Eden Park (Cincinnati)

Eden Park (Cincinnati)

Eden Park, owned and operated by the Cincinnati Park Board, is located in the Mt. Adams community of Cincinnati, Ohio. The park began as the designation for the city's water supply, purchased in 1859. However, early on the city saw that the area could also serve the dual purpose of city park. The park area was originally designed by noted landscape architect Adolph Strauch, who also was responsible for Spring Grove Cemetery.

The park was erected and dedicated by prominent men in Hamilton County to honor the distinction of Clermont County, Ohio as being listed by a group of Protestant and Catholic clergy in 1900 as one of ten possible locations on Earth for the Garden of Eden. Clermont was named for its many fruiting trees and the presence of early American Indians who built earthen mounds in the form of serpents.

Eden Park is home to a number of city landmarks and landforms, such as Krohn Conservatory, the Cincinnati Art Museum, Elsinore Arch, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Seasongood Pavilion, the Eden Park Station No. 7, the Eden Park Stand Pipe, Melan Arch Bridge and Mirror Lake. The site was also the previous home of the Art Academy of Cincinnati, which has since relocated to Over-the-Rhine. Much of the land was given to the city by Nicholas Longworth, once the wealthiest man of Cincinnati. The park comprises 186 acres (0.75 km2), and is the site of numerous overlooks of the Ohio River valley. There are groves, gardens and a gazebo.