has come.”
The Pollards lived in the home next to the park for over 60 years. The Rogers Park/West Ridge Historical Society’s website reported that they, the historical society Alderwoman Maria Hadden and the current owners of the Pollard home have come together to support the renaming of the park for the Pollard family.
The home had been owned by the Pollard family for 6 decades. The park sits next to their home. Currently the park is named after a building commissioner, Christian Paschen, who had been convicted and jailed for tax evasion, and other than helping obtain the land for the park, didn’t seem to have any connection to the neighborhood. However, the connection of the Pollard Family to Rogers Park is strong and impressive. The Pollard family are an example of a strong Black family who thrived against the odds.
The family included mother Catherine Amanda Hughes and father John William Pollard, who had high expectations for themselves and their children. Their children did not disappoint.
John Pollard was born to free blacks in Virginia and sent to Kansas to keep him safe from kidnappers. He later moved to Missouri where he met his wife, Catherine Amanda Hughes, sometimes referred to as Amanda. He served as one of the first black soldiers during the Civil War, and became a barber. Then the family moved to Chicago to flee the “Jim Crow Laws” which had taken hold in Missouri. In Chicago they also faced racism. They settled in Rogers Park where they lived and became longtime residents. John Pollard operated a barber shop in the community, and Amanda Pollard ran a seamstress business. According to Frank Foster, author of “Breaking the Color Barrier: The Story of the First African American NFL Head Coach, Frederick Douglass ‘Fritz’ Pollard,” whose work is cited on dnainfo, one of her clients was Marshall Field’s.
The Pollards eldest daughter, Artissmisia (sometimes spelled “Artemesia”, and known as “Artie”) attended Brown University and earned a degree in nursing. Just like her parents, she had her own business and became the first Black Registered Nurse in Illinois. Being the oldest and having success, Artemesia put pressure on her siblings to also do well. Her siblings included Luther Jay Pollard, Naomi Willie (Pollard) Dobson, Leslie Lawrence Pollard, Ruth Pollard and Frederick Douglass Pollard.
And, they all were successful in their chosen fields. Artie’s sisters included Willie Naomi, who was the first Black woman to graduate from Northwestern. She became the head librarian at Wilburforce University in Ohio. Another sister, Ruth was a star athlete, but died young. One of Artie’s brothers was Leslie, who became a star athlete who helped break racial barriers while at Dartmouth. Leslie helped the youngest, and perhaps best-known of the siblings, Frederick Douglass “Fritz”, who became a pro football player and coach and has been inducted into the Pro-Football Hall of Fame. All of the Pollard children succeeded in their chosen fields and stand as a fine example of a family who succeeded despite the odds. Specifically, the working women in the family broke through gender as well as racial barriers in pursuit of their careers and in their success in them.
For more information see:
The site has pictures of the family, the home and current owners who took it upon themselves to erect a plaque in front of their home.
If you wish to sign a petition in support of renaming Paschen Park to honor the Pollard family, please go to the website of The Rogers Park West Ridge Historical Society Historical Society and use this link: