| Delaware
Park: Buffalo's Central Park The
main focus in Buffalo's historic Olmsted Parks System is the 350-acre Delaware
Park, a setting of pastoral scenery extensive enough to provide complete escape
from the clamor of the city. The design was a romantic one, consisting of a "meadow
park of greensward and scattered trees" and a sheltered "water park."
The entire area was carefully crafted for quiet enjoyment of rural scenery. Delaware
Park is an archetypal representation of America's Victorian and industrial era
of the late 19th century. It served as the focal point of the 1901 Pan American
Exposition. Today,
Delaware Park serves as Buffalo's primary place for citywide recreation and leisure.
The Albright-Knox Art Gallery, the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society
building, and the Buffalo Zoo are in this park. It is an ideal spot for walking,
jogging, picnicking, playing tennis, basketball, baseball, soccer, rugby, and
golf, or simply relaxing in the tranquility of nature.
"Shakespeare In The Park", held behind the Casino adjacent to the restored
Rose Garden, draws thousands each year. These performances have been a Buffalo
summer tradition since 1976. It is the country's second most successful outdoor
Shakespeare festival. There
is a new playground at the Rose Garden, new gardens at Parkside Avenue, and programs
such as Yoga, Tai Chai, and Movies in the Meadow. The Conservancy took over the
"Juicery" concession, now called "FLOÕs at Delaware" and returned
boating to Hoyt Lake by the Delaware Park Casino. The
Japanese Garden , completed in 1974, represents a gesture of friendship between
two sister cities, Buffalo and Kanazawa, Japan. Located on six acres along Delaware
Park's Mirror Lake, it began with over 1,000 plantings, some lighting, and three
small islands connected to the mainland by bridges. Delaware
Park is the place to run in Buffalo. You can do a figure-eight on Delaware's 1.77-mile
ring road, and the connected 1.25-mile loop around Hoyt Lake at the park's western
edge. Buffalo hosts nearly 200 races a year, and is home to at least 14 active
running clubs.
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