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Downing Park (Newburgh, New York)
Encyclopedia
Downing Park is the largest of several public parks in the city of Newburgh
, New York
, USA.
The park was designed in the late 19th century by Frederick Law Olmsted
and Calvert Vaux
, who gave the design to the city on the condition it would be named after their mentor, Andrew Jackson Downing
, a Newburgh native who had died in a steamboat accident on the Hudson River
in 1852. They delivered their plans to the city, which had acquired the land two years earlier, in 1889; the park was completed and opened in 1897. It was the last collaboration between the two.
It is centrally located within the city, between Robinson Avenue (US 9W
-NY 32
) on the west, South Street on the north, Dubois Street on the east and Third Street to the south. Carpenter Avenue divides the park into an eastern and western half.
The most prominent feature of the park is the pond and fountain in its southwest corner, known as the "polly." In the early 20th century, it was a popular place for ice skating
in the winter, but that has since been prohibited as pollution
has made the water less capable of effectively freezing up in the winter. To the east, the land rises to a small hill, the terrace, which overlooks the Hudson. Other amenities in the park include the stone Shelter House on the polly, the headquarters of the Downing Park Planning Committee, and an amphitheater to the north of the polly, host to many local concerts and festivals in the summer months.
Newburgh (city), New York
Newburgh is a city located in Orange County, New York, United States, north of New York City, and south of Albany, on the Hudson River. Newburgh is a principal city of the Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown metropolitan area, which includes all of Dutchess and Orange counties. The Newburgh area was...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, USA.
The park was designed in the late 19th century by Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...
and Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
, who gave the design to the city on the condition it would be named after their mentor, Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing was an American landscape designer, horticulturalist, and writer, a prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival style in the United States, and editor of The Horticulturist magazine...
, a Newburgh native who had died in a steamboat accident on the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
in 1852. They delivered their plans to the city, which had acquired the land two years earlier, in 1889; the park was completed and opened in 1897. It was the last collaboration between the two.
It is centrally located within the city, between Robinson Avenue (US 9W
U.S. Route 9W
U.S. Route 9W is a north–south U.S. Highway in the states of New Jersey and New York. It begins on Fletcher Avenue in Fort Lee, New Jersey as it crosses the US 1 & 9, US 46, and the Interstate 95 approaches to the George Washington Bridge, where it heads north up the west...
-NY 32
New York State Route 32
New York State Route 32 is a north–south state highway that extends for through the Hudson Valley and Capital District regions of the U.S. state of New York. It is a two-lane surface road for nearly its entire length, with few divided and no limited-access sections. From Harriman to Albany,...
) on the west, South Street on the north, Dubois Street on the east and Third Street to the south. Carpenter Avenue divides the park into an eastern and western half.
The most prominent feature of the park is the pond and fountain in its southwest corner, known as the "polly." In the early 20th century, it was a popular place for ice skating
Ice skating
Ice skating is moving on ice by using ice skates. It can be done for a variety of reasons, including leisure, traveling, and various sports. Ice skating occurs both on specially prepared indoor and outdoor tracks, as well as on naturally occurring bodies of frozen water, such as lakes and...
in the winter, but that has since been prohibited as pollution
Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light...
has made the water less capable of effectively freezing up in the winter. To the east, the land rises to a small hill, the terrace, which overlooks the Hudson. Other amenities in the park include the stone Shelter House on the polly, the headquarters of the Downing Park Planning Committee, and an amphitheater to the north of the polly, host to many local concerts and festivals in the summer months.