206 
PARK AND CEMETERY. 
-GEORGE 'WASHINGTON OAK", AUDU 
OLD. 
nue front, $2,500 for a boiler house for 
the heating plant at the hall, and the ef- 
forts of a number of ladies succeeded in 
the building of the ornamental gateway at 
the northeast corner of the park — St. 
Charles avenue. 
Finally, in 1896, the state legislature was 
induced to pass Act 130, which, among 
other provisions, directed the City of New 
Orleans to annually appropriate $30,000, to 
be divided equally between Audubon Park 
and New Orleans City Park. With this 
small revenue, aided by sales of privileges, 
rentals of the grounds for circus exhibi- 
tions, etc., the park has been able to make 
some improvements. To this must be add- 
ed a number of cash donations. 
Plans for the ultimate improvement of 
the park were made by Olmsted Brothers, 
of Brookline, Mass. Before the employ- 
ment of Olmsted Brothers the only im- 
provement undertaken and carried out by 
the board was the development of the 
portion lying between Magazine street and 
the river, which most readily lent itself to 
economical improvement. The board suc- 
ceeded to the extent of eliciting from 
the engineers the opinion that nothing 
more need be done in that section for some 
years to come, or until the greater por- 
tion of the park had been developed ac- 
cording to adopted plans. 
Apart from the cost of these improve- 
ments, the board by the strictest economy, 
a careful scrutiny of every expenditure and 
paring down of every appropriation, man- 
aged to accumulate about $20,000, which 
has been expended in the improvement of 
what is known as the northwest corner of 
the park, that portion forming the corner 
of Walnut street and St. Charles avenue. 
This includes a wading pool and beach, 
the erection of a shelter house, sand court 
LIVE OAK AVENUE, RIVER ROAD, AUDUBON PARK, NE’W ORLEL^NS, IN 
DECEMBER. 
BON PARK, NEW ORLEANS: 400 YEARS 
for children and the necessary water fa- 
cilities for supplying the pool with clear, 
fresh water. 
In this respect the board was fortunate 
in having located at the river end of the 
park the water purification experiment sta- 
tion of the Sewerage and Water Board of 
the City of New Orleans, which after it 
accomplished the proof that Mississippi 
River water can be most economically 
filtered to a remarkable degree of organic 
and bacterial purity, was for a nominal 
sum sold to the Park Board and is now 
the source of its water supply for gen 
eral purposes. 
The improvement of the northwest cor- 
ner referred to also included the complete 
sub and surface drainage of that section 
as well as the completion of the contour 
plan, the planting of all plantations and 
flower plots, and building of roads and 
walks. 
The southwest corner of the park, ex- 
tending from Magazine street (which is 
the only street that extends through the 
park) to the river, is occupied by the 
sugar experiment station of the Louisiana 
State University, directed by its professor 
of agriculture. Dr. William C. Stubbs. A 
complete sugar mill of small size, exten- 
sive chemical laboratories and farm build- 
ings, with picturesque residence of the di- 
rector, constitute the equipment of this 
station. At the station is also located the 
state bureau for the analyzing of all fer- 
tilizers used in the state. 
In the southern or river section of the 
park stand the larger number of Audu- 
bon’s greatest feature — its live oaks. . There 
are exactly one hundred of them within a 
short radius from Horticultural Hall. 
The other oaks, and particularly those 
that form an avenue, were transplanted 
when saplings by Mr. Foucher about sev- 
enty years ago. All of these are today 
grand trees, but there are several which 
are truly majestic. Notable among them 
are the two known as George and Martha 
Washington. Their trunks are over eleven 
feet in diameter. It is safe to assume that 
the great majority of the oaks have had a 
century of life — judging by them the two 
Washingtons must have begun life soon 
after the discovery of America. 
As a proof of the value of investment 
in parks by municipalities may be men- 
