The Columbus Recreation and Parks Department manages parks, recreational facilities, and grounds in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. The department oversees 370 parks on about . The department also maintains 29 community centers, five athletic complexes, six golf courses, of trails, five splash pads and interactive fountains, eight pools, an indoor aquatic center, 14 nature preserves, three reservoirs, five dog parks, and a skate park.

History

Early history

In 1839, Columbus created its first park, five years after becoming a city. The park, Livingston Park, was made into an official public park in 1885. In 1851, Dr.

Lincoln Goodale Lincoln Goodale (February 25, 1782–1868) was the first doctor to live in Columbus, Ohio, United States. He was a great benefactor to the city and his legacy includes a large parcel of land that today is known as Goodale Park. His likeness in t ...

donated 40 acres to the City of Columbus for use as a park. That site became

Goodale Park Goodale Park is a public park in the Victorian Village area of Columbus, Ohio. It was donated to the city in 1851 by Lincoln Goodale. For a few months during the Civil War, it was a staging area for Union troops known as Camp Jackson. ComFest ...

. In 1867, the city acquired property for what would become Schiller Park in what is now

German Village German Village is a historic neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio, just south of the city's downtown. It was settled in the early-to-mid-19th century by a large number of German immigrants, who at one time comprised as much as a third of the city's ...

. In 1895, the

Franklin Park Conservatory Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is a botanical garden and conservatory located in Columbus, Ohio. It is open daily and an admission fee is charged. Today, it is a horticultural and educational institution showcasing exotic plant ...

opened to the public and was owned and operated by the department until 1989. In 1904, the city formed an 18-member park commission and maintained playgrounds in four city parks. The City Recreation Department was founded on July 15, 1910, and opened up five recreation centers in the following two years. In 1920, the first municipal golf course was established and a day camp in 1927. The Maryland Pool was built by ''

The Columbus Dispatch ''The Columbus Dispatch'' is a daily newspaper based in Columbus, Ohio. Its first issue was published on July 1, 1871, and it has been the only mainstream daily newspaper in the city since ''The Columbus Citizen-Journal'' ceased publication in 19 ...

'' in 1929, later gifting it to the city to make it the city's first pool. The Recreation Department took over management of the

Columbus Zoo and Aquarium The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is a non-profit zoo located near Powell in Liberty Township, Delaware County, Ohio, United States, north of the city of Columbus. The land lies along the eastern banks of the O'Shaughnessy Reservoir on the Sciot ...

in 1951, but later gave up ownership to the Zoological Park Association, Inc., a non-profit organization, in 1970. The city continued providing funds from the city's general fund, however, until 1986. On June 6, 1953 the

Columbus Park of Roses The Columbus Park of Roses, also known as the Whetstone Park of Roses, is a public park and rose garden in Columbus, Ohio. The park is located within the city's larger Whetstone Park in the Clintonville neighborhood. The free public park is ope ...

opened to the public, following all the paths and gardens laid out, and enclosed by a fence. At this time, the garden had 20,000 plants. The park utilized , though with 35 total acres including woodlands and a natural ravine of the surrounding Whetstone Park, which at the time was the largest in Columbus with .

Current department, 1972present

In 1972, voters approved the merger of the Recreation Department with the Division of Parks and Forestry to form the current department to better coordinate the management and planning of the parks. Having begun his term as superintendent of the Recreation Department,

Melvin Dodge Melvin B. Dodge (1924August 19, 1991) was director of the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department and president of the Greater Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau. Biography In 1951, Dodge graduated from the Ohio State University with a degr ...

was named the department's director and began the development of the

Olentangy River The Olentangy River is a tributary of the Scioto River in Ohio, United States. History It was originally called ''keenhongsheconsepung'', a Delaware word literally translated as "sharp tool river", based on the shale found along its shores. ...

front to create a park with a floating bandshell, amphitheatre, and bike trails. During his tenure, he helped to create Columbus's current park system, including recreation centers and riverfront parks. He also saw the

Columbus Zoo The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is a non-profit zoo located near Powell in Liberty Township, Delaware County, Ohio, United States, north of the city of Columbus. The land lies along the eastern banks of the O'Shaughnessy Reservoir on the Sciot ...

grow into a renowned zoo. Dodge retired in 1985, and was succeeded by James W. Barney as director. In 2019, Bernita Reese became director of the department, the first Black woman in the position.

Governance

The Columbus Recreation and Parks Department has a nine-member commission who are appointed by the mayor that establishes the policy direction of the park. A director oversees programs management, administration, and facilities management of the department.

References

External links