Forest Park (Portland)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Forest Park | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Oregon |
| City | Portland |
| County | Multnomah |
| Location | Tualatin Mountains (West Hills) [1] |
| - coordinates | Coordinates: |
| - elevation | 718 ft (219 m) [1] |
| Area | 5,157 acres (2,087 ha) [2] |
| Founded | 1948 [2] |
| Managed by | Portland Parks and Recreation Department |
  Location of Forest Park in Oregon
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Forest Park is a municipal and public park, located west of downtown Portland, Oregon. It is the largest urban forest reserve in the U.S.[2] The park covers more than 5,100 acres (21 km²)[2] with 4,873 acres (20 km²) of second and old growth forest, threaded by more than 70 miles (110 km) of recreational trails. Forest Park stretches for more than 8 miles (13 km) on hillsides overlooking the Willamette River.
Forest Park is among the largest city parks in the United States. In 2007, The Trust for Public Land put the park in 19th place with 4,317 acres (17 km²), slightly smaller than its 2008 total of about 5,100 acres (21 km²). The trust’s list included state parks, national parks, county parks, regional parks, national wildlife refuges, as well as municipally-owned parks as long as they were in cities. Chugach State Park in Anchorage, Alaska, was in first place with 495,996 acres (2,007 km²). The 15 biggest parks on the list all had more than 5,500 acres (22 km²).[3]
Civic leaders beginning with the Reverend Thomas Lamb Eliot, a minister who moved to Portland in 1867, sought to create a natural preserve in the woods that eventually became Forest Park. By 1899 his efforts led to the formation of the Municipal Park Commission of Portland, which in 1903 hired the highly-regarded Olmsted Brothers to prepare a plan for the park. They recommended that the city acquire West Hills property to develop a wooded public park. Trails in the park and elsewhere in the city were to form a trail system which later became known as the 40 Mile Loop.[2]
In the 1890s, Frederick Van Voorhies Holman, a Portland lawyer and a president of the Oregon Historical Society, proposed a gift of 52 acres (21 ha) in the West Hills that eventually became part of Forest Park. His siblings, George F. and Mary Holman, completed the donation in 1939. After a park feasibility study by the City Club of Portland in 1945, civic leaders supported the project, and 4,200 acres (17 km²) were formally dedicated as Forest Park on September 23, 1948.[2]
More than 112 bird species and 62 mammal species are found in the park.[2] An ongoing effort aims to eradicate non-native, invasive species, such as English ivy.
The Audubon Society of Portland has an adjacent wildlife sanctuary covering 143 acres (0.6 km²), which includes more than 4 miles (6.4 km) of trails, a wildlife care center, avian exhibits, and a retail store.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Forest Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey (November 28, 1980). Retrieved on 2008-05-30.
- ^ a b c d e f g Forest Park. Portland Parks and Recreation Department, City of Portland (2008). Retrieved on 2008-05-27.
- ^ 100 Largest City Parks. The Trust for Public Land (2007). Retrieved on 2008-05-30.
- ^ Trails & Sanctuary. Audubon Society of Portland. Retrieved on 2008-05-27.
