Lincoln Park (Albany)
Encyclopedia
Lincoln Park is an urban park in Albany
, New York
, with a unique history, from being the site of a skirmish in 1626 between the Dutch
and Mohawks to brickyards and breweries to being Albany's first public playground. The park features Albany's only outdoor non-wading swimming pool, along with several tennis courts, basketball courts, and football and baseball fields. Within the park is the James Hall Office
which is a building on the National Register of Historic Places
, and the Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST) an elementary school.
. In 1626 the commander of the Dutch Republic
's colonial outpost Fort Orange along with a company of six soldiers accompanied their allies, the Mohican
s, in their war against the Mohawks. They were ambushed on the site of the future Lincoln Park near Delaware Avenue, during the battle the commander and three of the soldiers died. As the city grew the kill
(Dutch
for creek) and the land in the area came to be owned by the Dutch Reformed Church
. Evert Wendell, perhaps illegally as a squater, built saw and grist mills and a brewery on that land prior to 1737, using the water power from the kill. These improvements were located near the Lincoln Park swimming pool and where Hawk Street would be if extended through the park. By 1800 the mills were deteriorated and abandoned, and soon after 40 acres (16.2 ha) were sold as pasture.
Due to the fine natural clay banks along the gorge carved by the Beaver Kill several brickyard
s came to be established in Lincoln Park during the 19th century, mostly along Morton Avenue between Hawk and Eagle. The Beaver Kill's natural waterfall, west of the intersection of Park Avenue and South Swan Street provided for waterwheel power for local industry. Industry continued to be located around the falls, especially breweries which would dump so much waste product into the Beaver Kill that the falls became known as Buttermilk Falls.
What is today the southwestern corner of the park was once owned by James Hall
who owned an office built around 1852 and a house around 1880 along Delaware Avenue. The first portion of the park to be opened was a children's playground that was built by the Mother's Club (today the Women's Club
of Albany), and this included Hall's land. It was Albany's first park that was more than passive, it was the city's first public playground and was called the Central Playground. Hall's office became the location of indoor children's activities, and the site of his house would later become the site of today's tennis courts.
West of Hawk Street was the location of Martinville, an Irish shanty town
from the US Civil War era, named for its builder James Martin. Through Chapter 449 of the Laws of 1890 the Commissioners of Washington Park received authorization to acquire land for Beaver Park, an irregular shaped area corresponding to the majority of present day Lincoln Park east of Swan Street. Under plans drawn by Charles Downing Lay
and Arnold Brunner
, published in 1914 as Stvdies for Albany the eastern section of the park was developed. The original plan was more elaborate and grand than what was actually built. But the basic plan for athletic fields, a swimming pool, bathhouse, and children's activities were kept. These developments in the early 20th century included the destruction of Martinville in 1910 and a swimming pool in 1915 was constructed, but was contaminated due to the proximity of the sewer that was the underground Beaver Creek. In 1930 the current swimming pool was constructed in its place.
In 1954 Albany Public School 24 (PS 24) was built in the northwestern corner of the park off Delaware Avenue, previously having been in an 1893 building several blocks north. In 1990 the school was renamed the Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST).
In 1982 a proposal was made to Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd
for a civic center in the eastern section of Lincoln Park. The mayor was receptive to the plan and inquired to the state about use of parking facilities at the Empire State Plaza
in conjunction with the civic center. The next year another group of investors proposed to the mayor regarding a civic center in Lincoln Park. The mayor, who would die four months later, responded with "Please discuss this with Jim Coyne", who was the Albany County
executive. Later that year Coyne announced plans for a county-owned civic center facility, and though the Lincoln Park site was proposed at public hearings, the first site chosen was in Latham
before finally settling on South Pearl Street in Downtown Albany
(today the Times Union Center).
In 1989 the prologue to the first Tour de Trump
featured a loop through Lincoln Park.
In 1993 South Swan Street within the park, from Morton Avenue to Myrtle Avenue, was renamed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and a statue of King was erected at the corner of said boulevard and Morton Avenue. Martin Luther King III was in attendance at the unveiling as the guest speaker. The statue comprises an 8 feet (2.4 m) tall statue with panels of granite etched with images from throughout his life and of lines of his speeches.
The Lincoln Park pool bathhouse was gutted and renovated in 2001 at a cost of $3 million.
in Washington Park. Over 25,000 people attended the anti-Communist Cold War
event which featured heavy-weight boxing champ Jack Dempsey
and two-time Oscar winning actor Harold Russell
. As part of their farewell tour the Ramones
played in Lincoln Park at the University at Albany, SUNY
's 1996 Party at the Park. The Northeast Rugby Union's Division II Women's Championship was held in Lincoln Park in 2002. As part of the 300th anniversary of the Dongan Charter
incorporating Albany as a city, Lincoln Park was the site of a hot-air balloon launch and a reenactment of a skirmish of US Revolutionary War forces.
The annual NYS Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Memorial Observance ends each year with a "Beloved Community March" that travels from the Empire State Plaza
concourse entrance on Madison Avenue to Swan Street (which turns into Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard at the entrance to the park) and ends at the King Monument with the laying of a wreath.
. Lincoln Park has multiple tennis courts, basketball courts, handball courts, and playgrounds as well as ball fields. A youth fitness center (ages 7–19) with a gym, weight room, and activities such as wrestling, karate, dance fitness, and cardio. Since the park's primary purpose is as a public outdoor sports/fitness activity center, the park sees lots of spontaneous non-traditional activities by the public ranging such as T'ai chi on the tennis courts.
Two public schools are located within Lincoln Park, though the land they sit on is owned by the City School District of Albany and not by the city as part of the park, they are the Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST) and the Sunshine School. TOAST is a pre-K through 5
elementary magnet school
and the Sunshine School is used for transitioning at-risk students in grades 9-12 from places such as jail, prison, juvenile detention centers, New York State Office of Children and Family Services
, or drug treatment facilities. The Sunshine School is located in James Hall's former office. TOAST has an associated Outdoor Learning Center in the park and a Geological Rock Park that opened in 2001. Adjacent to the school's Geological Rock Park are 50 1-2 ton boulders from across the state of New York that are being temporarily stored there until a permanent home can be given to them on the grounds of the New York State Museum
, both the state's boulders and the Geological Rock Park are open to the public.
Capital District
Community Gardens (CDCG) has a community garden with 51 10 by 10 ft (3 by 3 m) plots located in the park off Eagle Street.
For 55 years the American Little League of Albany has sold Christmas Tree
s on the tennis courts in the park as a fund raiser.
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, 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...
, with a unique history, from being the site of a skirmish in 1626 between the Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
and Mohawks to brickyards and breweries to being Albany's first public playground. The park features Albany's only outdoor non-wading swimming pool, along with several tennis courts, basketball courts, and football and baseball fields. Within the park is the James Hall Office
James Hall Office
James Hall Office, also known as Sunshine School, is located on Lincoln Park in Albany, New York. It was the office of paleontologist James Hall, a leader in research on the geology of North America during the 19th century....
which is a building on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, and the Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST) an elementary school.
History
Lincoln Park sits mostly in a large basin or ravine carved by the Beaver Kill, a stream that flowed from the west to the Hudson RiverHudson 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 1626 the commander of the Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
's colonial outpost Fort Orange along with a company of six soldiers accompanied their allies, the Mohican
Mohican
-Native Americans:* Mahican , a Native American tribe who lived in and around the Hudson Valley* Mohegan, a functional confederation of several branches of Native Americans during the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th century...
s, in their war against the Mohawks. They were ambushed on the site of the future Lincoln Park near Delaware Avenue, during the battle the commander and three of the soldiers died. As the city grew the kill
Kill (body of water)
As a body of water, a kill is a creek. The word comes from the Middle Dutch kille, meaning "riverbed" or "water channel." The modern Dutch term is kil....
(Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
for creek) and the land in the area came to be owned by the Dutch Reformed Church
Dutch Reformed Church
The Dutch Reformed Church was a Reformed Christian denomination in the Netherlands. It existed from the 1570s to 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the...
. Evert Wendell, perhaps illegally as a squater, built saw and grist mills and a brewery on that land prior to 1737, using the water power from the kill. These improvements were located near the Lincoln Park swimming pool and where Hawk Street would be if extended through the park. By 1800 the mills were deteriorated and abandoned, and soon after 40 acres (16.2 ha) were sold as pasture.
Due to the fine natural clay banks along the gorge carved by the Beaver Kill several brickyard
Brickyard
A brickyard is a place or yard where the earthen building material called bricks are made, fired, and stored, or sometimes sold or otherwise distributed from.-See also:...
s came to be established in Lincoln Park during the 19th century, mostly along Morton Avenue between Hawk and Eagle. The Beaver Kill's natural waterfall, west of the intersection of Park Avenue and South Swan Street provided for waterwheel power for local industry. Industry continued to be located around the falls, especially breweries which would dump so much waste product into the Beaver Kill that the falls became known as Buttermilk Falls.
What is today the southwestern corner of the park was once owned by James Hall
James Hall (paleontologist)
James Hall was an American geologist and paleontologist. He was a noted authority on stratigraphy and had an influential role in the development of American paleontology.-Early life:...
who owned an office built around 1852 and a house around 1880 along Delaware Avenue. The first portion of the park to be opened was a children's playground that was built by the Mother's Club (today the Women's Club
Women's club
Women’s clubs, also known as woman's clubs, first arose in the United States during the post-Civil War period, in both the North and the South. As a result of increased leisure time due to modern household advances, middle-class women had more time to engage in intellectual pursuits...
of Albany), and this included Hall's land. It was Albany's first park that was more than passive, it was the city's first public playground and was called the Central Playground. Hall's office became the location of indoor children's activities, and the site of his house would later become the site of today's tennis courts.
West of Hawk Street was the location of Martinville, an Irish shanty town
Shanty town
A shanty town is a slum settlement of impoverished people who live in improvised dwellings made from scrap materials: often plywood, corrugated metal and sheets of plastic...
from the US Civil War era, named for its builder James Martin. Through Chapter 449 of the Laws of 1890 the Commissioners of Washington Park received authorization to acquire land for Beaver Park, an irregular shaped area corresponding to the majority of present day Lincoln Park east of Swan Street. Under plans drawn by Charles Downing Lay
Charles Downing Lay
Charles Downing Lay was an American landscape architect.-Early Life and Family Estate:The son of Oliver Ingraham Lay, a professional painter, and Hester Marian Wait Lay, Charles Downing Lay was born in Newburgh, New York. At age 7, Lay began spending summers with his grandmother in Stratford,...
and Arnold Brunner
Arnold Brunner
Arnold William Brunner was an American architect who was born and died in New York City. Brunner was educated in New York and in Manchester, England. He attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he studied under William R. Ware. Early in his career, he worked in the architectural...
, published in 1914 as Stvdies for Albany the eastern section of the park was developed. The original plan was more elaborate and grand than what was actually built. But the basic plan for athletic fields, a swimming pool, bathhouse, and children's activities were kept. These developments in the early 20th century included the destruction of Martinville in 1910 and a swimming pool in 1915 was constructed, but was contaminated due to the proximity of the sewer that was the underground Beaver Creek. In 1930 the current swimming pool was constructed in its place.
In 1954 Albany Public School 24 (PS 24) was built in the northwestern corner of the park off Delaware Avenue, previously having been in an 1893 building several blocks north. In 1990 the school was renamed the Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST).
In 1982 a proposal was made to Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd
Erastus Corning 2nd
Erastus Corning 2nd was an American politician. He was Mayor of Albany, New York for more than 40 years, from 1942 to 1983, when Albany County was controlled by one of the last two classic urban political machines in the United States. Albany's longest serving mayor, the Democrat died in office in...
for a civic center in the eastern section of Lincoln Park. The mayor was receptive to the plan and inquired to the state about use of parking facilities at the Empire State Plaza
Empire State Plaza
The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza is a complex of several state government buildings in downtown Albany, New York....
in conjunction with the civic center. The next year another group of investors proposed to the mayor regarding a civic center in Lincoln Park. The mayor, who would die four months later, responded with "Please discuss this with Jim Coyne", who was the Albany County
Albany County, New York
Albany County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York, and is part of the Albany-Schenectady-Troy Metropolitan Statistical Area. The name is from the title of the Duke of York and Albany, who became James II of England . As of the 2010 census, the population was 304,204...
executive. Later that year Coyne announced plans for a county-owned civic center facility, and though the Lincoln Park site was proposed at public hearings, the first site chosen was in Latham
Latham, New York
Latham is a hamlet in Albany County, New York, United States. It is located along U.S. Route 9 in the town of Colonie, a dense suburb north of Albany.-History:...
before finally settling on South Pearl Street in Downtown Albany
Downtown Albany Historic District
The Downtown Albany Historic District is a 19-block, area of Albany, New York, United States, centered around the junction of State and North and South Pearl streets . It is the oldest settled area of the city, originally planned and settled in the 17th century, and the nucleus of its later...
(today the Times Union Center).
In 1989 the prologue to the first Tour de Trump
Tour de Trump
The Tour de Trump was a road bicycle race in the United States held in 1989 and 1990 and was sponsored by Donald Trump. The Tour DuPont replaced the Tour de Trump, from 1991 to 1996.- 1989 Tour de Trump :...
featured a loop through Lincoln Park.
In 1993 South Swan Street within the park, from Morton Avenue to Myrtle Avenue, was renamed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and a statue of King was erected at the corner of said boulevard and Morton Avenue. Martin Luther King III was in attendance at the unveiling as the guest speaker. The statue comprises an 8 feet (2.4 m) tall statue with panels of granite etched with images from throughout his life and of lines of his speeches.
The Lincoln Park pool bathhouse was gutted and renovated in 2001 at a cost of $3 million.
Festivals
Many festivals, concerts, and parties have been held over the years in the park. In 1949 the "I am an American" Day celebration in Lincoln Park overshadowed the first annual Tulip FestTulip Festival (Albany, New York)
The Tulip Festival, also known as TulipFest, is held in Albany, New York every spring at Washington Park. The tradition stems from when Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd got a city ordinance passed declaring the tulip as Albany's official flower on July 1, 1948. In addition, he sent a request to Queen...
in Washington Park. Over 25,000 people attended the anti-Communist Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
event which featured heavy-weight boxing champ Jack Dempsey
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey was an American boxer who held the world heavyweight title from 1919 to 1926. Dempsey's aggressive style and exceptional punching power made him one of the most popular boxers in history. Many of his fights set financial and attendance records, including the first...
and two-time Oscar winning actor Harold Russell
Harold Russell
Harold John Russell was a Canadian-American World War II veteran who became one of only two non-professional actors to win an Academy Award for acting...
. As part of their farewell tour the Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
played in Lincoln Park at the University at Albany, SUNY
University at Albany, SUNY
The State University of New York at Albany, also known as University at Albany, State University of New York, SUNY Albany or simply UAlbany, is a public university located in Albany, Guilderland, and East Greenbush, New York, United States; is the senior campus of the State University of New York ...
's 1996 Party at the Park. The Northeast Rugby Union's Division II Women's Championship was held in Lincoln Park in 2002. As part of the 300th anniversary of the Dongan Charter
Dongan Charter
The Dongan Charter is the 1686 document incorporating Albany, New York as a city. Albany's charter was issued by Governor Thomas Dongan of the Province of New York, a few months after Governor Dongan issued a similarly worded, but less detailed charter for the city of New York. The city of Albany...
incorporating Albany as a city, Lincoln Park was the site of a hot-air balloon launch and a reenactment of a skirmish of US Revolutionary War forces.
The annual NYS Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Memorial Observance ends each year with a "Beloved Community March" that travels from the Empire State Plaza
Empire State Plaza
The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza is a complex of several state government buildings in downtown Albany, New York....
concourse entrance on Madison Avenue to Swan Street (which turns into Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard at the entrance to the park) and ends at the King Monument with the laying of a wreath.
Facilities and activities
The city of Albany's only non-wading pool is the Lincoln Park Pool, which covers approximately 2 acre (0.809372 ha), is 7 feet (2.1 m) deep in center, and can hold over 300 swimmers at a time. The pool may be the largest cement pool in the Northeastern US. In 1988 the pool was given a half a million dollar renovation after leaking so badly the year before that it was losing a quarter of its water daily. The park also has a wading pool and spray poolSpray pool
A spray pool is a recreation area and water feature, often in a public park, that sprays water so that users can play in it. The water typically emanates from a point on or near the ground, but in some cases this same kind of mechanism will be installed so as to emanate from near the surface of a...
. Lincoln Park has multiple tennis courts, basketball courts, handball courts, and playgrounds as well as ball fields. A youth fitness center (ages 7–19) with a gym, weight room, and activities such as wrestling, karate, dance fitness, and cardio. Since the park's primary purpose is as a public outdoor sports/fitness activity center, the park sees lots of spontaneous non-traditional activities by the public ranging such as T'ai chi on the tennis courts.
Two public schools are located within Lincoln Park, though the land they sit on is owned by the City School District of Albany and not by the city as part of the park, they are the Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology (TOAST) and the Sunshine School. TOAST is a pre-K through 5
K-5 (education)
K-5 is an American term for the education period from kindergarten to fifth grade. It receives equal amounts of criticism and support in the educational industry...
elementary magnet school
Magnet school
In education in the United States, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities as school zones that feed into certain schools.There are magnet schools at the...
and the Sunshine School is used for transitioning at-risk students in grades 9-12 from places such as jail, prison, juvenile detention centers, New York State Office of Children and Family Services
New York State Office of Children and Family Services
The New York State Office of Children and Family Services is an agency of the Government of New York. The agency has its headquarters in the Capital View Office Park in Rensselaer.-History:...
, or drug treatment facilities. The Sunshine School is located in James Hall's former office. TOAST has an associated Outdoor Learning Center in the park and a Geological Rock Park that opened in 2001. Adjacent to the school's Geological Rock Park are 50 1-2 ton boulders from across the state of New York that are being temporarily stored there until a permanent home can be given to them on the grounds of the New York State Museum
New York State Museum
The New York State Museum is a research-backed institution in Albany, New York, United States. It is located on Madison Avenue, attached to the south side of the Empire State Plaza, facing onto the plaza and towards the New York State Capitol...
, both the state's boulders and the Geological Rock Park are open to the public.
Capital District
Capital District
New York's Capital District, also known as the Capital Region, is a region in upstate New York that generally refers to the four counties surrounding Albany, the capital of the state: Albany County, Schenectady County, Rensselaer County, and Saratoga County...
Community Gardens (CDCG) has a community garden with 51 10 by 10 ft (3 by 3 m) plots located in the park off Eagle Street.
For 55 years the American Little League of Albany has sold Christmas Tree
Christmas tree
The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...
s on the tennis courts in the park as a fund raiser.