The beach and park are named for Big Foot (a translation from the Potawatomi Maumksuck  (Mmangzed),  also known in French as Gros Pied), an early Potawatomi leader in the area until his band forcibly relocated by the United States in 1836.
The beach and park are named after Big Foot, a significant figure in Potawatomi history who was forced to relocate due to U.S. policies in 1836.