Site 14 Wolf Lake State Park
Enter the park from Avenue A at Veteran's Drive.
Follow the road which will take you past the
Veteran's Memorials, the Dedication Marker, and near the site of the Delaware
house.
The road the the north (as soon as you enter
the park) leads to the site of the former Nike base.
Hegewisch c. 1920
14) Wolf Lake State Park (cont)
Wolf Lake Dedication 1946
The offical dedication of Wolf Lake State Conservation Park took place on the island at the mouth of Indian Creek on October 13, 1946. A marker commemorates the dedication by Governor Dwight Green.
Nike Missile Site
Land at the north end of Wolf Lake was purchased in 1955 for Nike Ajax Batteries for the defense of the Chicago-Gary area. The batteries, located at Wolf Lake, were designated as C-44. This site was one of 18 that lined Lake Michigan from Fort Sheridan to Chesterton. The Nike site also consisted of barracks and radar towers.These sites were positioned purposely in the vicinty of Chicago and Hammond because of their high industrial output, which is a primary target for a wartime enemy.. All sites were built, maintained, and controlled by the U.S. Army and the Army National Guard. Nike missiles became obsolete and were dismantled in 1971, although the Hegewisch base was closed earlier.
The Delaware House
This very historical landmark was located at 130th Street and Wolf Lake. The home was placed in the World's Fair as the designated representation from the state of Delaware. A French-Canadian fur trapper and adventurer, Elias Bennet, relocated the house from the Columbian Exposition by putting it on a barge and towing it down Lake Michigan into Wolf Lake. He set it on the best piece of land he saw, even though he didn't own it. Since then it has been operated as a tavern, eating house, and living quarters. Muskrat dinners were served to notables such as John G. Shedd, Honore Palmer, and Anton J. Cermak. Due to poor maintenance the Delaware House caved in and was eventually torn down.
Flora and Fauna
The Biology class did an inventory of plant and animal life found at
Wolf Lake. Some of the types of trees are:
Norway Maple, White Oak, and Chestnut Oak. Some of the animals that
may be found at Wolf Lake are beavers, squirrels, birds, frogs, rabbits,
toads, snakes, and insects like butterfly, bees, beetles, mosquitos, and
some grasshoppers. Birds that frequent the area include sea gulls, robins,
and different types of geese , just to name a few . Wolf Lake is full of
many different types of birds. If you like to bird watch this is the place
to be.
Environmental Findings
Wolf Lake, which is situated on the border of Chicago and northwest Indiana, has been a recreational site for many years. It is surrounded by industry and former industrial sites and thus has been exposed to many different kinds of potential pollutants for the last century. The chemistry class from Washington High School collected soil and water samples from the area of the recreational center closest to the school. Overall the results of the tests fell in the normal range. The only exceptions were that the ammonia was low and the chlorine level was very high in the soil. This makes it unlikely that some types of plants could thrive here. The results of the tests on the water were all within normal range and showed no significant pollution.