Rock Creek Park
The main section of the park contains 1,754 acres (7.10 km2), or 2.75 square miles (7.1 km2), along the Rock Creek Valley. Including the other green areas the park administers (Glover Archbold Park, Montrose Park, Dumbarton Oaks Park, Meridian Hill Park, Battery Kemble Park, Palisades Park, Whitehaven Park, etc.), it is over 2,000 acres (8.1 km2). The major portion of the area lies north of the National Zoo, and was established by act of Congress made law by President Benjamin Harrison on September 27, 1890, the same year that Yosemite National Park was established. A later addition of the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway extended the park along a narrow corridor from the zoo to the mouth of Rock Creek at the Potomac River.
In 1933, Rock Creek Park, along with other National Capital Parks, was transferred to the jurisdiction of the National Park Service, and it is patrolled by the United States Park Police. Legislative language from its establishment, and the character of the park itself, suggests that it is among the oldest of America's national parks.
Recreation facilities include a golf course; equestrian trails; sport venues, including a tennis stadium which hosts major professional events; a nature center and planetarium; an outdoor concert venue; and picnic and playground facilities. Rock Creek Park also maintains cultural exhibits, including the Peirce Mill and Civil War fortifications, such as Fort Stevens and Fort DeRussy. Rock Creek is a popular venue for jogging, cycling, and inline skating, especially on the long, winding Beach Drive, portions of which are closed to vehicles on weekends.
It is also the path of a major traffic thoroughfare, the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway, especially along the portion south of the zoo.
The parklands follow the course of Rock Creek across the D.C.-Maryland border to connect with Rock Creek Stream Valley Park and Rock Creek Regional Park in Montgomery County. The Maryland parks are operated by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
The Rock Creek Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 23, 1991.
In May 2002, the remains of missing Federal Bureau of Prisons intern Chandra Levy were found in Rock Creek Park. Police had been searching for her for over a year.
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—T.S. (Thomas Stearns)
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