Washington Park: Thh Sui'i:RiNTiiNDENT's Cottach, Sunnysidi;. 



WASHINGTON PARK. 



AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE BEAUTY AND VALUE OF PUBLIC GARDENS. 



EAR the heart of the city of Albany. 

 New York, lies that great fair public 

 garden called Washington Park. It 

 contains 65 acres of mowed lawn, 6 

 acres of lake area, 3 miles of carriage 

 drives and 6 miles of foot-walks. 

 The people of Albany are naturally 

 quite proud of this beautiful go-acre "breathing place," 

 so rich in grassy lawns, grand trees and fine forms of 

 shrubs and flowers. 



Washington Park is ably superintended by William S. 

 Egerton, who also has charge of the smaller city parks. 

 From his recent report on "The Public Parks of the 

 City of Albany, New York," the views presented with 

 this article are taken. In this book much historical and 

 statistical information and many fine maps and illustra- 

 tions are given in a manner that cannot fail to interest 

 the reader. 



According to this report, the necessity of some move- 

 ment to secure an extensive park was forcibly impressed 

 on the city authorities of Albany as early as 1S63. In a 

 paper presented that year by Prof. Murray, of the Al- 

 bany Institute, the benefits to be derived from a park 

 were set forth with great force. Among other things it 



was shown in this paper that cleanliness, fresh air and 

 the presence of vegetation are essential to health ; that 

 private enterprise, even when aided by intelligence and 

 wealth, cannot always obtain these in large cities ; that a 

 beautiful park in any city is a great moral power, and does 

 more than criminal courts to repress crime. Men are 

 wiser, better, more temperate and loving when they have 

 wandered amid trees and waterfalls and heard birds sing, 

 and children laugh and play. The slovenliness and filth 

 which sometimes unnecessarily disgrace the tenements of 

 the poor in cities are put to shame by the sight of the 

 beauty and freshness of nature. 



Ground was broken for the improvement of Washing- 

 ton Park in 1870. It has been considerably enlarged 

 since then by additional purchases. 



One lesson early learned by the Albany park projectors 

 may be cited for the benefit of other towns contemplat- 

 ing similar public improvements. The system of inter- 

 mittent purchases and the acquisition of contiguous prop- 

 erty for park purposes was found to be expensive and 

 unsatisfactory, as values were enhanced by the successive 

 improvements made, and property-owners were not to be 

 cajoled or frightened into selling their property by in- 

 creased assessed valuations or cumulative taxes. Besides 



