Louisville,

KY

United States

Boone Square Park

Completed in 1892, Boone Square Park is one of the first public parks Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr. designed in Louisville. Located in the Portland neighborhood, at 4 acres (one city block) it is one of the smaller Olmsted parks in the city. The original owners of the property, Mr. and Mrs. William Boone, resided in a Georgian mansion on the site in the 1850s. The mansion deteriorated following the Civil War, and the property was deeded to the city by Eliza Boone in 1891.

Designed as a neighborhood park with flexible space for recreation, the park originally had picnic areas and wide shaded walks, still largely in place today. By the 1930s it was a popular attraction, with a wading pool, volleyball, and organized handicrafts. After a period of decline from the 1940s to the 1970s, the park was updated to include two basketball courts, a baseball diamond (no longer extant), two playgrounds (for older children and toddlers), a spray fountain, an open field for games, and a picnic shelter. Today, the park possesses many mature trees and is surrounded by a low stone wall, with entrances at all four corners and along each side. Boone Square Park is identified as the location of Louisville's first organized baseball game.

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