Parks in Illinois

Kwanu'sila the Thunderbird has been silently watching over Chicago for more than 100 years (kind of).

This national park dedicated to the tallgrass prairie ecosystem still displays its military past.

A Japanese temple, old German townhouses, and public chess tables offer a peaceful escape from the bustle of the North Side.

A massive bur oak tree believed to be some 500 years old is the centerpiece of this quiet urban greenspace.

One of the largest carillons in the world, this giant instrument has 67 cast-iron bells played by a keyboard.

No one knows how many bodies are in this vault in a Chicago public park.

The lowest point in the state of Illinois, at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers.

A lush green oasis in the middle of Chicago.

This botanical garden outside Chicago boasts an array of more than 300 varieties of lilacs.

Chicago's North Park Village was once the largest municipal sanatorium in the country.

This small-town park in southern Illinois has a 1,000,000-gallon swimming pool and a 100,000-barrel oil well.

Man-made geyser that rises to the exact height of the Gateway Arch.

Cold War missile launch site which has been converted to a public park.

The 606 is a decade in the making.