Beale Park is a public park located in Bakersfield, California. It is Bakersfield’s first park, located on Oleander St.

History

The park was constructed in 1908, on of land donated by

Truxtun Beale Truxtun Beale (March 6, 1856 – June 2, 1936) was an American diplomat. Biography Beale was born in San Francisco to Mary Engle Edwards and Edward Fitzgerald Beale; his siblings were Mary (1852–1925), who married Russian diplomat George B ...

. He also donated landscaping for the park, the Greek style amphitheater and swimming pool. Since then, the park has seen many improvements. Two large reservable picnic areas were added, as well as many smaller individual areas. Several different types of sports courts and fields were also added.Beale Park
City of Bakersfield Recreation & Parks. Accessed: 04-08-2010. Over the years, the pool, similar to most of the city pools, needed to be refurbished. However, in 2004, with the opening of the aquatics center in

Downtown Bakersfield Downtown is the central business district for Bakersfield, California. It contains several of the cities major theaters, sporting complexes, museums, and historical landmarks. What is considered to be “downtown” Bakersfield varies. In order ...

, it was decided not to refurbish the pool. It was removed and replaced with a spray park. In 1977, a large wind storm hit Bakersfield. The roof of an aviary was blown off, and at least two parakeets escaped. Since then, a large parakeet population has settled in and around the park. This population has also spread to Beach Park and Hart Park. They have grown to be largest population of naturalized parakeets in the world.

Amenities

Beale Park is one of the most equipped city parks in Bakersfield. It has two reservable picnic areas, seating 80 people each. They are both uncovered, and are each equipped with a barbecue, and lights. There are several individual picnic areas, which can seat 8 to 16 people. Some of them are equipped with a barbecue and some others are covered. There is one lit full basketball court, three lit tennis courts, and four lit horseshoe pits. There is also a softball backstop, and a large open field, suitable for most lawn sports. The park also includes restrooms, and a playground.Locate a City Park
. City of Bakersfield Recreation & Parks. Accessed: 04-08-2010. The park is also one of two parks with an open outdoor amphitheater that includes seating (on terraced grass). The stage is in the Greek style. The Beale Park Band has historically performed concerts at the theater during the summer months.

References

External links

{{Parks in Bakersfield Parks in Bakersfield, California