Laura Bradley Park : a rehabilitation master plan

Abstract

This creative project presented a comprehensive evaluation of the historic significance and integrity of Laura Bradley Park, a 140-acre park in Peoria, Illinois. The evaluation led to the development of a historical rehabilitation master plan. Construction of Bradley Park started in 1896 and many original elements remain intact. The project used two United States National Park Services methods to guide the evaluation process and to identify an appropriate treatment method. The evaluation process determined that Bradley Park was historically significant to both Peoria and the State of Illinois because it was part of the growing park movement that was occurring in Illinois in the late 1800s and reflects the design style used at the time. Inventory and analysis of the park revealed several elements from the original design and construction that remained at the site. Because the park retained historic integrity, the National Park Services "Guidelines for the Treatment of Historic Landscapes" was used to identify an appropriate treatment method to restore Bradley Park in some manner. Rehabilitation was chosen as the appropriate landscape treatment method because it allowed the recreation of the original character of the park while maintaining the contemporary recreation facilities.