{"nrhp_refnum":"92001538","name":"Kitchell Park","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Jct. of Ninth and Kitchell Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Pana","county":"Christian County","state":"IL","lat":39.386837294500054,"lon":-89.07957642504536,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-11-05","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Kitchell Park is a 40-acre public park and historic district at Ninth and Kitchell Streets in Pana, Christian County, Illinois. It was donated to the town in 1908 by Captain and Mrs. J.W. Kitchell on the former Pana fairgrounds.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the park is significant under Criterion A for its recreation and entertainment role in Pana. It hosted the annual Chautauqua from 1907 to 1931 and has been the center of outdoor recreation in town since. The period of significance begins in 1909, when the park and lagoon were designed and landscaped.","narrative":"Kitchell Park is a 40-acre public park in southeastern Pana, Illinois, laid out on the site of the old Pana fairgrounds, where fairs and horse racing took place from about 1886. Captain and Mrs. J.W. Kitchell bought the land and donated it to the town in 1908, then funded landscaping, a playground, a lagoon, and row boats. The park hosted the annual Chautauqua, a nine-day program of lectures, music, opera, and other entertainment, from 1907 to 1931. Surviving features from that era include an umbrella-style auditorium built in 1911, a concrete arched bridge from 1910, an iron-arched gateway, a brick ticket booth, a memorial boulder to Kitchell, and a 1919 veterans memorial sculpted by Lorado Taft. Newer ball diamonds, tennis courts, a pool, pavilions, and restrooms do not count as contributing. The park is significant for its long role in local recreation and entertainment.","period_of_significance":"1909-1942","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"No style","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"The park is in year-round use for celebrations, picnics, youth sports programs, ice hockey on the lagoon, and walking. Swimming and boating in the lagoon are no longer allowed, but fishing continues.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.648196-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/52/8918/28891852/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/92001538.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001538/b7d64a5c73-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001538/b7d64a5c73-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chautauqua_pavilion_in_Pana.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chautauqua_pavilion_in_Pana.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28891852","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitchell_Park","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6417948"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/christian-county/kitchell-park-92001538/"}