In 1903, commissioned by the city of Seattle, Washington, the Olmsted Brothers landscape architects planned many of the parks in the City of Seattle as part of a comprehensive plan to create a greenbelt throughout the city. The planning continued in several phases, culminating in the final Olmsted-planned park, Washington Park Arboretum in 1936.
The existing Seattle Parks and Recreation system has been described as "one of the best-preserved Olmsted park systems in the country". In 2016, the Olmsted parks system was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a multiple property submission.
1903 plan
- Sunset Hill Park
- Green Lake Park
- Ravenna & Cowen Park
- Woodland Park
- Magnolia Bluff
- Interlaken Park
- Volunteer Park
- Cal Anderson Park
- Madrona Park
- Frink Park
- Colman Park
- Mount Baker Park
- Jefferson Park
- Seward Park
1908 plan
Other
- Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (current University of Washington main campus)
- Denny-Blaine Park (One of the "improved parks" mentioned in the Seattle Park Board's annual report for 1909)
The City of Seattle Parks and Recreation department lists a number of other parks, playgrounds, and playfields "influenced or recommended" by the Olmsteds, including the city's largest park: 534-acre (2.16 km) Discovery Park.
References
- ^ Park History - Olmsted Parks, City of Seattle Parks and Recreation, retrieved 2012-01-12
- HistoryLink and Friends of Olmsted Parks (September 29, 2004), "Olmsted Park Plans for Seattle Cybertour", HistoryLink, Seattle: History Ink
- Botanic Gardens: History, University of Washington, archived from the original on 2010-09-21, retrieved 2011-01-12
- Kathy Mulady (April 1, 2003), City celebrates park pioneer Olmsted, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, retrieved 2012-01-12
- "National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form: Seattle's Olmsted Parks and Boulevards (1903–68)" (PDF). National Park Service. December 15, 2016. Retrieved August 7, 2020 – via Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation.
Further reading
- Valerie Easton (April 27, 2003), "The Olmsted Legacy: Masters of Green / From Street to Shore, a Living Legacy of Distinctive Public Places", Pacific Northwest magazine, The Seattle Times, retrieved 2012-01-12
- Frederick Law Olmsted, Metro Parks Tacoma, January 9, 2011, archived from the original on 2007-10-28, retrieved 2012-01-12
- David B. Williams, A Brief History of Seattle's Olmsted Legacy, Friends of Seattle's Olmsted Parks (hosted at Seattle Parks and Recreation), retrieved 2012-01-12
- Olmsted Parks Study (PDF), Seattle Parks and Recreation, Summer 2018, retrieved February 21, 2019