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Park Description
Located at Gilbert Avenue between Elsinore and Morris and comprised of 186.29 acres, Eden Park was assembled by a series of purchases beginning in 1859. The name came, naturally, from the Garden of Eden and was given by Nicholas Longworth who owned a large tract which constitutes the main portion of the park.
Eden Park is the home of the Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati Art Academy, Playhouse in the Park, Murray Seasongood Pavilion, and the Irwin M. Krohn Conservatory.
Krohn Conservatory, one of Cincinnati's major tourist attractions, was opened to the public in 1933 and essentially rebuilt after extensive storm damage in 1966. It is the third greenhouse in Eden Park. Krohn Conservatory, which is owned and operated by the Park Board, features plant materials from all over the world exhibited in simulated natural settings. Six special shows are presented annually in the Show House. The Conservatory, which is open every day of the year, was named in honor of Irwin M. Krohn, Board of Park Commissioner from 1912 to 1948. There is free wireless internet access at Krohn Conservatory sponsored by Lilypad in partnership with the Cincinnati Park Board.
Just south of Krohn Conservatory is the Hinkle Magnolia Garden, named for Frederick A. Hinkle as a testimonial to his many years on the Park Board. The area includes a picturesque gazebo dedicated to the memory of Martha Rule Deupree and Richard Redwood Deupree in 1982. Near the gazebo is the John Rule Deupree Memorial Fountain, given by his family and dedicated in 1987.
As you enter Eden Park from Victory Parkway, on your left is the Twin Lakes area, once an old stone quarry. Just west of the lakes is the bronze replica of the Capitoline Wolf which was a gift from the Italian government and presented by the Order of the Sons of Italy in 1931. Also in the area is the Galbraith Memorial which was erected in 1923 by the American Legion in honor of its first National Commander, Cincinnati's Frederick W. Galbraith. The memorial seat was erected in 1925 by the 136th Field Artillery, A.E.F. A sixty-foot memorial flagpole located here and dedicated in 1930, was relocated to the site of the Vietnam Memorial, just below the old Eden Park Water Tower and rededicated at the time of the Vietnam Memorial dedication on April 8, 1984.
South of the 172-foot high Water Tower, completed in 1894 and now used by the City of Cincinnati as a communications facility, are five memorial tree plantings. The largest is Presidential Grove which was started in 1882 when the Forestry Congress met in Cincinnati. The grove contains a tree planted for each of the Presidents of the United States. In 1982, the American Forestry Association held the opening ceremony of its National Conference in Cincinnati at the grove to commemorate the centennial of its first national conference in 1882.
Beyond Presidential Grove is Heroes Grove with oak trees planted in 1876 in memory of the heroes of 1776 and the patriots who suffered with Washington at Valley Forge. In 1976, in celebration of our nation's Bicentennial, the U.S. Marine Corps planted three pin oak trees in this grove to replace three of the originals which had died. A second Heroes Grove, located south of Eden Park Drive near the Gilbert Avenue entrance, was planted in 1919 by the Mothers of Democracy in memory of Cincinnati men and women who lost their lives in World War I. Located in the same area as the 1876 Heroes Grove is Pioneers Grove which contains trees planted by the Forestry Society in 1882 in honor of the pioneers of Cincinnati. Authors Grove is after you pass the Twin Lakes area into Eden Park, you go under the Melan Arch Bridge built of concrete in 1894, a pioneer engineering feet that attracted world-wide attention. The bridge is flanked by stone eagles from the old Chamber of Commerce Building which burned in 1911.
Just behind Krohn Conservatory, on the hillside overlooking the river, is the Donald Spencer Overlook and Ohio River Monument. The Monument, a granite shaft 30 feet high with bronze tablets, was dedicated by President Herbert Hoover in 1929 to commemorate the canalization of the Ohio River. The overlook was dedicated in 2002 in honor of Donald Spencer, founder of the Friends of Cincinnati Parks support group.
At the intersection of Eden Park and Fulton Avenue is the historic spring house gazebo built in 1904 to replace a straw shack spring house. In early years, water from the spring was thought to have medicinal qualities. One hundred barrels of water were carried away daily by the public until found to be contaminated in 1912 and sealed.
Nearby Mirror Lake covers the city's reservoir. The beauty of the lake was enhanced by a fountain which shoots water 60 feet into the air, a gift in 1987 by Mrs. Eleanor Meacham and her son Standish Meacham Jr. Mrs. Meacham served as a Park Board Commissioner from 1957 to 1963. Her husband was the architect for Krohn Conservatory.
As you drive along Art Museum Drive toward Mt. Adams, on your left in a natural vale is the Murray Seasongood Pavilion. The Pavilion was erected in 1959 to replace a former bandstand and was a gift of Martha S. Stern to commemorate the services of her brother, former Mayor, Murray Seasongood.
South of Seasongood Pavilion are the ruins of the old reservoir begun in 1866. The massive walls were partially demolished in 1962 for new underground storage beneath Mirror Lake.
Elsinore Tower, located at Gilbert Avenue and Elsinore Place, erected in 1883, was designed by Samuel Hannaford to commemorate a Shakespeare Festival being held in Cincinnati at the same time. It now serves as a valve house for the Cincinnati Water Works.
Historical Eden Park offers a great variety for every interest and age - free musical programs at Seasongood Pavilion, visits to the cultural institutions, ice skating on Mirror Lake, strolling (or jogging), picnicking, or enjoying a panoramic view of the city, Ohio River and Kentucky from four different overlooks. Be sure to include a springtime visit to the Queen City's Garden of Eden for the breathtaking exhibit of flowering trees and magnificent displays of over 50,000 daffodils.
Visiting Eden Park :
950 Eden Park Drive
Cincinnati , OH 45202
View Driving Directions
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