100 the plan to save louisville's olmstead parks

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Olmsted was the father

And in the

an artist at the pea k

. vases were the plain,

of our nation 's

During his career, Olmsted designed the United States Capitol

Grounds in Washington, D.C., the World's Columbian Exposition

Grounds in Chicago, the Biltmore Estate

in Asheville, North Carolina , and the most

famous park in the world, New York 路s

Central Park. In 1891, Olmsted added

another masterpiece to his legendary body

of work -

Ouroku Park

the louisville park system .

LoII ,... \·ille's origi na l pl.tn cailed for three sprawling. picturesque r .1rh l'("I lInccted h\' a ...vstrm of gra nd par kwa ys. Shawnee.

Iroquoi ... and C hl'rok('(· P;lrks would prOVide pastoral havens for the people of the W(· ..., ;,r(.·,I'" of Olm<; l C' d

,hl'

('3.."1.

<;Qu th and

~rowing

wao;

cit\',

co nsciol1<; of

I ht' fact that most c it \'

dwdlt'r<;

i:1l-k(\ilhl' f'C"'n.ful. private ~ard('ns of the wcalth ier clas,.o;cs.

Li k e a /I

He beliewd his parks

masterpieces , his

\. . . ou ld he beneficial

parks have attracted

for "Ih,' healthfu\lv

throngs of people from generation

""'Ihin~

and refresh·

in~ effecl \vhich is

to generation.

upon

people ~Iping from lilt' di."lurblnce of towns inlo the midst of spacious natural sccner\' ,"

1hl' reople of Lou isvill(' embraced Olm ...kd'3 parks immed iatei}', I\nci, like all masterpieces. h is parks have ,Ill r:tdl'll I hrong:-.

of pt'oplc from

\.!l'llt'r.llioll to l!t'IllTatioll. Our great

ltr;tntlP:1rCIl IS, grandparents. parents and children have

piLllkkt·t!' hiked. plawd, bicyclt.'d . napped, bird watched. "'"llh.lIhl~d, r('ad

Olm..;.tt'd rarks.

illlll

"lrollcJ

throu~h

thesyh."all scenery of o ur

Ori inally, Olmsted desigm.-d JXlrks for peopll.." to escJpe: !Ill' city, Now, the city has crept into our parks. The dctrimc.nlJI

changes thai have infested our parb ha ..路e bcl.."n SO ~radual. many of us have faikxl to nolice them.

Years of abuse by ma.n路mauc creations such as cars. ":Oll\.:. r~ll路 and garbage arc: beginning to ddract from the natural wonder!> of Shawnee. Iroquois and Cherokee Parks. Mother N,llUrl'

hasn't been very kind, e.ither. \Veather damage.. as well

;b

the

introduction of pbnts and trce~ not originally a pJrl of the

Scene in Cherokee l'ark. Louisville. Ky.

parks' plans. have hindcrl'd tbe glo r ious vistas previou~ generations enjoyed.

At

this

point in lime. we: arc in

danger of owning what Olm!)h..J

called a "dead We can pass on to

monument."

B)' dOl13ling to

our childr en the very

the Louisville

p a r k s we grew up

Olm,kd Parks

w ith -

Conservancy,

p arks our ancestors

you can help

g rew up with .

in fact . the

restarl' Shawnee, IroqUOiS and Cherokl'l' Parks . .IS

wdl a.::. our p:ukwJv::.,

\VI.." can pass on

the very pJ rks we grew up with -

III

our chilJn: n

in facl. the PJrh our

ancestors ~rew up wilh, ;0 maller where you live in louisville::, one -

of Ihl'!>e parh have

J

or all -

speCial place in ~路our heart. 1 akl' time

to look I h rau~h the folloWing ra~l'S and rt:Jc,juainl your~c1r wilh "you r" park,

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"1'\ I'KnjlT I 5111' IIiE C HEROKEE PARK

~ I ASTER

RtT'llir \Voodlllltd Pat/Is 'n~t{lI,t

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PLAN

PlIMtd Relocation of

Elthllll" Ha bitat s

RrcoIIslntc/ Park Illfra slnulurt

Rl· ·opt·n ~reJt Olmsted ian vista

PI<lnl a wildflower trail alonJi

Mainlain. repair. and rtconstruct

Aclil·t: Rurt:alioll

from

across

Bc..ar~ra.';'i; Creek. stabiliu Barringer

park roads. drainage. road edg"

R",,'ort' park·s open s paces and

th r park' .. naliVI'

BcJTf.:rJ .... Creek 10 Cochran

Spring. Ihe banks along Ek"lrs;ra.ss

co ndil ioll~. historic brid~l:5. and

ren ovah' a lhl l: li c and picnic

wN'c Il.ll1d .... InS/Jli multI II!'<' Irail

Hill wilh new tree groves

Creek. and the meadow!' a nd

new designated p3rkin~ areas.

compl ~':< a~ racilitics IOCJIt'd

and

lakeshore al \Villow Pond.

&rrill.!:cr Hill Vis/a

C I "~I' l'fOO~ rI rot;ut' trails Jnd

l('lnduct bnd...cal"· mana~t:!fl!Cn1 to

r,'

1·~IJhl["h

with w~\"<;idl' ~hdtr'rs JIlII ruSIi.;

f,..."JIbridl!l.... o\',"r s t lt'J,"

,\Jill

l~rrin2t.'T

BI·arl!r,I~S

Srrille,

CIl·,·k .

BJrrins;cr

landscape

of woodlands.

Hill

rnanJ'l,cllIc nl

e1st'where in I he park become outdated over lime,

Cherokee Park offers " refreshment in the contemplat i on of superb

Non-native vines. plants and tree saplings have almost completely replaced the

umbrageous trees, standing singly and in open

native, understory shrubs of the park.

On ly two or three woodland islands show evidence of native plant regeneration. The

groups distributed naturally upon a gracefully

non-native plant invasion has obscured the former landscape by shrouding trees

and filling up ,he Cherokee Park offers a

woodland Ooor.

unique, ideal rural landscape

From Barringer

amid the hustle and bustle

Hill, the view

of the city. Help us preserve it.

is stopped by a distinct woodland

wall that gives no sense of the creek valley within. Bridges are dilapidated . Trails are overgrown. Stairs are crumbling.

green sward ." -

F.L. Olmsted

"Iroquoi s Park is a trea sure o f sylvan scenery

providing the grandeur

.1 I

of the forest depths

in the dim seclusion

of which you may wander musin g ly f or h o urs. "

-

F. L. Olmsted

The deteriorated. centu ries-old drainage system is undermining iroquois Park's

roadways and scouring oul deep gu llies

along trails. The formerly breathtaking panoramas afforded al

Iroquois Park offers

Krupps Point and

Pan th er Point are

one of the l ast v esti g es

hidden by over路

of old growt h forest

grown vegetation.

in Louisville 's cit y limits .

Trails are difficu1t to

Let us ensure this precious

hike, Bridle paths are

space exists fo r o ur children .

muddy and hard for horses to traverse. Open spaces, originally in tended fo r family pic nics and play,

are u naccess ibl e to many.

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Iruqu.Jrs Gcl; Collll"Sc'

IruqllorsP"rrJ

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KEY PR OJECT S O F T H E I ROQUOIS PARK M A STER PLAN Ruotlsrrud Bridlt Trails

En lli rotllnultal Education arId

Summit Fidd

Inurprttiue Progra ms

Pllaud Relocation of Aaiue Recreation

Rtcotlstnllt Park I,ifra strllctuf(

Reconstruct trails through less

MainulO, repair , and reconstruct

Construct ddention

Establish cooperative programs

Restore park o pen spaces lind

puk roads. drainage, and paths

cont rol

to prevent erosion aud flooding,

and enrich wllJlifc habitat with

It::'>turr viStas from

oak sava nnah,

Panthcr POlllt<.: ~t.lbilj::.路 ... t:"I"

fragr le lowland

m~as

of the puk

and provide drain;age fo r trails

wllh school system and environ路

provide tennis and bil sketball

in wet areas.

me ntal groups to allow park's

courts south of amph itheater.

potenti al as a n edu cat ional rcsourCe to be full y realized.

erOS IOIl.

Orrrioob to

Rl" ",pen View!! frl)m "Iotthcrn

millgate Ooodill)ot.

.nd Southern O ...路cr l"l.'Il.::. .l nd

b,h,lII::'

Repair \Voodlalld PadlS Restore O lm::.ted tr;ad to hdl

top from amphItheater area

to Jacob's Lodge.

KruPI's Jnd

tat 1011 an.1 o. . erlook ralh~

Norlllt'm

COl/COUrsE

I

OHIO RIVER

RIi't."r Glm Park

P"dtlv";:; Rill/

~ AClh't' Rer rra/mn Cnmpkr

KFY I'Rl'JEC I S OF 1 H E SH A W NEE PARK

'IASTER PLAN

R('~I(1It"dr( <"~mlf lnU'1I

~ l Ujj( C{tll(Ollrst"

Rit路crbllllh and Ot"trlooh

Ril'crwalk

Active Recrtatioll Compltr

Rl"r prr rhr r"'ran.<;iv(' (1~n "{\lee

O lm .. /ed "s oll l\" formal 'luden

RC'~abl ish w~ l k",";Iys

from puk

Constr uct Shawnee pori ion of

\.'r "''''', IJIl' .."rl1l~ .lIul 拢(,lIrr.l1 p.:ark

In l...olli;:;\"rll(''' .. p.. rk ;:; will be

10 RI\"crwalk" an d o pc n ri ve r

~cvc n " mil c multi-use walkway

Build new youth bascb;1I fields" baske tball and tennis courlS .

r.;labli.. hrd It"I rraml" I he' main

v!t"w .. t-)' rt:pbnlin~ with nalivC'

conn cd in ~ downtow n Lou isville

playground. walk s. pIcni c

~ hrut-.. and

;tnc! Chlck;!<;aw Park

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nf'id.;

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Ohio River o\"cr look"

grouml covers .

pavilions. concC'ssions. reslrooms

and parking"

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" Shawnee Par k holds the prosp ec t

of broad and t r anqui l m ea dow y

spaces, with , by and by, t h e

shadows of great trees sla nting

across them , and offering at onc e

areas of turf to be inexpensively kept in a su i table condit i on

for lawn games.

F.L. Olmsted

Deteriorating baseball diamonds, tennis co urts and basketball courls obscure

lhe Greal Lawn and

For years, Shawnee Park was

oLher open spaces.

the site of family picnics. Easter

The picnic groves,

egg hunts, school events and

path systems and

concerts. let us return it to

Oower gardens are

its former grandeur.

only memories. The magnificent views of

the river have also been lost. Though not

a part of the original plan. sports facilities can exist in harmony with Shawnee Park's

original plan and playa ke y [ ole in

bri nging ram ilies back.

, Olmsted orig i nally envisioned Louisville 's park system

being linked by a ser i es of tree-lined parkways reserved

for pleasure driving, bicycling, horseback riding and

leisurely strolls, Today, Algonquin, Cherokee , Eastern,

Southern , North Western and South Wes

minated by trucks and aut

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-

"The parkways should be more than typical city streets ; they should

Driveway of En tra nce to Sh awnee Pa rk.

Lou isville. Ky.

serve as grand promenad es

leading people to the pro m is e

of the sylvan retreat ahead. "

Eotnocc to Cherokee Park

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Weill Pl rkwa.y. LouuYilk. Ky.

KEY PROJ EC T S OF THE OLMSTED PARK WAYS MASTER PLAN &lll,att Abutting

EstablisH Yru

Link tlzl Parkways to O"t'

Wt Mus! Adap! dll Parkua),s

blab/isll11 Foruwl

Property Oumas

Ma"ag,mltlll Plall

AlloLlzlr

allll DoWI, tOWII

for Multiplt USlS

Rll'itlV

undowncr:. and residents need to

Provide cont inual maintenance.

While

Olmsted 's

original

P ro vide recreati o nal quality

The various local p"rlit.'!> involn...!

10 pedestrian :.. joggers lnd

III COIl.-.trUdion aJon~

bicyclists.

should be ~uidt.-d lnd cOOrdUIJ\l.J

be: informed of p,ukway rights

remedial care and replacement

intent io n w as not rt:alized .

and rc:sponsibiIU ics. in conjunc路

of approxil1l3tcly 6,()(X) IrttS.

it is s till valid today .

tkm with ;a more gcncnl pr~ram

designed to hl:ightt.'11

awarc ll e~

It can

be acco mplis hed by kni tti ng togeth er

connecting

city

that the Jl'Irkways an: hiscoriCIlly

strccts wit b standoard lighting.

import;,mt and should be: cm:fully

signagc. tree plan ting and

prc:st:rvecl.

grecn:.ward.

Prouss the parkwJ)"1>

by iI formal rt:view rroc~.

In 1891, a group of concerned cilizens called the Salmagundi expended their time, effor t an d mone y to make au( Louisv ille Olmsted parks a reality. Tod ay. we 're asking you to help bring th e Olmsted parks

back to life.

The drive to restore our parks and parkway system is spearheaded by the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy,

Inc. In 1989, Mayor Jerr y Abramson established the Lou isv ille Olmsted Parks Conservancy as a planning and runding pa rtn ership between the City and th e private sec tor. Th e City provided $1 million in seed. money to establish the Conservancy

Today. we ' re asking

and to fu nd the hrst Master

you to help bring

Plan for Louisville's parks

the Olmsted parks

and parkways.

Across America. other

back to their original glory.

d Ues lucky enough to have

Ol msted parks have organ ized their money and efforts to reclaim their parks. Now. it is Louisville's turn. W ith the Master Plan in place, we know what we have to do to save ow parks. The rest is up to you. Please give

generously to the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy. And help keep our liv in g masterpieces alive and well ror gene rations to come.

.....,... ..~..

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Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy. Inc.

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