Washington Park Historic District (Albany, New York)
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Washington Park Historic District
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A photographer at Tulip Fest
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| Location | Washington Park and surrounding properties, Albany, New York |
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| Coordinates | 42°39′25″N 73°46′18″W / 42.65694°N 73.77167°WCoordinates: 42°39′25″N 73°46′18″W / 42.65694°N 73.77167°W |
| Area | 136 acres (0.55 km2) |
| Architect |
John Bogart and John Cuyler (for park) multiple for residences including HH Richardson and Stanford White |
| NRHP reference # | 72000818 |
| Added to NRHP | June 19, 1972 |
Washington Park in Albany, New York is the city's premier park and the site of many festivals and gatherings. As public property it dates back to the city charter in 1686, and has seen many uses including that of gunpowder storage, square/parade grounds, and cemetery. The park is often mistaken as being designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, but does incorporate many of the philosophical ideals used by Olmsted when he designed Central Park in Manhattan. The park is about 81 acres (33 ha) in size with the 5.2-acre (2.1 ha) Washington Park Lake, a roughly 1,600-foot-long (490 m) and 140-foot-wide (43 m) lake, in the southwestern corner.
Not only is the park historic, but so is the mostly residential surrounding neighborhood. Many architectural works line the streets facing the park, designed by some of the most famous architects of the late 19th century, including Henry Hobson Richardson. At least two governors of New York lived in buildings facing Washington Park outside of their term in office. Due to the historical and architectural significance of the park and neighborhood both were included in 1972 as the Washington Park Historic District; and in 1998 the park was named one of the nation's 100 most important parks by the American Association of Architects. In 2008 Boston-based composer Peter Child wrote an orchestral piece inspired by the park, entitled Washington Park.
Washington Park has been public property since the Dongan Charter was granted to Albany incorporating it as a city. The charter specified that all land not privately owned at the time became property of the Mayor, Aldermen, and Commonalty of the city of Albany, including the land that would become the site of Washington Park. A portion of the land was set aside for a structure built to house gunpowder in 1802, and in 1806 the areas between Willett and Knox streets, and between State Street and Madison Avenue, became the Middle Public Square. In 1800, the land west of Knox Street to Robin Street and south from State Street to Hudson Avenue was taken for a cemetery, which was apportioned into sections for each of Albany's churches. There were separate sections for African-Americans and for strangers. West of the cemetery was the alms-house farm and the penitentiary grounds. In 1809 the Middle Public Square was renamed Washington Square, and later the Washington Parade Ground. In 1868 the remains and headstones in the cemetery were removed and reinterred, most to Albany Rural Cemetery, and some to the cemeteries of other churches.
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