Buckingham Fountain reopened after vandalism by anti-war protesters

The Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park reopened Sunday morning after being closed Saturday due to vandalism by anti-war protesters.

On Sunday around 11 a.m., the Chicago Park District announced that the fountain was back in operation after its jets were turned off that morning.

The vandalism – which included dyeing the fountain water red and spraying messages against the war in the Gaza Strip – probably occurred on Friday night.

After it was discovered, cleared away Messages such as “Stop the genocide” and “Gaza is bleeding” were spray-painted on the fountain. Workers also drained the fountain to remove the colored water.

The area around the well remained accessible during the work, but the water was turned off.

The reopening of the Buckingham Fountain collapsed with the reopening of The Bean in Millennium Park, which had been closed to the public for ten months for construction work. The sculpture has reopened in time for Millennium Park’s 20th anniversary next month.

Buckingham Fountain opened to the public in 1927 and was intended by the park district to be the centerpiece of Grant Park.

Inspired by the Latona Basin in Versailles, France, but twice the size and meant to symbolize the vastness of Lake Michigan, the fountain uses 15,000 gallons of water per minute and shoots the water up to 150 feet in the air.